Offenburg University cooperating with Yaskawa - Robotics centre continues to grow

Yaskawa, the global technology group, is providing Offenburg University with two Motoman robots and a ground track. A classical industrial robot with a payload of 50 kg will open up multiple opportunities for realistic learning and research in future. With full mobility along a six metre axis, the robot offers a unique characteristic in the research environment. Yaskawa’s new Motoman HC20DT cobot, designed for a payload of 20 kg, likewise opens new perspectives for research into human-machine-interaction. Due to its safety sensors on all six axes, it can be operated without a safety guard.

University and enterprise, hand-in-hand

Prof. Dr Stephan Trahasch, Rector of Offenburg University, says: “Offenburg University and the companies on the southern Upper Rhine are working hand-in-hand. With application-oriented research and a close dialogue, we want to increase the competitive strength of medium-sized businesses.”

“The robotics centre being built at the Campus West will be unique in southern Germany. The generous, high-quality technical equipment provided by Yaskawa brings us a significant step closer to this goal,” adds Prof. Dr Thomas M. Wendt, Director of the Work-Life Robotics Institute at Offenburg University. “Together with our partners from industry and science, we are providing high-performance infrastructure to students and medium-sized companies. This will enable us to advance teaching as well as research and development in the fields of industrial robotics, collaborative robotics, sensor technology, 3D printing and robotics in nursing.”

“With the support of Offenburg University and the robotics centre, we are extending our reach in the southern Upper Rhine region and into the field of youth education. We place great emphasis on students gaining experience with our technology from an early stage. For this reason, educational promotion is firmly established in our corporate strategy. We believe that the simplicity of our programming, particularly with our collaborative Motoman HC20DT robot, in application and achievable results, will leave a lasting impression. Teaching technology is one thing, experiencing technology is quite something else,” says Bruno J. Schnekenburger, CEO of Yaskawa Europe GmbH.

Robotics on an industrial scale

Offenburg University has laid the foundation stone for a robotics and cobotics research centre on the new Campus West for the winter term 2022/23. Innovative robotics applications for the industrial environment are being created at the Work-Life Robotics Institute in cooperation with private companies. The agreement with Yaskawa enables the building of a fully automated industrial-scale robot cell. Students of all faculties at Offenburg University receive an excellent training in the basics of automated production. Applied research is receiving new impulses with feasibility studies and sensor technology research in networked manufacturing. Thanks to the numerous interfaces that Yaskawa has integrated into the control system, these can be experienced in practice.

Trend topics such as the setup of a digital twin for simulation purposes can be covered, likewise complex doctoral projects in the field of large-scale 3D printing.

(From left): Bruno Schnekenburger (CEO, Yaskawa Europe), Prof. Dr Stephan Trahasch (Rector of Offenburg University), Prof. Dr Thomas M. Wendt (Director of the Work-Life Robotics Institute at Offenburg University) and Armin Schlenk (Director Marketing and Business Development, Yaskawa Europe) welcome the cooperation between the Offenburg University and Yaskawa.

Source: Offenburg University

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Contact for the press:

Marion Annutsch
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Yaskawa Europe GmbH
Tel.: +49 8166-90-0
marion.annutsch@yaskawa.eu

www.yaskawa.eu.com