Universal Robots

Universal Robots (UR) was founded in Denmark in 2005 and became the leading name in collaborative robots, or cobots. In 2015 it was acquired by the US test-equipment company Teradyne.

What a cobot is

A traditional industrial robot is fast and strong, so it works inside a safety cage. A cobot is designed to work near people without a cage. It senses contact, stops when pushed, and limits its force.

Why UR matters

UR arms are light, easy to program by moving the arm by hand, and cheaper than classic industrial robots. This opened automation to small factories that never had robots before.

Typical jobs

Machine tending, screwdriving, packing, quality inspection, lab work.

Limits

Cobots are slower than caged robots, so they are used where flexibility matters more than top speed. Safety still needs a risk assessment for each setup, following standards like ISO 10218.