A Multi-layer Approach for the Identification and Evaluation of Collaborative Robotic Workplaces Within Industrial Production Plants

Collaborative robotic solutions, where humans and robots share a common workspace performing tasks concurrently without physical safety barriers dividing them, are entering the 4.0 manufacturing market. Some proven and tested use cases of Human-Robot Collaboration have been implemented, but their identification process is often just based on the intuition of planning engineers. The purpose of this work is to propose a systematic approach for the identification of potential collaborative workstations within an industrial production plant. In order to do this a multi-layer modelling approach was used and enriched. The multi-layer approach defines the overall goal of the industrial process, the sub-processes that made it possible, the activity models that enables a flow of activities and, finally, a set of methods to carry out the activities. A morphological box of methods that can be used to achieve the specific goal of identifying suitable collaborative workplaces in an industrial plant, through a process of HRC potential analysis is, therefore, ready to be deeply investigated and used.