Humanoid robots 'the future' of car making, says BMW

the future' of car making, says BMW">

BMW is set to revolutionize its car manufacturing process in Europe by introducing humanoid robots for the first time. Two robots, made by Hexagon Robotics, will work in production from this summer at the Leipzig factory. Michael Nikolaides, head of process management and digitalisation at BMW, believes that humanoid robots are the future of automotive production.

Robot arms and automation have been used in the car industry for decades, but humanoid robots offer more flexibility and can be easily integrated into existing production lines. "If you have a humanoid form, you can pretty much set it to any workplace where a human is working today because it has the same size and the same capabilities," says Nikolaides. The cost of robots has decreased significantly, making it more cost-effective to use robots that can work alongside humans.

"When a robot costs 17 million, you'd re-organise your factory around the robot, but it doesn't anymore," says Bill Ray, distinguished VP analyst at Gartner. The Hexagon robot, named Aeon, stands 1.65m tall and weighs 60kg. It has a top speed of 2.4m/second and can carry 15kg for short periods.

Aeon was trained using a combination of teleoperation and simulation in a digital twin of the factory. The robot will be used to feed parts to manufacturing tools and carry out pick-and-place tasks for battery assembly. BMW expects the robots to help with repetitive or physically challenging tasks and address labour shortages.

Nikolaides believes that humanoid robots will create new job opportunities and improve working conditions. "We know that staff will be short in a matter of years, and humanised robots help," he says. Other carmakers, such as Toyota and Hyundai, are also exploring the use of humanoid robots in their production processes.