Applications and prospects of robots

It should be said that China is both the country that most needs and least needs robots. China has a large population and abundant, inexpensive labor resources. From this perspective, hiring a human is cheaper than using an expensive and cumbersome robot. However, if my country wants to become a world power, it must do more with less. Our enterprises must adopt high technology as much as possible for more efficient production and win with high competitiveness. This requires many robots, as humans do not have the precision, accuracy, and efficiency of robots. Some people may lose their jobs, but more job opportunities will be created, and the benefits to society will be greater. I believe that in the near future, the robotics industry will become a pillar industry of the national economy, just like the automobile industry. The United States is the "nation of automobiles," and China can become the "nation standing on the shoulders of robots."

Current Status and Development Trends of Industrial Robot Technology at Home and Abroad In recent years, the development of the robotics field abroad has shown the following trends:
1. The performance of industrial robots is constantly improving (high speed, high precision, high reliability, easy operation and maintenance), while the price per unit is constantly decreasing, with the average price per unit dropping from US$103,000 in 1991 to US$65,000 in 1997.
2. Mechanical structures are developing towards modularity and reconfigurability. For example, servo motors, reducers, and detection systems are integrated into a single joint module; the entire robot can be constructed by recombining joint modules and link modules; and modular assembly robots have already been launched on the market abroad.
3. Industrial robot control systems are developing towards PC-based open controllers, which facilitates standardization and networking; the integration of components is increasing, control cabinets are becoming more compact, and modular structures are being adopted; this greatly improves the reliability, ease of operation, and maintainability of the system.
4. Sensors play an increasingly important role in robots. In addition to traditional position, speed and acceleration sensors, assembly and welding robots also use vision and force sensors, while remote-controlled robots use multi-sensor fusion technology, such as vision, sound, force and touch, for environmental modeling and decision control. Multi-sensor fusion configuration technology has been maturely applied in product systems.
5. The role of virtual reality technology in robotics has evolved from simulation and preview to process control, such as enabling remote robot operators to feel as if they are in a remote working environment to manipulate the robot.

my country's industrial robot development began in the 1980s with the "Seventh Five-Year Plan" for scientific and technological research. With national support, through the "Seventh Five-Year Plan" and "Eighth Five-Year Plan" for scientific and technological research, China has basically mastered the design and manufacturing technology of robot manipulators, the hardware and software design technology of control systems, and kinematics and trajectory planning technology. It has produced some key robot components and developed robots for painting, arc welding, spot welding, assembly, and material handling. More than 130 sets of painting robots have been deployed on nearly 30 automated painting production lines (stations) in more than 20 enterprises, and arc welding robots have been applied to welding lines in automobile manufacturing plants. However, overall, my country's industrial robot technology and its engineering applications still lag behind those of foreign countries. For example, reliability is lower than foreign products; robot application engineering started later and has a narrower application field; and production line system technology differs from that of foreign countries. In terms of application scale, my country has installed approximately 200 domestically produced industrial robots, accounting for about 0.04% of the global installed number. The main reason for these issues is the lack of a developed robotics industry. Currently, robot production in my country is largely driven by customer requirements, resulting in a "one customer, one redesign" approach. This leads to a wide variety of specifications, small batches, low component standardization, long delivery cycles, and relatively high costs, while also resulting in inconsistent quality and reliability. Therefore, there is an urgent need to address the key technologies in the early stages of industrialization, conduct comprehensive product planning, and improve serialization, standardization, and modular design to actively promote the industrialization process.

Robotics technology is an important component of high technology. Its industrialization process in my country has just begun. Although some progress has been made, there are still many difficulties and shortcomings. Therefore, it needs more care and support from all sides.

National policy support is a crucial prerequisite for accelerating the industrialization of high-tech industries. Relevant government departments in my country should organize thorough investigations and research to formulate practical and feasible preferential policies for promoting and applying robots and facilitating robot research and development. For example, supportive policies could be implemented for the robot industry in terms of taxation, investment, and loans. The Japanese government's experience in encouraging companies to use robots through policy formulation and a series of measures is worth learning from. Furthermore, providing subsidies to robot users could be considered to encourage purchases. To avoid workplace accidents and occupational diseases caused by dangerous and harsh working environments and to protect workers' physical and mental safety, the use of industrial robots should be mandated through labor laws for certain specialized jobs, such as painting and casting. This would significantly increase the demand for industrial robots.

The industrialization of robotics in my country must be driven by the market. As a high-tech field, the development of robots is closely related to social production and economic conditions. The research and development of robots should prioritize areas of application based on the greatest technical feasibility, and use these as a breakthrough point to penetrate and spread to other fields.

The level of public awareness regarding robotics significantly hinders the industrialization of the robotics industry. Imagine if end-users of robots viewed them with mystery and a sense of distance – how could the robotics industry possibly develop? Therefore, both the government and relevant enterprises should prioritize the popularization of robotics knowledge.

For the application of machines in my country to successfully enter the market and achieve industrialization, the joint efforts of all parties are still needed.