Which robot hardware companies should you be paying attention to right now?
The robot market has long been dominated by a few manufacturers. But, other robot companies are doing some interesting things and are worth your attention.
There are a lot of robot brands available on the market these days. We think this diversity is a good thing!
However, the large range of robots can make it difficult to know which robot companies you should pay attention to. if you are in the market for some robotic hardware.
Traditionally, the robotics market has been dominated by what is sometimes known as “The Big 4.” In fact, this refers to the large robotic manufacturers: ABB, Fanuc, KUKA, and Yaskawa.
These 4 manufacturers — and a few other large prominent companies — have supplied the vast majority of robots to the industry for decades.
You might assume that you should go with one of the large names. But, at RoboDK we believe that a lot of great robot hardware companies are worth your attention. Some of them are new entrants to the market but others have been operating for many years.
Here is our list of 13 of robot hardware companies to look out for in 2022.
All of them are available in the RoboDK programming software.
1. Kinova
Firstly, Kinova is a Canadian robotic company based in Quebec specializing in collaborative robots.
They manufacture robotic arms that are suitable for both personal assistance in the medical industry and use in industry, research, and education. In fact, the collaborative arms are lightweight, portable, and easily adapt to varied application areas. Kinova also provides accessories such as grippers and actuators.
2. Doosan
Doosan Robotics is a subsidiary of the Doosan Corporation based in Seoul, South Korea.
They have several robots that are arranged into their A, H, and M series. Doosan’s website includes a handy application chooser that allows you to narrow down your choice of robots based on your task requirements. It suggests suitable robots for your application and the required accessories.
3. Techman
Techman is a collaborative robotics company based in Taoyuan, Taïwan that formed a strategic alliance with Japanese firm Omron in 2018.
Their cobots are grouped into a regular series (with payload capacities of 4-6kg) and a heavy-medium series (with payloads of 12-14kg). The robots are targeted at a range of different industries including food processing, construction, retail, and pharmaceutical.
4. Nachi
Nachi Robotics was established in 1989 and is based in Michigan, United States.
They offer a large range of robotic arms with payloads ranging from 2kg all the way up to 700kg. They also have specific robots for palletizing, handling, heavy-duty tasks, spot welding, and cleanroom operation.
5. Mecademic
Mecademic is a manufacturer of small industrial robots based in Montreal, Canada (close to us at RoboDK HQ).
They describe their robots as the smallest, most precise industrial robots on the market. They offer both a 6 DoF robotic arm and a SCARA robot for high-speed pick and place applications.
6. AUBO
Aubo is a collaborative robot manufacturer based in Tennessee, United States.
They offer two cobot series: the i-series robots which have payload capacities of 3-16kg and the iV-series robots which include integrated robotic vision hardware. Customers use the robots in a varied range of applications, from cylinder head blowing to security patrols.
7. ESTUN
Estun Automation is based in Nanjing, China, and produces a range of automation components, including robots.
They offer a large range of robot types including linear axis robots, SCARA, Delta, four-axis palletizing robots, and conventional articulated arms.
RoboDK currently supports the Estun ER16 6DoF robot. But, if you are using one of their other robots, let us know and we will add it to the software.
8. Dobot
Dobot is a manufacturer of small industrial and desktop robots based in Shenzhen, China.
The company shot to fame following its highly successful Kickstarter campaign in 2015 for the original Dobot robot for hobbyists. Since then, they have expanded their range significantly and now have a collaborative robot series for industry, educational robots, and a series of color-mixing 3D printers.
9. Hanwha
Hanwha Precision Machinery is a subsidiary of the Hanwha Group, based in Changwon, South Korea.
They have a range of collaborative robots supporting payload capacities of 3-12kg and are primarily targeted at applications of assembly, screwing, dispensing, and pick and place. They are useful in various industries including automotive, electronics, and plastics.
10. Han’s Robot
Han’s Robot is a robot manufacturer based in Shenzhen, China.
They offer 5 types of robots: Elfin Collaborative Robots, Star Mobile Robots, Hybrid Navigation Mobile Robots, SCARA Robots, and the so-called “Cute Educational Robot.” The Elfin cobot range has payload capacities of 3-15kg.
11. Huibo
Huibo is a robot manufacturer based in Jiangsu, China.
They offer robots targeted at 4 main applications: a glaze spraying robot, a polishing robot, an AGV (autonomous guided vehicle), and an electric server booster arm. The glaze spraying robot suppliesas complete applications for the task.
12. OTC Daihen
OTC Daihen is an automation component manufacturer based in Osaka, Japan.
They have an extensive product line that includes 6 DoF and 7 DoF robotic arms, positioners, sensors, and welding components. Moreover, their 7 DoF robots include an extra axis to avoid interference without changing the pose of the tool.
13. GSK
GSK is a robot manufacturer based in Guangdong, China.
They offer a large range of different robots including 6 DoF robotic arms, delta robots, SCARA robots, and welding robots. Moreover, they also offer other automation components like servo drivers.
After all, if you are looking for a robot for your facility, this could be a good time to have a look beyond The Big 4 and consider these other robot hardware companies.
However, whatever robot you choose, users can be programme it with RoboDK.
Finally, you can find all of these manufacturers in our Robot Library
Which robot hardware company do you prefer? Tell us in the comments below or join the discussion on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or in the RoboDK Forum.
