A wheeled humanoid robot built by China’s JAKA Robotics has passed a real-world factory test, cutting a headlight production task from 105 seconds to just 28 seconds. The result was reported by China’s Xinhua news agency from the Shanghai industry expo.
The robot was tested in a working headlight factory, where it handled bins of parts on the production line. Engineers said the same robot can now be set up for a new factory task in 57 days, down from 12 months before.
The test took place during the 26th China International Industry Fair in Shanghai, held from October 12 to 16, which brought together more than 3,200 exhibitors. Robots were one of the main attractions at the fair, as Chinese companies showed how humanoid machines are moving from laboratories into real factories.
Humanoid robots are designed to work in spaces built for people, using arms, legs and wheels to move around factory floors. The JAKA robot’s wheeled design lets it travel between workstations while its arms handle parts.
China is now the world’s largest market for industrial robots, and its companies are racing to put humanoid robots into car plants, electronics factories and warehouses. The Shanghai test is being seen as a sign that these machines are getting closer to everyday factory work.
Experts say the key question is no longer whether humanoid robots can work in factories, but how fast they can be trained for new jobs. Cutting setup time from a year to under two months could make them far cheaper for factories to adopt.
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