New Delhi 

Japanese technology major Mitsubishi Electric has launched a series of collaborative robots (cobots) called MELFA ASSISTA in India. MELFA ASSISTA can work together with humans, keeping safety features such as collision detection a priority and complying strictly with the international safety and robotic standards ISO 10218-1 and ISO/TS15066. After a successful global launch of the collaborative robots, Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation & Industrial Division (FAID), located in Pune, is ready to serve the Indian manufacturing sector with the advancements in productivity, faster automation, along with flexibility and safety.

RT VisualBox, an intuitive engineering software will also be introduced in a new series for quick and easy system development. MELFA ASSISTA and RT VisualBox can be used by the customers to realize more efficient production, reduce the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of robotic manufacturing systems, and meet new needs for adequate distancing of workers at manufacturing sites.

Some of the key features are:

Certified peripheral devices such as electric grippers, cameras etc can be connected easily using RT VisualBox. The lineup of certified companies and connectable devices will be expanded to enhance the applicability of the MELFA ASSISTA series.

Hisahiro Nishimoto, Business Unit Head - Factory Automation & Industrial Division, Mitsubishi Electric India Pvt Ltd, said, “We are proud to announce the launch of collaborative robots in India. Our Factory Automation & Industrial Division is ready to support the customers with advanced automation needs. We are looking at faster automation, higher productivity, flexibility, safety and reduced Total Cost of Ownership. We are excited to see the efficiency it will bring to the factory floors and will ease the operations with common space sharing and work alongside employees to increase productivity.” 

MELFA ASSISTA complies with international standards such as the ISO 10218-1 general safety requirement for industrial robots and the ISO/TS 15066 technical specification for collaborative robots. Compliance with the functional safety standards of another leading international certification body is also planned for further reliability. Also, MELFA ASSISTA series robots can optionally use NSF H1 food-grade lubricant approved by the US National Sanitation Foundation for the production of food & beverage products. The products announced in this release will contribute to the environment by helping to reduce energy consumption through optimised manufacturing.

Industrial robots are being adopted for the manufacture of electronic, automotive, pharmaceutical, food & beverage, sanitary, etc. products. In addition, robots that enable human-robot collaboration are also expected to attract growing attention in helping to meet new requirements for adequate distancing of workers in manufacturing sites. In response, Mitsubishi Electric is now releasing its MELFA ASSISTA series of collaborative robots (cobots) and accompanying RT VisualBox engineering software, which together will enable companies to install and set up robotic systems fast, intuitively and relatively inexpensively, and respond flexibly to rapidly changing business environments and social needs.