When the robot turns into a barista

The igus® cobot ReBeL is not only used in industrial applications, but also serves delicious coffee

Fancy a coffee, but your favorite café isn't close by? The cobot ReBeL from Cologne-based company igus® turns into a waiter and serves delicious coffee in a matter of seconds. The only thing you have to do is push a button.

Black or with milk and sugar? A lot of businesspeople are familiar with this phrase when visiting a company. It's often followed by a trip to the usual capsule machine, with the preparation process taking a back seat. For igus® and the robotics platform RBTX.com, the matter is very different: Anyone ordering a coffee at the Cologne-based company's stand will witness a very special "barista". The fresh coffee is served completely autonomously by the ReBeL robot arm, which attracts attention. The company has intelligently combined the cobot with a high-quality coffee machine, just like the one you would find in the café round the corner. Anyone ordering a coffee simply pushes a button and the ReBeL gets to work first it takes a coffee cup from the stack, selects the appropriate program on the coffee machine and holds the cup under the dispenser. The whole process takes just a few seconds, and the customers have freshly brewed coffee in their hands.

Mobility thanks to six degrees of freedom
These delicate movements are made possible by the ReBeL's six degrees of freedom. The robot weighs just 8kg and is therefore extremely versatile. The arm can carry a payload of up to 2kg with a reach of 66.4cm. The ReBeL really comes into its own in confined working spaces. "By connecting it to the coffee machine, we show how easy it is to work with a cobot," explains Alexander Mühlens, Head of the Low-Cost Automation Business Unit at igus®. The cobot communicates with the coffee machine via digital I/Os, and operation is simple and intuitive. With igus® Robot Control, the manufacturer also provides free and license-free control software that can even be used to test the robot before purchase. Together with a customer, igus® is currently working on the further development of the barista robot. In future, it will also be able to do latte art and create milk foam images to set it apart from other fully automatic coffee machines.

Customized configuration and transparency at RBTX.com
In general, a high level of transparency before the purchase is an important concern for igus®. For this reason, the company has launched RBTX.com, the marketplace for digital robot solutions. There, igus® offers a variety of their inexpensive low-cost robots. On the platform, users will not only be inspired by solutions such as the coffee robot. They also have the possibility to customize their own robot application. The prices are displayed transparently in each step. "With RBTX.com, we are bringing low-cost robotics to the user at a low threshold," explains Alexander Mühlens. The ReBeL is also available via the platform - for a price of €4,970. The complete package including coffee machine costs €6,870. This makes the cobot interesting for restaurants, cafés or hotels - in other words, for all people who want to offer their customers a special eye-catcher when preparing their coffee.

Name: igus® Singapore Pte Ltd
Address: 84 Genting Lane #06-03 Axxel Innovation Centre, Singapore 349584

Media Contact: Vjay
Tel. 65 6487 1411 Ext: 836
Website: https://www.igus.sg/

About igus®
igus GmbH develops and produces motion plastics. These lubrication-free, high-performance polymers improve technology and reduce costs wherever things move. In energy supplies, highly flexible cables, plain and linear bearings as well as lead screw technology made of tribo-polymers, igus is the worldwide market leader. The family-run company based in Cologne, Germany, is represented in 31 countries and employs 4,600 people across the globe. In 2022, igus generated a turnover of €1,15 billion. Research in the industry's largest test laboratories constantly yields innovations and more security for users. 234,000 articles are available from stock and the service life can be calculated online. In recent years, the company has expanded by creating internal startups, e.g. for ball bearings, robot drives, 3D printing, the RBTX platform for Lean Robotics and intelligent "smart plastics" for Industry 4.0. Among the most important environmental investments are the "chainge" programme - recycling of used e-chains - and the participation in an enterprise that produces oil from plastic waste.

This release was published on openPR.