End-of-arm laser system ensures safe cobot collaboration
21 February 2025 
The German sensor-maker Sick has teamed up with the Danish cobot-builder Universal Robots to develop a technology that ensures safe, collision-free and close collaboration between robots and humans. The laser-based End of Arm Safeguard (EOAS) system is mounted on a robot arm to create a protective field around a tool at the end of the arm.
The system moves with the arm to provide protection over a distance of up to 400mm. If a human disturbs the protective field, the arm stops moving immediately. Sick says that it potentially removes the need for additional safety measures.
The system uses a time-of-flight technology, allowing robot arms to react dynamically with a response time of ≤110ms, speeding up production and enhancing safety. It is said to give humans the confidence to work collaboratively, knowing that the arm will stop if the protective field is breached, and will start again once the field has been restored.
The plug-and-play system can be installed on a Universal Robot arm within 15 minutes. The sensor is recognised automatically as a UR accessory and integrates with existing operations using the EOAS URCap software. Sick and UR have created a series of tutorials to enable fast, effective integration of the EOAS. The URCap software provides continuous updates.
The technology creates an infrared protective shell using 40 category 2 (ISO 13849) laser beams that create a hazard zone encompassing both the tool and the workpiece. Mounting the sensor onto the cobot arm reduces unnecessary stops and enhances productivity. It allows workers to retrieve and replace workpieces easily and safely.
Potential application include pick-and-place, machine-tending, handling and assembly. The EOAS can be used in most sectors where cobots work alongside humans, including pharmaceuticals, electronics, semiconductors, food & beverage, cosmetics, automotive, packaging, plastics and metals.
“The EOAS ensures worker safety by helping to minimise risk in collaborative robot applications,” explains Matthew van den Braak, product manager for robotic and mobile platforms at Sick UK. “We are immensely proud of the new EOAS. It is so easy to install and configure. Our partnership with Universal Robots has seen the EOAS jointly developed and robustly tested in the field.
“As the first device of its kind on the market,” he adds, “the EOAS helps to remove physical and psychological barriers in human/robot collaboration across a wide range of applications.”
David Lievesley, a Universal Robots technical support engineer for the UK and Ireland, adds that “one of the great things about the EOAS is its fully patented plug-and-play technology, developed in partnership with Sick. It sits inside our safety system, operating as one device.
“When you alter the parameters on the sensor, it alters it on the robot, enabling full human-robot collaboration,” he continues. “The EOAS is ideal for small environments, adding an extra element of safety to what is on the end of the robot, and enabling the tool to work in a fully collaborative way.”
