Since 2000, 25% of Western manufacturing capacity has migrated to China. As a result, around 45% of all products are now manufactured in China, compared to only 35% in Europe and the USA combined. This leads to a strategic dependency and vulnerability of Western industries, which was clearly noticeable during the coronavirus pandemic, for example. One trend in many companies is therefore to bring production capacities back to their own countries. Due to demographic change, however, there is a shortage of workers for this.

Dr. Homayoon Kazerooni, keynote speaker at the Faulhaber Innovation & Trends Day, posed the question of whether the shortage of employees could not also be seen as an opportunity - as a driver for rethinking production. The Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of California in Berkeley and expert in robotics, exoskeletons and human-machine systems emphasized that companies should not constantly try to recreate the past. Instead, he recommended creating something new - a kind of hyper-efficient production base. Despite fewer available skilled workers, there are ultimately new opportunities, for example through the use of humanoid robots.

Humanoid robots have long been the subject of discussion in fields of activity with social interaction such as care, the healthcare sector or service. However, they could also cover many fields of application in the industrial sector and complement the industrial and logistics robots that have been used in many different ways to date. In industrial applications, humanoid robots do not necessarily have to have a human appearance, as should be the case in the service sector, but can be reduced to three core components: artificial intelligence, vision with image processing and fine motorized gripping similar to a human hand. This would make industrial use the ideal entry point for humanoid robotics.

20 % of all drive axes are found in the smallest of spaces in the hands of robots. The right drive technology will therefore be important for future developments. © Faulhaber

The final assembly of products in particular, which today often still requires a lot of human manual labor, could benefit from this type of humanoid robotics. Artificial intelligence has already found its way into production, and vision systems in particular are now making extensive use of it. Humanoid robots must be able to adapt flexibly to different areas of application if they are to be used on a large scale in industry. AI could also be a key factor here.

Robot hand as the main field of development

In addition, industrial assembly requires precision, strength and robustness above all. This is where the robot hand becomes a second important key factor. It must be light and robust, modular, capable of learning and flexible, just like a human hand. The drive technology used plays a decisive role here: it must react quickly, ideally mimicking the reaction times of the human nervous system. Drive technology should be intelligent, light, flexible, efficient, dynamic and compact. In addition, it must be able to cope with water and dirt in ambient conditions and be resistant to shocks. It should work reliably around the clock, be powerful and durable and be easy to replace in the event of a defect. Scalability to suit a wide range of operating conditions is another requirement. Because humanoids are often used in close proximity to people, the drives should operate as quietly as possible. And, of course, safety plays an important role in this context.

Three ways to find the right drive technology

Kevin Moser, Area Sales Manager Sales Germany at Faulhaber, knows these requirements for drives for use in a robotic hand only too well: "We have already gained a lot of experience in the manufacture of prostheses. Here, too, the requirements are similar to those for the robotic hand. These requirements are then reflected in the technical implementation of the drive: in the drive technology and control, interfaces, lubricants and bearings, but also in the gear technology, commutation system, winding technology and geometry as well as mechanical interfaces, manufacturing processes and, of course, safety features." He and his colleagues follow three basic approaches to find the right drive solution.

The first relies on the drive experts' standard range. Around 25 million combinations can be generated from the broad product range, consisting of motors, precision gearboxes, linear actuators, encoders, controllers and various accessories. Depending on the size specifications for a robot hand, the precision it needs to offer or the forces required, the standard range can reach its limits despite its diversity.

Then the second solution is the modification of standard components. Individual adjustments can increase performance and mechanical or electrical interfaces can be adapted to specific requirements. As a rule, a robotic hand uses six drives, one in each finger for the tilting movement plus an additional drive in the thumb for the positioning movement. Of course, the space in a hand is very limited. Against this background, adaptations may be necessary in order to generate sufficient force.

Where the modification of standard components alone is not enough, the third option may be required: customer-specific solutions. In co-engineering with their customers, the drive experts develop the ideal solution from customer-specific drive components, complete single-axis or multi-axis drive systems and integrated precision drive assemblies through to the manufacture and delivery of OEM products.

Innovation trigger phase

The demand for humanoid robots is high and will grow in the coming years. In terms of AI, vision and drive technology, many of the technical foundations are already in place. Nevertheless, humanoid robotics for industrial use is still in a kind of "innovation trigger phase", which is characterized by experimentation, strong interest from the media and investors as well as a variety of technical approaches, only some of which will become established. In this context, Kevin Moser names five key insights into where he believes the journey will take us: "We currently assume that humanoid robots will first gain a foothold in industry, for example in assembly, logistics or automation. The focus here is on efficiency, productivity and the ability to compensate for staff shortages. The human-like appearance, on the other hand, is of secondary importance. This accelerates development." Secondly, service deployment will follow with a slight delay, because interaction with humans poses greater challenges in terms of safety and acceptance as a counterpart. At the moment, development is still in its infancy and only the coming years will show which concepts will prevail. Fourthly, it is clear that the robot hand will play a central role. A robot currently combines 30 to 40 drive axes in the body volume of an average adult. The robot hands alone contain 20% of all drive axes in a very small space. Fifthly, this means that the right drive technology will be relevant for future developments.

Moser sums up: "In the development of robotic hands, it will be crucial to integrate the drives into the devices in a highly integrated manner. Because we are not just a supplier of components, but rather see ourselves as an innovation partner for our customers and because we have extensive experience with complex drive systems, we are ideally placed to support them in the development of the next generation of humanoid robots."

Faulhaber at the Hannover Messe 2026, Hall 13, Stand C87