Mr Schunk, you recently said that the digitalization of production processes and human-robot collaboration will shape industrial automation in the coming years. What does this mean for you as a manufacturer of gripping systems?
Schunk recognized the potential of digitalization and collaboration early on and today sees itself as a driving force and pioneer of the new technologies. Our goal is to make the vision of the smart factory a reality. The focus is on highly automated, networked production systems that autonomously parameterize themselves to the product variants to be manufactured and monitor all process steps. Our task as a competence leader for gripping systems and clamping technology is to develop intelligent components that make precisely this possible. They create the prerequisites for the full integration of smart production systems in the manufacturing environment and for connecting them to cloud-based ecosystems. The best example of this is the intelligent Schunk EGL parallel gripper, which uses inline measuring systems to collect, decentrally evaluate and analyze data during the ongoing process. In addition to gripping, intelligent gripping will in future include sensor-based detection of various process parameters, their processing and the ability to react accordingly. This also includes communication between the gripper and the system controller or higher levels, including web capability. And in interaction with every robot, every interface and every cloud.

Industry 4.0 and digitalization go hand in hand with a new understanding of data; machines are becoming "intelligent". How is Schunk responding to this development?
We are preparing ourselves for the fact that industrial gripping will change fundamentally with increasing intelligence. The possibilities of digital shadows or digital twins also play a significant role here. Ultimately, the aim is to make gripping systems so intelligent that at least semi-autonomous handling processes become possible. In future, the gripper itself will know how to grip the workpiece and develop the optimum gripping strategy in conjunction with the higher-level robot or linear system. Above all, the gripper system's analysis options, tactile intelligence and autonomous collision monitoring will become increasingly important. The intelligent gripper itself will be able to decide whether parts are good or bad, create documentation or evaluate the quality of the component supplier. In the future, digital services will enable grippers to systematically analyse processes, identify weak points and pass on optimization suggestions directly to the responsible employees. Similar to humans, gripper systems will learn and act individually in future, depending on the objects they are handling.

What will you be presenting at Automatica this year?
At Automatica, Schunk will be using smart grippers and software tools to show how Industry 4.0 and human-robot collaboration scenarios can be realized. The spectrum ranges from intelligent components for integrated process monitoring and DGUV-certified co-act grippers for collaborative applications to software that simplifies the design and construction of gripping systems and enables the simulation of entire handling and assembly systems. We will also be presenting a complete modular gripping system for Universal Robots' robot arms for the first time.