Universal Robots held a meeting with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to discuss challenges facing the domestic collaborative robot market and suggest ways to improve market development.

Universal Robots announced that it discussed various difficulties faced in the field, such as difficulties encountered due to technical regulations that differ from international standards when using domestic collaborative robots, with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's National Institute of Standards and Technology (Director Noh Jae-hong) on March 28.

In 2008, Universal Robots commercialized a collaborative robot that could work in the same space as humans. Collaborative robots have advantages over industrial robots, such as safety, high versatility, convenient operation, and low price, and are currently being used in various industries, including machine tending, coating, and logistics.

Through this on-site meeting, Universal Robots introduced the difficulties faced by businesses, saying, “In Korea, where the introduction of collaborative robots was relatively late, regulations based on existing industrial robots are applied to collaborative robots, and thus, they are subject to relatively strict standards compared to international standards.”

Lee Nae-hyung, CEO of Universal Robots, said, “Universal Robots’ collaborative robots were designed from the beginning to work in the same space as humans, and their safety has been recognized in various industries.” He added, “During this on-site visit, we were able to discuss the current status of collaborative robot technology regulations in Korea with the National Agency for Technology and Standards, and Universal Robots will continue to actively cooperate with government policies so that the development and growth of Korea’s robotics industry can keep pace with the global market.”