In the framework of the RED 5R collaborative project, which has just ended, CATEC has successfully developed in its pilot factory a demonstrator for the manual and aerospace industry, implementing technologies such as cognitive and service robotics systems, and artificial intelligence applications for the industry.

The 5R Network project, in which 13 people from the CATEC team have participated, is a Collaborative Network for Smart Manufacturing. It is made up of 5 technology centres (Tekniker, Eurecat, Aimen, CARTIF and CATEC), equipped with the necessary tools and infrastructures to act as driving forces for the development and introduction of new technologies in the Spanish manufacturing industry.

Since its launch in 2021, the 5R network has implemented 5 Pilot Factories, one for each of the members of the network, corresponding to different problems and industrial sectors. In the case of CATEC, several demonstrators or intelligent workstations have been implemented that combine chatboxes (like Siri or Alexa) in their interaction with the operator, with the idea of supporting and improving manual processes, in order to bring industry5.0 closer to sectors such as manual manufacturing or aerospace:

  • Collaborative and cognitive stations for manual operations.
  • Intelligent stations for the assembly of large structures.
  • Stations for industrial safety and PRL.
  • Autonomous logistics in indoor facilities.
  • Robotic manufacturing and inspection cells.

As Eduardo Ferrera, head of the AI and Robotics unit and head of the 5R Network project at CATEC, explains, “the main objective of this project is technology transfer to industry, making our industry much more resilient”. Ferrera states that “with 5R, the technological progress is clear. We have developed by leaps and bounds human-robot, human-industry and industry-robot interaction mechanisms and cognitive skills thanks to these intelligent workstations. For example, in the aerospace industry, where many processes are manual, having a chatbox that is able to listen to you and interact with the voice of the operator greatly improves the digitalisation of the factory.

“One of the greatest benefits of this project has been the generation of a strong link between the different partner technology centres of European relevance, a profitable collaboration that will allow us to promote Spanish industry. For CATEC, collaborating in this project has been very gratifying and a success because we have managed to implement safer and simpler work models for our operators, improving their quality of life, and becoming a benchmark in the industry,” he adds.

CATEC has collected in a video, as a final part of the project, each of these intelligent stations. You can see the video in this link.