Universal Robots develops interface for Siemens TIA Portal

Universal Robots (UR) has announced that it will be providing an interface for the Siemens TIA Portal.

Integrating UR’s collaborative robots into complex machines and manufacturing environments will soon be a process that machine builders and systems integrators can seamlessly handle through the Siemens TIA (Totally Integrated Automation) Portal. The UR cobots will become part of the Simatic Robot Library within the Siemens TIA environment through an interpreter interface planned to be completed within the fourth quarter of 2021.

“Machinery and plant engineers, as well as manufacturers with large production facilities, will benefit from our cobots’ TIA integration,” said Bernd Meier, Director of Global Key Accounts & OEMS at UR. “Thanks to the new interface, they will soon be able to apply our cobots’ functional diversity, precision and repeatability within complex production lines, benefiting from all aspects of digitalised automation — from digital planning and integrated engineering to transparent operations.”

The TIA Portal engineering framework supports users in planning extensive manufacturing automation projects. In November 2020, Siemens presented the Simatic Robot Library as an addition to this application: the comprehensive ‘robot library’ allows users to program their cobots directly within the TIA Portal via a unified user interface and to include them in their planning. This will now also include UR’s collaborative robots, greatly extending the range of companies benefiting from the cobot technology.

“We are welcoming Universal Robots as a new partner just in time for the start of the new Simatic Robot Library’s pilot,” said Tobias Fengel, Marketing Manager at Siemens Digital Industries. “We are delighted that we will soon be able to offer our clients a forward-looking solution together with a cobot market leader.”

With the TIA Portal’s integrated design, users independently implement the UR cobots within major production lines and teach them functions such as jog mode or path point creation. The library allows users to download programming examples and use them to control the UR cobots.

“Our cobots have always been characterised by their intuitive handling,” said Meier. “Their integration into the TIA Portal via the Simatic Robot Library now accelerates their integration and implementation into complex production lines. It also makes it easier to combine the UR cobots with technologies like edge data analysis or cloud services and include them in the monitoring of plant conditions.”