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Industrial Robots
Robots are used in a wide range of industrial applications. The earliest applications were in materials handling, spot welding, and spray painting. Robots were initially applied to jobs that were hot, heavy, and hazardous such as die casting, forging, and spot welding.
Welding Applications
Spray Painting Applications
Assembly Operations
Palletizing and Material Handling
Dispensing Operations
Laboratory Applications
Water Jet Cutting
Work Cell
Welding
	Perhaps the most popular applications of robots is in industrial welding. The repeatability, uniformity quality, and speed of robotic welding is unmatched. The two basic types of welding are spot welding and arc welding, although laser welding is done. Some environmental requirements should be considered for a successful operation.
The automotive industry is a major user of robotic spot welders. In 1985 Chrysler Motor Corporation's plants had a robot population of 900, 670 of which were used for spot welding.
The total number was about 2,350 in 1990. The other major welding task performed by robots is arc or seam welding. In this application two adjacent parts are joined together by fusing them, thereby creating a seam.
Spray Painting Applications
	Another popular and efficient use for robots is in the field of spray painting. The consistency and repeatability of a robot's motion have enabled near perfect quality while at the same time wasting no paint. The spray painting applications seems to epitomize the proper applications of robotics, relieving the human operator from a hazardous, albeit skillful job, while at the same time increasing work quality, uniformity, and cutting costs.
Assembly Operations
Robots lend themselves well to the tedious and repetitive nature of assembly tasks provided that the proper planning and design have been done. In addition, their high level of repeatability has allowed the development of some new technologies in electronic assembly.
Palletizing and Material Handling
	Palletizing is the act of loading or unloading material onto pallets. The newspaper industry has been particularly hard hit by increased labor costs. Part of the solution to this problem was to use robots like Cincinnati Milacron Robot being used to palletize advertising inserts for a newspaper.
Many companies in the United States and Canada have been forced to close in such areas as die casting and injection molding because they could not compete with foreign firms. The introduction of robotics into this process has allowed the same companies to remain viable.
	In semiconductor industry's IC chip manufacturig facilities, various processses take place within a clean room. This requires that personnel as well as robots not introduce dirt, dust, or oil into the area. Since robots do not breath, sneeze, or have dandruff, they are especially suited to the clean room environment demanded by the semiconductor industry.