Test Deployment of Humanoid Robots at BMW Group Plant Spartanburg

Latest robot generation Figure 02 from Californian robotics company Figure completes trial run in real production environment

Munich/Spartanburg, USA. The BMW Group is using humanoid robots in production for the first time. In a test run lasting several weeks, the latest humanoid robot Figure 02 from the Californian company Figure successfully inserted sheet metal parts into special fixtures in the body shop of the BMW Group’s Plant in Spartanburg. These are then assembled as part of the body. This production step requires the robot to be particularly tactile.

At the same time, using a robot can relieve employees of ergonomically unfavourable and tiring tasks. Together with Figure, the BMW Group is currently testing and evaluating how humanoid robots can be used safely in automotive production. This video impressively shows the test run in the body shop area of the BMW Group plant in Spartanburg.

“The developments in the field of robotics are very promising. With an early test run, we are now investigating the possible applications of humanoid robots in production. We want to accompany this technology from development to industrialisation,” explains Milan Nedeljković, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for production.

With the BMW iFACTORY, the BMW Group is continuously exploring new technologies

The BMW iFACTORY is the target image for the production of the future. Efficiency, digitalisation, and sustainability are central pillars of this. During testing, the BMW Group has gained important insights into the requirements that must be met for multi-purpose robots to be integrated into an existing production system. This includes, for example, how humanoid robots communicate with the system in real-life. Following their initial use in automotive production, the experts from the BMW Group and Figure will process the findings for future production applications and further develop the robots.

Figure 02 embodies the latest technological progress in robotics

According to the Californian company, Figure 02 now presented by Figure is the world’s most advanced humanoid robot currently available. With its combination of bipedal mobility and advanced dexterity, Figure 02 is ideally suited for use in areas with physically difficult, unsafe, or repetitive processes, thereby improving the ergonomics and safety of employees.

The robot can perform numerous human-like and two-handed tasks completely autonomously, which require diverse and dynamic manipulation, complex gripping, and the coordination of both hands in unison. It can place various complex parts with millimetre precision and move dynamically, taking advantage of the efficiency of the robot design.