1. Market Growth: Supply Chain Maturity Drives Surge in Installation Volume
The improvement in supply chain maturity, optimization of product stability, and reduction in end-user costs, combined with the demand for flexible manufacturing upgrades in industries such as 3C and automotive parts, are driving rapid expansion in the domestic collaborative robot market. According to GGII data, the shipment volume in the Chinese market reached 40,000 units in 2024, and is expected to exceed 50,000 units in 2025, maintaining a growth rate of around 25%. At the 2025 China Industrial Expo, dozens of companies including ABB, Youjiang, and Huayan showcased their latest solutions, demonstrating the vitality of the industry.
2. Technological Breakthroughs: 3D Upgrades Redefine Application Boundaries
(1) Multi-Dimensional Perception: From Simple Scenarios to Complex Processes
Collaborative robots are extending from basic operations such as palletizing and sorting to more complex scenarios like teach-free welding and flexible polishing, driven by upgrades in integrated perception systems known as “hand-eye-brain”:
- Visual Fusion: The ABB OmniCore™ EyeMotion vision system is compatible with third-party 2D/3D cameras and integrates with AI platforms like NVIDIA, lowering the barriers for AI vision applications; Daming Robotics employs a “body + native AI vision” design, with its AI flying inspection solution completing 3D object detection in 0.5 seconds, significantly reducing false positive rates; Huayan and Keyence jointly launched the HKE-01 solution, integrating laser scanning technology to obtain target geometric information in 0.2 seconds, with a scanning accuracy of 0.3μm.
- Force Control Upgrade: The Fao FR3WML-T end effector integrates a six-dimensional force sensor, increasing collision detection sensitivity by 3-5 times and improving debugging efficiency by 50%; the New Times CRS series is equipped with a six-dimensional force sensor and 3D vision, suitable for teach-free welding scenarios.
(2) High-Speed and High-Precision: Breaking Performance Bottlenecks
High-voltage drive technology has become mainstream, replacing traditional low-voltage solutions, with products like ABB’s PoWa series (220V) and Fanuc’s CRX series (100-240V) achieving breakthroughs in speed and precision:
- High Speed: The ABB PoWa reaches a maximum speed of 5.8m/s, improving operational cycle time by 50%; Huayan’s Elfin high-speed version has a joint speed of 370°/s, suitable for CNC loading and unloading scenarios.
- High Precision: Huayan robots achieve a repeat positioning accuracy of ±0.015mm, collaborating with Xianlin 3D to achieve precision detection of 0.5μm.
(3) Heavy Load and Embodied Intelligence: Expanding Industrial Boundaries
High-voltage drive technology supports breakthroughs in heavy load capabilities, with products like Huasheng’s HX series (80kg) and Huayan’s S60 (60kg) suitable for heavy load scenarios such as lithium batteries and warehousing. At the same time, embodied intelligence has become a new frontier:
- ABB proposed the AVR technology route, integrating six capabilities including perception cognition and autonomous reasoning, applying LLM technology in operational maintenance;
- Youjiang is developing a “super factory” solution, integrating wheeled humanoid robots and other equipment; Huayan has launched a dual-arm robot that simulates human collaboration to handle high-precision tasks.
GGII predicts that by 2030, the global market for embodied intelligent humanoid robots will exceed 200 billion yuan.
3. Employment Restructuring: Technological Upgrades Create New Demands and Challenges
(1) Job Structure Iteration
- Substitution Effect: The demand for repetitive positions such as palletizing and sorting is declining, with automation rates in logistics sorting increasing, leading to a 30%-50% reduction in labor demand.
- New Positions: New roles in robot operation and maintenance, AI vision debugging, and embodied intelligence system development are emerging, with companies urgently needing to master composite talents in “mechanics + AI + programming”.
(2) Skills Demand Upgrade
Occupational skill standards have clarified core competency requirements, covering installation, deployment, offline programming, and AI vision system debugging. Places like Ningbo have launched 48-72 hour training courses for maintenance personnel, covering practical skills such as parameter configuration and multi-coordinate collaboration; vocational schools have included “Intelligent Collaborative Robot Technology and Applications” in their curricula to train foundational talents in installation, debugging, and maintenance.
(3) Transformation Pathways
- Production Workers: Through short-term training, they can master teaching operations and basic maintenance, transitioning to robot operators;
- Technical Personnel: Deepening expertise in AI vision integration and force control algorithm optimization, upgrading to senior maintenance or R&D positions;
- Higher Education: Adding “Robotics + AI” interdisciplinary courses to meet enterprise training needs.