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Experts project that the global industrial robotics market will grow by 9.49%, resulting in a market volume of $73.01 billion in 2029. In the modern world, businesses need things done quickly and accurately, and the only way to achieve this is by incorporating technology into operations.
One technological innovation that can help companies move forward in this aspect is optical character recognition (OCR) technology. Integrating OCR with robotics, in particular, allows machines to interpret the physical world better, improving their efficiency even further. Let's delve deeper into our understanding of OCR and robotics and how they can enhance data extraction for corporations.
The Basics of OCR in Robotics
OCR transforms various documents into machine-readable text. Take handwriting, images, or printed text-they can now be processed through your computer through OCR. Assume that your company uses OCR when scanning invoices in your business operations. The information extracted by this technology will help feed the accounting system with your invoice numbers, dates, and amounts, therefore saving time while minimizing human errors.
Combining OCR with robotics will enhance the robot's ability to analyze its environment. Physical documents are significant in settings like warehouses and manufacturing plants. With OCR, the robotic system will understand the complexities of the objects around it.
If you have equipped a robot with OCR in the warehouse, its new vision will read labels, barcodes, invoices, packing slips, and product specifications. Through this data, your robots will make better choices and conduct complicated tasks independently. Hence, the operation will be faster and more precise.
Here is an overview of the advantages of incorporating OCR and robotics in two aspects of your business:
1.Logistics
While machines have to do most of the heavy lifting, a traditional logistic facility will still require human workers for the procedure of reading labels, checking shipping information, and manually inputting that into the systems. All of this changes with OCR-powered robotics, which can revolutionize tracking, sorting, and shipping your products.
The robots with vision systems will scan the codes and labels and extract relevant information such as destination, size, and priority level. Using this data, they can direct packages to appropriate conveyor belts or trucks. This will ensure that deliveries reach their proper locations in due time. Meanwhile, they will reduce the risk of misdirected packages or late deliveries. This is how accelerating the sorting process will finally make your customer happy.
Similarly, with the ability to scan barcodes independently, OCR robots can update your inventory systems in real-time. You will no longer have to do manual stock checks; your inventory will be up-to-date. The systems will also notify your employees of inventory problems, such as low stock. As a result, you can minimize downtime and stockouts and enhance the overall efficiency of your logistics.
2.Manufacturing
OCR-enabled robots can considerably improve your production lines. They will be able to interpret, for instance, engineering drawings and quality inspection reports, incorporating your ideas to improve operational efficiency.
Let's say that one of your products requires a complex assembly manual; you must add specific parts in a particular order to ensure a solid build. With OCR, your robot can read the manual and stick to it. It will adjust its actions accordingly, maintaining consistency. It will retrieve details such as the part numbers, assembly sequences, or required tools. This will streamline your operations and increase precision.
Besides that, OCR robots can also cross-reference data quite speedily. That will enable them to identify discrepancies and flag quality issues. Upon detecting the issues, for instance, improper labeling, missing text, and more worse mistakes in product details, the system will alert your staff. Advanced robots may also solve such problems independently. They will introduce the required adjustments in the processes, removing the scope of extra faults. This way, only when your products comply with quality assurance standards, do they progress into the next level.
One of the primary advantages of OCR robots is that they are very flexible and scalable. You can either have them on premises or make the system cloud-based, but what's the difference between the two? On premise OCR is perfect for environments that need tight security controls. They are particularly valuable in industries that require strict data privacy regulations, like healthcare or finance.
Businesses can hold all data on-premises and process it as well, thereby no information leaks out of the premises. It will give a complete control over security of data, enabling you to manage data without relying on cloud services outside the premises. In addition, on-premise OCR increases the options of customization and easy integration with existing systems, thus adapting a better response of your business.
On the other hand, cloud-based OCR offers scalability and cost efficiency. It enables you to conduct high-powered data processing without massive investments in infrastructure. Cloud-based OCR is the right solution for your business if its demand is very high or if it's always fluctuating. You will have to process numerous documents coming from various locations. Likewise, such systems scale pretty fast. Hence, they are likely to offer you much more flexibility when your business scales as it supports multiple platforms of data processing.
The combination of OCR and robotics is a powerful combination that is changing the business world. It can open new opportunities for your business, making it thrive in a competitive landscape. Read the points above to expand your knowledge of OCR-enabled robots and make well-informed decisions regarding incorporating this technology into your business.
