Despite the headline, the robot arm itself probably has no smarts and is just triggered to follow a routine when external sensors on the line are activated. The issue is that the person may have been unaware that the robot was energized, and there should have been some safety interlock that de-energized the robot while the person was in the robot’s work envelope.
My understanding is that this kind of industrial robot should never be active while humans are near. So one possibility would be that the usual safety precautions were ignored here as obviously a human was within reach while the robot was still powered on.
Powerful fast-moving machines will, if you are not careful, one day humble you or worse. I posted on the other thread about my experience with a CNC mill accident many years ago:<p><a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38210671">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38210671</a><p>At a much lower power level, I had a couple harrowing experiences with powerful industrial grade table saws (4 to 5 HP spindle). In one case it grabbed this piece of plastic being cut and launched it 25 feet at such speed that it penetrated the door of a refrigerator that just happened to be in its path.<p>You can never take powerful equipment for granted. And, if it is computer controlled, well, make sure you can see the power cord being disconnected before you even think about getting anywhere close to parts that can hurt you.<p>One of the things I taught my kids when doing projects with power tools at home is to unplug the cord after you are done cutting/drilling/whatever and place the power plug right on the machine where you can see it. With time you get used to not approaching the machine unless you know where that plug is...in the wall or on the machine.
Despite of the headline, I think its important for us to understand and realize that the people who would have built these systems, didn't have human safety around these bots as first priority. A lesson for all of us to remind management that bad PR for a new product or service will hurt their careers more than the bullet point gained on resume for speed and efficiency.
I do not have faith in worker protection laws and safety culture in Korea.
Many do not spend the money to prevent similar deaths from happening again and I boycott several brands and brands owned by those groups.<p>2018:
<a href="https://m.koreatimes.co.kr/pages/article.amp.asp?newsIdx=254434" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://m.koreatimes.co.kr/pages/article.amp.asp?newsIdx=254...</a><p>2022:
<a href="https://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/1063392.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/1...</a><p><a href="https://www.leftvoice.org/how-workers-and-socialists-are-responding-to-a-workplace-death-at-one-of-south-koreas-largest-food-manufacturers/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.leftvoice.org/how-workers-and-socialists-are-res...</a>
> The man, a worker from the company that manufactured the robotic arm, was running checks on the machine late into the night on Wednesday when it malfunctioned.<p>I feel like you shouldn't be near it when testing industrial robots / automated machinery, especially when they noted potential sensor issues. Definitely was avoidable and it's very sad for the man's family/friends.
Also posted yesterday (technically a dupe, although that one was paywalled and this one isn't): <a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38199233">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38199233</a>
This reminds me of Five Nights at Freddy's animatronics mistaking a human for an endoskeleton and murdering the human by shoving them into a suit [0]. Didn't think this could happen for real.<p>[0] <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Nights_at_Freddy%27s#Gameplay" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Nights_at_Freddy%27s#Game...</a>