COVR - Towards simplified evaluation and validation of collaborative robotics applications across a wide range of domains using robot safety skills

Challenges surrounding human safety have become one of the main barriers to the promotion and availability of collaborative robotics technology in different domains. The EU-funded project ""Being safe around collaborative and versatile robots in shared spaces"" (COVR) aims to break down these barriers to support more widespread use of collaborative robots in a wide range of industries and domains (e.g. manufacturing, logistics, healthcare and rehabilitation, agriculture). In this paper, we will describe our approach to engage various stakeholders and encourage widespread use of collaborative robots. This includes the development of a toolkit employing a methodology based on robot safety skills, and the development of a set of testing protocols that clearly define the safety-related validation procedures. A crucial aspect of the project is active consultation with regional stakeholders from standardization, national agencies, accident insurance, and safety verification bodies to create a consensus on the validity of the toolkit and protocols. Additionally, the COVR consortium is opening their doors to operate as shared safety facilities, where interested third parties can receive training, gain access to measurement systems for validation, and receive support in using the toolkit and applying the protocols. Finally, COVR will offer over five million Euros in funding to third parties seeking to engage with COVR, to test and expand the toolkit and protocols with specific use-cases, and to provide background research and experimental data for determining best practices. Besides a description of the various project mechanisms, the first project results including the toolkit design and initial set of protocols for safety validation will be presented in this paper.