Product and Experience Design
RoboTwin: AI and robotics improve industrial painting
News
March 26, 2025
The RoboTwin project aims to revolutionize the industrial painting process by robotizing operator movement. Thanks to an innovative algorithm, the robot can precisely replicate human gestures, optimizing efficiency and safety in production contexts. Promoted by EIT Manufacturing and developed by Cefriel in collaboration with CTU, Czech Technical University in Prague, and the Industry Innovation Cluster, Robotwin aimed to evolve the prototype into a complete, working product for the industry.
‘Industrial painting is a process that requires great precision and repeatability,’ explains Megi Mejdrechová, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of RoboTwin. ‘However, today many operations are still performed manually by operators, with the risk of inconsistency and material waste.’
To meet the automation challenge, an algorithm was developed that processes information gathered from sensors to identify the position of the paint gun in space. This data generates simplified trajectories, which can be used by a robot that can accurately replicate the operator’s movement. ‘The aim of the project was to transfer the know-how of experienced operators to the machines, reducing process variability and improving paint quality,’ Mejdrechová continues.
What are the benefits of this solution?
The digitalization of the operator’s movement and its reconstruction in the robot’s movements represent a significant opportunity for the industry. This technology makes it possible to cut down the time needed to set up robotic arms, reduce material waste, improve the quality of the result and create a useful database to monitor and optimize the production process over time.
‘The innovation developed,’ explains Andrea Villa, Smart Industry Research Lead at Cefriel and Project Manager of the initiative, ’marks an important step towards greater automation in industrial painting, while keeping the experience and skills of human operators central. It is a concrete example of how Artificial Intelligence can support human work, not by replacing it but by amplifying its potential’.
Megi Mejdrechová points out that the robotization market is growing rapidly and offers ample expansion opportunities. The next step will be to scale up the project, making it applicable to more and more industrial contexts. ‘The goal is to improve the integration with existing production systems further and expand the scope of the solution to meet the needs of an ever-changing market,’ adds Mejdrechová.
What is Cefriel's role in this project?
Cefriel played a key role in developing and integrating several components of the project, intervening in three main areas: Design, Hardware and Software. The team designed the physical components needed for the system, developed a custom electronic board and built a software architecture capable of collecting data locally and sending it to a cloud portal. This solution enables the management of users, devices and trajectory data, improving the control of the painting process and meeting the need to operate in human-centered user friendly way.