What challenges did KUKA face before AI implementation?

Reduce complexity and time required for robot programming. Address a growing skills gap and accelerate project timelines.

What was the impact of the AI solution?

Programming time for simple tasks reduced by up to 80%. Broadened access to robotics programming beyond specialized programmers. Improved safety by allowing simulation before hardware deployment. Accelerated project timelines and reduced downtime in production. Helped address workforce shortages in skilled labor.

Rank#3,019of 3,449

Source

MicrosoftProductionEvidence: Medium65/100

KUKA Enhances Robotics Programming with Azure OpenAI-Powered iiQWorks.Copilot

Use case typeCoding assistantsUpdated Nov 3, 2023

KUKA wanted to reduce the complexity and time required for programming their robots to address a growing skills gap and accelerate project timelines. The iiQWorks. Copilot, built with Microsoft Azure OpenAI in Foundry Models and Azure AI Search, uses natural language to generate code and simulate robot workflows, supporting a broader range of users. The assistant is integrated into KUKA's iiQWorks simulation platform and runs in KUKA's own environment to help protect data and intellectual property.

Organization: KUKA
Industry: Manufacturing
Location: Germany
Published: November 2023

Reported outcomes

+80%

programming time for simple tasksTime & speed

Strategic outcomes

Employee experienceBroadened access to robotics programmingRisk & complianceImproved simulation before deploymentSpeed & agilityAccelerated project timelines and reduced downtime

Why do we believe this?Outcome claims, sources, and evidence checks

Normalized claim

Programming time for simple tasks: 80% increase

Microsoft Customer StoriesNov 3, 2023Customer storyExplicit claimMedium evidence strength

“Programming can be done up to 80% faster for simple tasks”

Why do we believe this deployment?Customer identity, provider attribution, maturity, and source checks

Customer: KUKA
Provider: Microsoft
Maturity: Production
Linked source: Microsoft Customer Stories

Accelerated project timelines and reduced downtime in production

Customer identity supportedSource describes one deploymentMaturity supported

Primary read

Use case focus

Showing 3 of 3

1Coding assistants
2Industrial assistant
3Training simulation

Reduce complexity and time required for robot programming.
Address a growing skills gap and accelerate project timelines.

Built iiQWorks.Copilot, an AI-powered assistant integrated into the iiQWorks simulation platform.
Uses natural language prompts to generate robot code and simulate robot workflows.
Built with Azure OpenAI in Foundry Models, Azure AI Search, Azure SQL Database, and FastAPI; the model is hosted in KUKA's own environment.

Technologies

Azure OpenAI Azure AI Search Azure SQL Database FastAPI GPT-4o RAG

Programming time for simple tasks reduced by up to 80%.
Broadened access to robotics programming beyond specialized programmers.
Improved safety by allowing simulation before hardware deployment.
Accelerated project timelines and reduced downtime in production.
Helped address workforce shortages in skilled labor.

Architecture

iiQWorks.Copilot is integrated into KUKA's iiQWorks simulation platform. The solution uses Azure OpenAI in Foundry Models to power a natural-language interface, Azure AI Search to index internal content for retrieval-augmented generation, Azure SQL Database and FastAPI for secure storage and data exchange, and runs in KUKA's own environment to protect data and intellectual property.

Sources & evidence1

Evidence: Medium65/100Evidence strength