TY - JFULL AU - N. Asadi and M. Jackson PY - 2012/4/ TI - Lightweight Robotic Material Handling in Photovoltaic Module Manufacturing-Silicon Wafer and Thin Film Technologies T2 - International Journal of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering SP - 711 EP - 716 VL - 6 SN - 1307-6892 UR - https://publications.waset.org/pdf/8941 PU - World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology NX - Open Science Index 63, 2012 N2 - Today, the central role of industrial robots in automation in general and in material handling in particular is crystal clear. Based on the current status of Photovoltaics and by focusing on lightweight material handling, PV industry has turned into a potential candidate for introducing a fresh “pick and place" robot technology. Thus, to examine the industry needs in this regard, firstly the best suited applications for such robotic automation,and then the essential prerequisites in PV industry should be identified. The objective of this paper is to present holistic views on the industry trends, general automation status and existing challenges facing lightweight robotic material handling in PV Silicon Wafer and Thin Film technologies. The results of this study show that currently no uniform pick and place solution prevails among PV Silicon Wafer manufacturers and the industry calls for a new robot solution to satisfy its needs in new directions. ER -