Universal Robots provides customers with market-leading, easy to deploy collaborative industrial robots that empowers manufactures to accelerate their automation capability.

To help our customers maintain healthy work environments, Universal Robots is providing cleaning guidelines for our robots as companies across the globe return to operations amid the COVID-19 pandemic and future needs for continuous health and cleaning standards.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends cleaning and disinfecting surfaces to reduce the risk of exposure to the Covid19 and other viruses in community, schools, and workplaces.

Cleaning Guidance for Robot Systems

The CDC-recommended disinfectant is also within Universal Robots existing cleaning guidelines which is an alcohol solution consisting of 70% isopropyl alcohol and 30% water with a 5-minute dwell time. Please follow the steps below to use the CDC recommended alcohol solution to clean the external surfaces of the robots including: the robot arm, control box, and teach pendant.

1. Remove power from the system by powering off the robot and disconnecting the AC Power.
2. Put on protective gloves before and while cleaning and disinfecting your robot.
3. Dampen/moisten a microfiber cloth with the 70% isopropyl alcohol solution (also known as rubbing alcohol).
4. Gently wipe all exterior surfaces of the robot.
5. Allow for a 5-minutes dwell time.
6. Use a dry hard twisted microfiber cloth to wipe the robot.
7. Ensure surfaces have completely dried before powering on the robot after cleaning. No visibly wet surfaces should be visible on the surfaces of the robot before it is switched on.

Cleaning FAQs:

 Q: What cleaning agent should I use to clean my UR robot?

You can clean your Universal Robots collaborative robot using the CDC-recommended disinfectant that is comprised of 70% isopropyl alcohol solution.

Q: Can I use common household cleaners to disinfect my robot?

No. Many common household disinfects contain bleach, hydrogen peroxide, or ethanol can affect materials on the robot and degrade its performance.  Do not use any of the following chemicals or any solutions that contain them, including spray-based surface cleaners: bleach, peroxides (including hydrogen peroxide), acetone, ammonia, ethyl alcohol, methylene chloride or any petroleum-based materials, such as gasoline, paint thinner, benzene or toluene.

Q: What portions of my robot are safe to clean?

All external components of your robot system can be cleaned using the recommended solution, including all metal surfaces, plastics, rubber, and displays.

Q: How often should I clean my robot?

UR recommends cleaning of robots after they have been handled by users such programming or after service. Note: Excessive cleaning with any cleaning solution over long periods of time can potentially affect aesthetic components (such as fading of labels or black residue from the flat rings appearing on the cloth after wiping).

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