Yaskawa Motoman HC20

The Motoman HC20 is Yaskawa's higher payload collaborative arm, built for heavier work than a standard cobot handles. It carries 20 kg of payload across a 1700 mm reach on a six-axis design. Yaskawa introduced it in 2019 for parts handling and machine tending where a lighter cobot runs short on capacity.

The pitch is full size industrial reach in a cobot form factor, so the HC20 reaches across larger fixtures than a small cobot manages. That extra work envelope fits wider machine-tending cells. It also suits material-handling, moving stock across a bench shared with people.

Repeatability sits at 0.05 mm, tight enough for the placement work these jobs demand. That tolerance keeps loading and unloading consistent run to run. Power and force limiting lets the arm be run fence free next to operators once a risk assessment clears it, the core of its collaborative rating.

That safety mode comes with collaborative speed limits, so cycle time runs slower than a caged robot doing the same reach. At 140 kg, the HC20 is also heavier than the lighter cobots in its class. Those are the practical tradeoffs of a collaborative arm at this payload.

The arm mounts on the floor, wall, or ceiling. It runs on the YRC1000 or YRC1000micro controller and carries an IP67 rating.

The HC20's standout number is payload: 20 kg in a collaborative arm, higher than most cobots offer. Paired with the 1700 mm reach and 0.05 mm repeatability, that capacity covers heavier parts in a single arm. For heavier collaborative handling, that reach and capacity are the reason to pick it.