Robotics / Mobile Manipulators · Hazloc Labs
Mobile Manipulators (MoMas): Compliance for Base + Arm Systems
A mobile manipulator (MoMa) combines a mobile base (AGV/AMR) with a manipulator — often a cobot arm. OEM files for the base and the arm are useful evidence, but the integrated system creates new hazards neither OEM assessed alone.
New hazards from the combination
- Stability and tip-over with arm raised, extended, or carrying a load
- Combined stopping: base braking + arm deceleration + workpiece momentum
- Collision geometry changes as the arm moves the effective footprint
- Collaborative contact claims that ignore base motion
- Charging, docking, and homing interlocks between base and arm controllers
Standards stack
- ISO 3691-4 for the driverless base
- ISO 10218-1/-2 for robot and system integration
- ISO/TS 15066 only where a collaborative application is genuinely designed and validated
- ISO 13849-1 / IEC 62061 for safety-related controls across both controllers
- ISO 12100 risk assessment for the integrated machine
Who declares what?
Base and arm suppliers may provide Declarations of Incorporation for partly completed machinery. The party placing the combined MoMa on the market owns the integrated risk assessment, technical file, and final Declaration of Conformity.
Validation checklist
- Define operating modes (transport, manipulation, combined, charging, teaching)
- Allocate safety functions across base/arm (STO, SLS, monitored stop, protective fields)
- Validate stopping and stability at worst-case payload and arm pose
- Document residual risks and operator instructions for each mode
← Back to Blog
