Functional Safety Certification for Collaborative Robots (Cobots): ISO/TS 15066 Explained

Date
2027-01-15
Location
Online
Host
Zach L

About this event

A Certification-Prep Session for Early-Career Engineers pursuing functional safety certification. A live 30-minute certification-prep session on ISO/TS 15066 (Collaborative Robot Safety) for collaborative robots (cobots), built for early-career engineers pursuing functional safety certification. What We'll Cover: What ISO/TS 15066 (Collaborative Robot Safety) requires and how its scope applies to collaborative robots (cobots) Mapping ISO/TS 15066 clauses to the certification evidence assessors expect System-specific hazards and safety functions typical of collaborative robots (cobots) Common findings that delay certification, and how to avoid them A practical readiness roadmap for early-career engineers preparing for assessment Related topics: ISO/TS 15066 · Collaborative Robots (Cobots) ·

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About ISO/TS 15066 (Collaborative Robot Safety)

This training provides practical skills and structured learning on the compliance requirements covered by ISO/TS 15066.

ISO/TS 15066 supplemented ISO 10218 with the detailed requirements for collaborative robot operation — most notably the biomechanical force and pressure limits for power-and-force-limited contact and the protective separation distance math for SSM; its content is absorbed into the 2025 editions of ISO 10218.

What it regulates

The four collaborative methods, quasi-static and transient contact thresholds per body region, measurement methodology for contact validation, and SSM distance computation.

Who must comply

Cobot application integrators validating contact cases with force/pressure measurement devices; still cited widely during transition to the 2025 10218 editions.

Key requirements of ISO/TS 15066

  • Body-region pain-onset limit tables (pressure and force, quasi-static vs transient)
  • PFL application design: contact case identification and mitigation
  • SSM protective separation distance formula and its terms
  • Hand-guiding and SMS operational requirements

Key concepts: ISO/TS 15066

Contact case matrix
The enumeration of foreseeable contact events (body region × robot feature) each validated against limits.
Protective separation distance
The SSM minimum distance accounting for robot and human speeds, stopping performance, and detection latency.
Quasi-static contact
Clamping/crushing contact where a body part is trapped — governed by the lower force/pressure limits.
Transient contact
Free impact without trapping, allowed higher short-duration limits.

Frequently asked questions: ISO/TS 15066

Is TS 15066 still applicable?

Its requirements live on inside ISO 10218-1/-2:2025; during transition, citing either is common, and the biomechanical tables remain the reference data set for PFL validation.

How are PFL limits verified in practice?

With calibrated biofidelic force/pressure measurement devices placed at identified contact points while the robot executes worst-case motions; results per body region must stay under the tables, else speed, geometry or padding changes are iterated.

Standard information based on the published text of ISO/TS 15066 (Collaborative Robot Safety). Event content is provided by the host. For authoritative guidance, consult the official standard body.