en.Wedoany.com Reported - About two years ago, BMW first deployed humanoid robots at its U.S. factory in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Now, the company has deployed Figure 03, the next-generation humanoid robot from U.S. company Figure, which surpasses Tesla's Optimus in human likeness and features a design more suited for sharing workspace with workers.

This new robot will play a key role in factory logistics operations, responsible for picking up various parts arriving on site and sorting them into sorting carts.

Subsequently, the sorted parts will be transported to designated collection points, then moved by automated tuggers or intelligent transport robots to the production line for workers to assemble new BMW models.

The role of Figure 03 differs from the previously deployed Figure 02. The latter performed metal sheet part insertion into the welding process in the body shop during an 11-month pilot project, helping manufacture over 30,000 BMW X3 vehicles within 10 months.

Ulrich Wieland, Vice President of Production Control and Logistics at BMW Manufacturing, stated that the Spartanburg plant has become the birthplace of humanoid robots in BMW's daily manufacturing operations. The company has completed the pilot of Figure 02 in the body shop and now plans to deploy Figure 03 for logistics sorting tasks. BMW views such robots as a "value-added supplement" to existing automation, particularly suitable for monotonous, ergonomically demanding, or safety-critical activities, aiming to protect and effectively utilize employees rather than completely replace them.