Universal's (UR) Collaborative Robot Enters the Kitchen in Earnest

Application > Food & BeverageBuilding Type > Hospitality·Foodservice

#Cooking robots# cooking automation# Universal Collaborative# ur Collaborative# kitchen automation# Marosol

Process Overview

This solution is a fully automated kitchen operation system built around the 4th generation autonomous cooking robot CA-1 developed by Circus SE in Germany.

CA-1 is an advanced cooking automation system integrating Collaborative(UR Cobot), AI, and a modular cooking system, characterized by its ability to automate the entire kitchen process, from ingredient input and cooking to plating, warming, and automatic cleaning.

Designed to produce up to 120 menu items per hour in a space of just 7㎡ (approx. 2 pyeong), it enables high-efficiency cooking even in small kitchens.

In particular, the key feature is the combination of precision operation performance based on Universal Collaborative and 36 refrigerated silos + AI cooking algorithms, which enables the safe and uniform production of various dishes.

Project Background and Objective

The food and beverage Industry faces various problems, such as labor shortages, high labor costs, variations in cooking quality, and bottlenecks during peak times.
To solve these problems, Circus SE developed CA-1 with the goal of **'a fully autonomous system capable of replacing the entire kitchen team'**.

This project was pursued based on the following objectives.

Automation of repetitive and high-intensity cooking tasks
Menu quality standardization and productivity improvement
Building a high-efficiency kitchen capable of operating even in small spaces
Strengthening hygiene and safety standards

Components

Robot	Universal Collaborative (UR Cobots) Robot performs precision tasks such as material handling, cooking tool control, and plating. It operates safely even at close range to humans and provide flexible movements optimized for cooking environments.
Peripherals	AI-based Circus OS cooking system: Real-time analysis of order data, simultaneous cooking of up to five menu items, automatic management of inventory, cooking time, temperature, and operation patterns, ensuring cooking standardization and taste consistency.

Workflow

STEP 1.	Customer order reception
STEP 2.	Ingredient selection/weighing
STEP 3.	Simultaneous cooking
STEP 4.	Plating
STEP 5.	Storage and customer serving
STEP 6.	Automatic cleaning

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Features

A World's First System that Fully Automates the Entire Kitchen
Fully unmanned operation is possible from cooking and plating to storage and washing

Universal's collaborative robot-based precision manipulation
Capable of delicate movements such as handling cooking tools, moving ingredients, and plating
Realizing high productivity in micro-spaces
Produce up to 120 menu items per hour in a 7㎡ space
AI-based cooking standardization
Maintaining consistent taste and quality
Strong in managing a diverse menu
High hygiene and safety
Complete control of the cooking environment → Minimization of human contamination sources
Collaborative robot-based safety design

Results

Key Benefits	Labor reduction, operational stability, increased productivity, enhanced hygiene and safety, data-driven kitchen operations, ROI, and managerial benefits
Client Feedback	The CA-1 is not just simple automated cooking equipment, but a new standard that replaces the entire kitchen team with a single system. Operational efficiency was significantly improved as high-speed, high-quality cooking was possible even in confined spaces, and the safety and cooking accuracy based on Collaborative exceeded expectations. With the complete automation of hygiene and cleaning processes, store operational risks have decreased, and we are actually expanding rapidly in various markets, including multiple facilities in Germany and the NATO supply chain.

Key Benefits

Labor reduction, operational stability, increased productivity, enhanced hygiene and safety, data-driven kitchen operations, ROI, and managerial benefits

Client Feedback

The CA-1 is not just simple automated cooking equipment, but a new standard that replaces the entire kitchen team with a single system. Operational efficiency was significantly improved as high-speed, high-quality cooking was possible even in confined spaces, and the safety and cooking accuracy based on Collaborative exceeded expectations. With the complete automation of hygiene and cleaning processes, store operational risks have decreased, and we are actually expanding rapidly in various markets, including multiple facilities in Germany and the NATO supply chain.