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UK automation company Modus Technologies has launched the FP5, a five-kilogram robotic handling platform designed to tackle some of the challenges that have limited automation in food and fresh-produce processing.

The system is aimed at repetitive picking, inspection, sorting and packing operations where products can vary significantly in size, shape, orientation, firmness and surface condition.

Unlike many industrial manufacturing applications, food products cannot necessarily be presented to a robot in a consistent position or handled with a fixed gripping force. Produce can arrive randomly on a conveyor, overlap with other items or contain defects, while excessive gripping pressure can result in bruising, cracking or rejection.

Modus has designed the FP5 as an integrated system in which robotics, machine vision, sensing, safety, tooling and software work together rather than treating the robot as a standalone component.

A key element of the platform is its Soft-Touch sensing technology, which provides feedback from the point of contact between the gripper and product.

This is intended to allow gripping to be controlled according to what the end effector is actually touching, rather than relying solely on a predetermined position or fixed command.

The approach is designed to address a fundamental issue with conventional industrial robotics: machines are typically highly effective when components are predictable, but food products can be deformable, fragile, slippery and naturally inconsistent.

Modus says the objective is therefore not simply to make a conventional industrial gripper gentler, but to retain industrial capability while giving the system greater sensitivity when interacting with food.

The company has also incorporated hygienic considerations into the FP5's machine architecture.

The platform uses a 316 stainless steel outer enclosure, food-safe materials and greases, and food-contact-safe surfaces at the gripper interface. Components can also be specified with protection suitable for wash-down environments, including IP66-rated elements where required by the application.

This is significant for food manufacturers because robotic equipment that performs successfully in a demonstration environment may require additional engineering before it can operate reliably in production areas subject to regular cleaning and wash-down.

Modus says its approach is to consider hygienic engineering alongside cycle time, reach, handling and safety from the beginning of a machine design rather than as a later-stage modification.

The FP5 incorporates a 3D AI vision system designed to locate products, distinguish between product classes and identify visual defects.

Vision models can be deployed through a TensorRT-accelerated pipeline running on an NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX controller, allowing image inference to take place locally on the machine.

Another focus of the FP5 is conveyor synchronisation.

Rather than stopping a belt to allow a robot to pick products from fixed positions, the system detects products upstream and tracks their movement. It then calculates where an item will be when it reaches the robot's pick area and coordinates the robot's movement with the conveyor.

The intended result is continuous handling while products remain in motion.

A damaged product could be rejected, an acceptable item picked for packing, or products classified into different grades and directed to separate destinations.

The technology is being positioned for applications across fresh produce, bakery, dairy and cheese, prepared foods and other categories where products are visually variable.

By combining inspection, classification, handling, sorting and packing, Modus says the platform could potentially consolidate tasks that would traditionally be carried out manually or across multiple pieces of equipment.

Modus says the FP5 is not intended to replace every food-handling role, but to automate tasks that businesses can find difficult to recruit for, retain staff in or automate using conventional machinery.

The founding team behind the company brings experience across robotics, mechanical engineering, controls, software and machine vision, with the business founded around the development of complete automation systems rather than individual robotic components.

According to David Mills, robotic systems lead and director at Modus Technologies, the aim is to combine the speed and repeatability associated with industrial robotics with the vision, sensing, hygienic design and safety required for food handling.

The FP5 can operate at robot motion speeds of up to 3,000mm/s, depending on configuration and task. Its safety architecture incorporates machine safety controls and 360-degree DCS safety scanning around the robotic work area.

Modus Technologies is currently based in York and plans to move into a new showroom and office facility in Tees Valley in January 2027.