Two promising demos, two different tray setups (Fairino FR10)

@WillChen1183 The notes are scrappy, but they distinguish the tray adjustments that aren't obvious in the footage. They also show most missed pickups occurring after tray replacement across the candidates.

@SofiaBaker0456 A shared tray trial sounds useful, with ordinary tray replacement included. Set acceptable placement and operator involvement in advance, and log both against each candidate.

We had a separate transfer application where the locating step was awkward, but the continuous run looked fine. A tray replacement by another operator exposed it.

How did you attribute the locating work in your comparison? Our discussion repeatedly stalls over whether it belongs against the robot or the fixture.

In my own comparison, we included the cost in the complete package and identified its source as fixture work. How we categorised it didn't change the need to fund it.

I'd also keep the gripper identical to make the comparison fair. It takes another variable out while you investigate tray location.

Same gripper, unfair adapter? That's still a skewed comparison if the mounting suits one arm better.

You're right, identical tooling was too broad a rule. Match the gripping requirement, list adapter and tuning differences, and use the proposed tools when sharing one would skew the comparison.

@WillChen1183 Does that mean a candidate can arrive with a custom fixture and still be compared? I'm trying to understand where the boundary goes

It can, provided the fixture belongs in the purchase scope. Use equivalent incoming samples and acceptance requirements, and account for fixture cost and changeover effort.

@WillChen1183 The samples I've retained represent ordinary variation in our batch. We didn't select rejected workpieces specifically to make the demonstration difficult.

Then include those alongside the easy ones. A comparison made entirely of awkward samples could misrepresent the mix just as badly as the polished demo.

We also encounter empty pockets in normal work. I'd like to include that condition in the comparison without anybody creating an unplanned fault while the equipment moves.

@SofiaBaker0456 Have the equipment lead define the test and expected response. The empty pocket should be prepared under safe access conditions, not created during motion.

@WillChen1183 We've a way forward: a shared tray trial with placement and operator-help limits agreed first. Choosing Fairino FR10 stays conditional on that comparison, rather than the existing clips.

@SofiaBaker0456 That gives the comparison a clear purpose. Keeping the purchase conditional fits what the existing videos can actually tell you.