Automation pioneer beRobox today introduced the 3D Dynamic Safety, a new safety module for its PALTZ robotic palletizers, that brings a fundamentally new approach to safeguarding palletizing operations: Instead of keeping safety detection fixed around the robot, make it move with the robot.

Powered by Sonair's safety-certified ADAR One 3D ultrasonic sensor, the safety module integrates detection directly onto the robot arm. As the robot moves through its workspace, the sensor moves with it, creating a dynamic protective zone that continuously adapts to the robot's position.

Safety no longer has to stand still

"Safety has always been fundamental to automation, but we saw an opportunity to rethink how it could work on a palletizer," said David Demers, CEO of beRobox. "Our goal was not simply to introduce a new type of sensor. We wanted to create a safety concept that better reflects what is actually happening on the production floor: people interact with the system, pallets need to be changed, and the robot is constantly moving."

Safety that adapts to the operation

By knowing where the robot is and detecting people and objects around it in three dimensions, beRobox’s new safety module can respond according to what is happening within the palletizing workspace in real time. The result is a safety system that can be more selective in how it reacts to operator interactions.

For example, during the palletizing process, an operator can safely access one pallet station for pallet changeover, while the robot continues palletizing at the other. The system dynamically manages the protected area based on the robot’s position and operating conditions, maintaining detection around the robot without requiring the entire cell to stop.

The same continuous 3D detection provides another important advantage: presence remains detectable around the robot. If someone is still within the protected area, the system knows they are there, helping prevent an unintended restart while the area is occupied.

For manufacturers, this means safety can adapt more naturally to the way palletizing operations actually happen, while maintaining the required safety functions.

"True human-robot coexistence requires safe perception that works reliably under any factory condition,” said CEO of Sonair, Knut Sandven. “Partnering with beRobox to power the 3D Dynamic Safety brings our safety-certified 3D ultrasonic perception to one of industrial automation's highest-throughput applications, allowing machines and humans to share tight spaces safely without stopping production.”

3D Ultrasonic technology for real production environments

Real production environments aren't perfect.They can be dusty. Lighting conditions change. Reflective surfaces are common. Some areas operate under bright industrial lighting, while others can be nearly dark. At the core of this new safety module is Sonair's ADAR One, the world’s first SIL 2 / Pl d safety-certified 3D ultrasonic sensor that uses airborne ultrasound rather than light to detect people and objects in three-dimensional space.

This makes a more permissive safety architecture for the variety of dynamic environments in which palletizing systems operate. "What's really different is that we're no longer designing the safety system only around fixed areas in the workspace. We can now combine the robot's position with real-time 3D presence detection to determine how the system should react. That gives us much more flexibility to manage operator interactions without compromising the safety functions we need to maintain," said Max Walsh P. Eng., Robotic Safety Engineer at beRobox.

Palletizing, simplified by innovation

beRobox has consistently looked at established approaches to palletizing and asked how innovation could make them simpler for the people who deploy, operate and interact with automation every day. With the 3D Dynamic Safety, that thinking now extends to the way the robot understands and responds to the space around it.

The 3D Dynamic Safety was officially launched on October 19 at PACK EXPO International 2026 in Chicago and is being demonstrated on a PALTZ robotic palletizer, featuring a UR20 robot arm from Universal Robots at beRobox booth LU-8718 throughout the show.