SMOOTHCUT - COBOT PLASMA CUTTING FOR UNIVERSAL ROBOTS
Automate Manual Plasma Cutting and Weld Preparation
SmoothCut combines Universal Robots with Hypertherm plasma cutting, intuitive 2D and 3D programming, and automatic cutting parameters for repeatable cuts, bevels and custom shapes.
Your Most Skilled Welders Shouldn't Be Doing Manual Cutting Prep
In most shops, the same people who weld are also the ones responsible for weld prep and manual cutting. They hand-measure parts, hand-cut bevels, and clean up rough edges before a part is even ready to weld. This work is slow and repetitive, and it pulls your most experienced people away from the welding work that actually needs their skill and judgment. Automating the cutting step doesn’t just speed up the cut – it moves your skilled people into the higher-value work they’re actually good at.
Your Most Skilled Welders Shouldn't Be Doing Manual Cutting Prep
In most shops, the same people who weld are also the ones responsible for weld prep and manual cutting. They hand-measure parts, hand-cut bevels, and clean up rough edges before a part is even ready to weld. This work is slow and repetitive, and it pulls your most experienced people away from the welding work that actually needs their skill and judgment. Automating the cutting step doesn’t just speed up the cut – it moves your skilled people into the higher-value work they’re actually good at.
What SmoothCut does
Precise Cutting Without the Manual Work
SmoothCut automates straight cuts, bevels and custom shapes while automatically applying the correct Hypertherm cutting parameters for the selected material, thickness and cartridge. This reduces manual setup and makes repeatable plasma cutting easier to program directly on the cobot.
SmoothCut
What You Can Cut
General Cutting Consistent Every Time
Once a cut is programmed, the cobot follows the same programmed path and process settings from part to part, reducing variation between operators and production runs.
Bevel Cutting Ready for Welding
Select material, thickness, and angle, and SmoothCut produces a precise, weld-ready bevel, even on inclined or irregular workpieces, reducing manual grinding. Finishing requirements depend on the material, cutting conditions and your weld preparation requirements.
Built-In Shapes for Repetitive Work
Cut circles and rectangles by entering dimensions directly, or use Free Teach to hand-guide a custom path — built and checked in real-time 3D before you cut.
Discover
Why the quality holds up, cut after cut?
Hypertherm Cut Chart Integration
SmoothCut uses Hypertherm cut-chart data to automatically configure parameters such as cut height, kerf compensation, pierce settings and cutting speed for supported Powermax SYNC systems. SmartSYNC cartridges are detected automatically.
Touch Sense
Before cutting, SmoothCut detects the actual workpiece surface and establishes the cutting height from the measured position rather than an assumed plane. This helps compensate for warped or uneven plate.
Arc Voltage Control
During cutting, arc voltage is monitored to maintain the required torch-to-work distance and compensate for variations in the workpiece surface.
CASE STORY – HELSINKI SHIPYARD
Proven on Demanding Work
Helsinki Shipyard is a 160-year-old shipbuilder working with high-strength, ice-class steel. The yard runs SmoothCut for plasma cutting and SmoothTool for welding on the same UR12e station, switching torches without moving the part between machines. First production parts were cut within about an hour and a half of delivery.
“Really good support, and in terms of the program, our requirements have been taken into account, and it has been felt that development is being done for us so that we can streamline our process here.“
Juha-Pekka Keltanen, Welding Engineer, Helsinki Shipyard
CASE STORY – HELSINKI SHIPYARD
Proven on Demanding Work
Helsinki Shipyard is a 160-year-old shipbuilder working with high-strength, ice-class steel. The yard runs SmoothCut for plasma cutting and SmoothTool for welding on the same UR12e station, switching torches without moving the part between machines. First production parts were cut within about an hour and a half of delivery.
“Really good support, and in terms of the program, our requirements have been taken into account, and it has been felt that development is being done for us so that we can streamline our process here.“
Juha-Pekka Keltanen, Welding Engineer, Helsinki Shipyard
Cut Only, or Cut and Weld On the Same Cobot
Standalone
SmoothCut works as a standalone plasma cutting solution if cutting is all you need.
Add to SmoothTool
If you already run SmoothTool for welding, SmoothCut adds cutting to the same cobot through software and cables – same flange, same pendant, one station for both processes, the way Helsinki Shipyard runs it today. See SmoothTool for welding
Bring the Cobot to the Work, or the Work to the Cobot
A cobot isn’t bolted to one spot. You can move it to a workpiece that’s awkward to reposition, or set up simple fixturing around it for repetitive jobs like cutting slots or access holes across a batch of parts. Either way, you get the same cut quality every time, whether it’s a one-off part or the two-hundredth part in a run. Unlike a manual operator, a cobot can also keep cutting shift after shift without the quality dropping off.
Have a part in mind? Talk to our experts about your application.
How It Works
Choose your programming method: 2D (built-in shapes or Free Teach in a plane) or 3D Free Teach.
Select the cutting parameters including material, thickness, bevel angle, cartridge, and cutting plane.
SmoothCut automatically applies Hypertherm’s recommended cut parameters, generates the toolpath, and you’re ready to cut.
SmoothCut FAQ
What do I need to run SmoothCut?
A Universal Robots cobot and a Hypertherm Powermax SYNC plasma system (45, 65, 85 or 105). The UR8 Long and UR12e are the most common fit. If you already own either the robot or the plasma system, that is a head start. SmoothCut runs on PolyScope 5 today and is planned for PolyScope X.
What materials and thicknesses can SmoothCut cut?
Mild steel, stainless steel and aluminium, following Hypertherm's Powermax SYNC cut charts for each material and thickness. On the Powermax105 SYNC that means up to 40 mm mild steel, 32 mm stainless steel and 32 mm aluminium.
Do I need robotics experience to run SmoothCut?
No. SmoothCut is built for shop-floor operators, not robotics engineers. Material, thickness and shape are selected in the software, and custom paths are taught by hand with the programming flange.
What is included when I buy SmoothCut?
A software licence and two cables to connect the cobot to your Hypertherm Powermax SYNC machine. Bought standalone, SmoothCut also includes the programming flange. If you add SmoothCut to a cobot already running SmoothTool, you already have the flange, so it is not included again and the price reflects that.
Can the same cobot weld and cut?
Yes. SmoothTool welds and SmoothCut cuts on the same arm, using the same flange and teach pendant, with a torch changeover between the two processes.
Can SmoothCut do gouging as well as cutting?
Simple gouging paths can be taught today with the same Free Teach workflow as cutting. Gouging that needs a weaving motion is not supported yet.
Can I buy a complete cobot cutting system from Smooth Robotics?
Smooth Robotics provides the SmoothCut software. Local distributors and integrators supply the hardware, setup and on-site support in your language. Find your distributor.