Stäubli Robotics Announces Next Generation Ultra-Fast SCARA Robot Series
June 18, 2009 by admin
Filed under Robotics, TECHNOLOGY
Stäubli Robotics announces the introduction of the new TS series of high speed SCARA robots. This next generation robotic line features 100% Stäubli design and engineering, and are among the fastest commercially available SCARA robots in the industry. Stäubli’s high performance benchmarks of speed, rigidity and precision are exemplified by this series which includes the TS40, TS60 and TS80 with a range of 400mm, 600mm, and 800mm reach and a payload of up to 8kg. This represents a 30% increase in performance and higher inertia capabilities over the previous RS series of robots.
All TS series robots feature four-degrees of freedom, a hardened plastic external housing and electric servo-driven motors for reliability. These robots utilize the CS8C controller which features a compact lightweight design and is the most technologically advanced controller ideally suited for applications that require complex process control. The CS8C utilizes the VAL3 programming language which is perfectly adapted to robotics and features numerous possibilities to communicate with the outside world including several different Fieldbus options, Ethernet, ModBus, and an offline programming software package (SRS) for ease of integration and use.
The TS series is highly adaptable and well suited for a wide variety of high speed and precise applications including pick and place, material handling, packaging, assembly, loading, testing, and dispensing. These new robots increase productivity and throughput without giving up valuable floor space making them ideal for food, pharmaceutical / medical device, PV, automotive, electronics, and many other industrial market segments.
“The new high speed TS series robots are the next generation of SCARA robots reinforcing Stäubli Robotics as the leaders in innovation. This new SCARA series is best in class in regards to speed, reliability, and precision – offered at a competitive price.” says David Arceneaux, Operations Manager-Assistant Division Manager at Stäubli Robotics”.
Today, Stäubli offers the widest range of 4 and 6 axis robots from 0.5kg to 250kg payload and from 220mm to 3500mm reach, all controlled from a common control platform.
New EPSON RS3 Robot
June 16, 2009 by admin
Filed under Automation, Robotics, TECHNOLOGY
Rosemont, IL — EPSON Robots introduces the new EPSON RS3 Robot, featuring all the benefits of a typical SCARA plus more. The unique new design of the EPSON RS3 clearly puts it ahead of other robots in its class with superior cycle times and larger work envelope access thus opening up new application possibilities.
“Unique to the EPSON RS3 is our new work space design which maximizes work envelope usage” stated Michael Ferrara, Director of EPSON Robots. “No other robot vendor offers a 350mm SCARA arm featuring the largest working quadrangle greater than that of a typical 750mm SCARA arm. Since there is no dead space in the center of the work envelope, the EPSON RS3’s largest working quadrangle is 494mm x 494mm, which up till now has only been possible with a much larger SCARA robot. With the ability to maneuver back under itself for the shortest movements possible instead of having to move around itself, the EPSON RS3 delivers superior cycle rates. This means more parts processed in less time, while using a fraction of floor space which results in more profits for our customers.”
The EPSON RS3 is literally a zero footprint robot, thus saving our customers valuable floor space. It is also capable of easy integration into compact assembly cells. Furthermore, the unique work envelope allows for unprecedented design flexibility with over 360 degrees of axis rotation for omni directional access. All these exclusive features make the EPSON RS3 robot the most versatile and unique SCARA available in the market today.
The EPSON RS3 is perfect for lab automation and other process heavy applications where large quantities of parts are presented to process or testing stations.
EPSON Robots
www.robots.epson.com/rs-series.htm
Mechatronics and Ignorance
April 10, 2009 by admin
Filed under Commentary, Electronics, Robotics
By Richard Comerford,
Editor
Electronic Products
I wish I had a dollar for each time I asked an EE about the use of mechatronics for a development project and got the response, “What’s that?” And I’m not just talking about IC designers, but about people involved with designing electromechanical systems like disk drives, as well as those who are responsible for developing everything from MEMS to pick-and-place robots.
I find the lack of recognition among the electronics community a bit disheartening. Mechatronics has been around now for several decades, and many universities are now offering courses taught by professors who are dedicated to the discipline. Yet mechatronics has nowhere near the recognition of, say, electronics, or robotics, or bionics, or even hydroponics.
I suppose there may be several reasons for that situation. For one thing, people had actually been using electronic controls for mechanical systems long before the term mechatronics was coined. Things like automatic doors and air conditioners have been around for a long time, as has the pop-up toaster, all of which are examples of simple mechatronic systems.
Robots have been a part of the popular culture for so long that people don’t typically associate them with mechatronics. The discipline of building robots — robotics, which is actually a subset of the field of mechatronics — also predates mechatronics. So everyone thinks they know what you mean when you say “robot,” but I wonder what would happen if you tried dropping “mechatron” into
a conversation.
Another reason for the relative obscurity among EEs of mechatronics may be political. Sometimes, getting engineers from different disciplines to work together is like trying to get the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force to agree on who has the best football team. As an EE, I can remember how in college we used to disparage civil engineers as “road crew,” mechanical engineers as “gear heads,” and chemical engineers as “stink bombs,” knowing with the certainty of youth that only those who could command the electron to do their bidding were masters of the universe.
I doubt that even today there are many computer scientists or electronics engineers who would be happy to admit that mechanical design is equally as important as their disciplines. And for them to relearn their approach to design with a broader set of tools is by no means an easy process.
Nonetheless, areas that hold the most promise for advancement in the future — such things as haptics, MEMS, and advanced HMI — are inherently mechatronic in nature, and will require interdisciplinary knowledge for success. Sure, mechatronics may require better PR or an agent who can sell it to Hollywood, but regardless of how successfully it is promoted to the masses, those technologists who are ignorant of it may soon find themselves not only out of touch, but also out of work.
Rixan Introduces Fully Ease-Of-Use Swivel Stand System
March 26, 2009 by admin
Filed under Robotics, TECHNOLOGY
Dayton, OH — Rixan Associates, Inc. recently introduced unique Swivel Stand Systems (the RSS-1000 and RSS-2000) that offer repeatable positioning for automated operations.
In many automated machining operations, the operators require access to the machine to set-up the job and perform routine maintenance. The robot, or automated feeder, must be removed and later reinstalled to provide the access.
The Rixan swivel stand allows the robot to swivel out of the way for access, and later, be easily repositioned with excellent repeatability.
According to Stephen Harris, President of Rixan Associates, the Rixan Swivel Stand is very rigid with repeatable support of a robot or other machinery up to 250 kg (550 lbs). The mounting pattern can be set to client specifications with various heights and arm lengths available.
EPSON RS3 Robot
March 2, 2009 by admin
Filed under Robotics, TECHNOLOGY
Carson, CA –– EPSON Robots introduces the new EPSON RS3 Robot, featuring all the benefits of a typical SCARA plus more. The unique new design of the EPSON RS3 clearly puts it ahead of other robots in its class with superior cycle times and larger work envelope access thus opening up new application possibilities.
“Unique to the EPSON RS3 is our new work space design which maximizes work envelope usage” stated Michael Ferrara, Director of EPSON Robots. “No other robot vendor offers a 350mm SCARA arm featuring the largest working quadrangle greater than that of a typical 750mm SCARA arm. Since there is no dead space in the center of the work envelope, the EPSON RS3’s largest working quadrangle is 494mm2, which up till now has only been possible with a much larger SCARA robot. With the ability to maneuver back under itself for the shortest movements possible instead of having to move around itself, the EPSON RS3 delivers superior cycle rates. This means more parts processed in less time, while using a fraction of floor space which results in more profits for our customers.”
The EPSON RS3 is a zero footprint robot, thus saving valuable floor space. It is also capable of easy integration into compact assembly cells. Furthermore, the unique work envelope allows for unprecedented design flexibility with over 360 degrees of axis rotation for omni directional access.
The EPSON RS3 is perfect for lab automation and other process heavy applications where large quantities of parts are presented to process or testing stations.
Our low cost, high performance Micro PowerDrive RC180 Controller comes standard with the EPSON RS3 robot which provides the ultimate experience in ease of use, compact size, and reliability. In addition to all of these great features, the RC180 controller also provides our industry leading EPSON RC+ Controls software and lots of fully integrated options such as: Vision Guidance, .Net support, Profibus, DeviceNet, EtherNet/IP and much more.
Clippard Joins Forces with FIRST
Cincinnati, OH – Clippard Instrument Laboratory, Inc. announced that it is joining forces with FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), a not-for-profit organization founded by inventor Dean Kamen to inspire young people’s interest and participation in science and technology, as a Silver Supplier of the FIRST Robotics Competition.
The FIRST Robotics Competition Silver Supplier level designates a contribution between $10,000 and $50,000. Clippard Instrument Laboratory, Inc. provided air volume tanks for the 2009 FRC Kit of Parts which was distributed to more than 1,680 teams of high-school students on January 3, 2009.
By providing components for the competition, FIRST suppliers are putting the latest technology in the hands of students, giving them the opportunity to apply the same tools used by professional scientist and engineers and ultimately helping them learn real-world skills they will carry into the workplace. The 2009 Kit of Parts contain 604 items, 39% of which are donated.
New Software Enhances Robot Simulation
There is now a more accurate way to simulate robots in action before they’re put to work, thanks to new software developed by Microsoft and DS SolidWorks. The new simulation capability helps companies program robots more quickly and effectively.
With Microsoft RDS, you can incorporate 3D CAD models designed in SolidWorks software and simulate robot operation more accurately.
Users of Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio 2008 (Microsoft RDS) will be able to directly incorporate 3D CAD models designed in SolidWorks software into Microsoft’s Visual Simulation Environment (Microsoft VSE) and accurately simulate their operation. Robotics developers can correct any robotic application issues early. The solution takes advantage of the fact that both applications support a common XML format, COLLADA, for rendering 3D objects and motion. A demo of the system is available now at SolidWorks Labs, and for download.
You can download the free SolidWorks/Microsoft RDS integration software, export a SolidWorks robot design into Microsoft VSE, develop the robotic application, then simulate the robots’ operation prior to deployment. The integration preserves dimensions, constraints, mass properties, motors, springs, colors, textures, and more from the SolidWorks model. Download from http://labs.solidworks.com/
“The worlds of machine design, mechatronics, and robotics are converging, and this first-of-its-kind partnership is just one way we’re supporting the convergence,” said Fielder Hiss, director of product management at DS SolidWorks.
Microsoft Corp.
www.microsoft.com
KUKA Robotics On Display at ProMat 2009
January 14, 2009 by admin
Filed under Motion Control, Robotics
KUKA Robotics will display the KR 500 570-2 PA in a de-palletizing demonstration. The KR 500 570-2 PA , a heavy duty robot with a payload up to 570kg and three different palletizing algorithms for mixed and unmixed palletizing is known for it’s space saving and cost-effective support in a spectrum of palletizing applications. The KR 500 570-2 PA will be tooled with a state-of-the art KUKA designed Servo controlled layer gripper known for the ability to remove entire layers from a pallet of virtually any material in a single cycle.
The Servo layer gripper motors are synchronized with the KR 500 570-2 PA allowing for a more time saving, cost efficient solution for palletizing when mixing different product layers on the same pallet. The KR 500 570-2 PA user friendly interface can communicate directly to a warehouse management system software and is suitable for building rainbow or starter pallets in distribution centers or feeding a layer descrambler for a down stream case buffer. This same system can also be integrated to perform slip sheet handling and empty pallet handling.
FIRST Launches Eighteenth Robotics Competition
Manchester, NH – FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) launched its eighteenth FIRST Robotics Competition season today with a Kickoff of a new robotics game called “Lunacy” at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, NH, hometown and headquarters of FIRST.
“Forty years ago, NASA fueled a generation’s imagination with the success of Apollo 11. As we celebrate that remarkable feat of technology and engineering with our 2009 game, “Lunacy,” we are sparking more of that kind of inspiration through the FIRST Robotics Competition,” said FIRST founder, Dean Kamen. “Just as NASA scientists landed a man on the moon and returned him safely to earth in 1969, so too will these young people go on to explore new frontiers and develop breakthrough technologies that will change the world.”
The FIRST Robotics Competition is an annual competition that helps students discover the rewards and excitement of science, engineering, and technology. More than 42,000 high-school students on 1,686 teams from the U.S., Brazil, Canada, Chile, Germany, Israel, Mexico, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Turkey, and the U.K. are participating in this year’s competition.
“In today’s social environment, FIRST has a chance to re-define the larger economic and moral playing field,” noted Dr. Woodie Flowers, FIRST national advisor and Pappalardo professor Emeritus of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “Our students can be their own economic stimulus packages by leveraging their skills into self-sustaining careers and help with the issues we face in the 21st century.”
In the “Lunacy” game, robots are designed to pick up 9″ game balls and score them in trailers hitched to their opponents’ robots for points during a 2 minute and 15 second match. Additional points are awarded for scoring a special game ball, the Super Cell, in the opponents’ trailers during the last 20 seconds of the match. “Lunacy” is played on a low-friction floor, which means teams must contend with the laws of physics.
At today’s Kickoff, teams were shown the game field and received a Kit of Parts made up of motors, batteries, a control system, and a mix of automation components but no instructions. Working with mentors, students have six weeks to design, build, program, and test their robots to meet the season’s engineering challenge. Once these young inventors create a robot, their teams participate in competitions that measure the effectiveness of each robot, the power of
collaboration, and the determination of students.
Sponsored by NASA, PTC, Booz Allen Hamilton, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, the exciting Kickoff event gave teams the opportunity to see the new game for the first time. Teams across the nation and in Canada, and Israel watched the proceedings via NASA TV broadcast or webcast from 52 local Kickoff sites, many of which also offered workshops and a chance to meet other teams. The agenda included presentations by FIRST founder Dean Kamen; PTC executive vice president and chief product officer James E. Hepplemann; NASA program executive Dave Lavery;
FIRST chairman John Abele; FIRST national advisor Dr. Woodie Flowers; and FIRST president Paul R. Gudonis. The program also featured the premiere of the 2009 FIRST Safety Video, presented by the Fabricators and Manufacturers Association and Underwriters Laboratories.
In 1992, the FIRST Robotics Competition began with 28 teams and a single 14 x 14 foot playing field in a New Hampshire high school gym. This season, 1,686 teams including 322 rookie teams will participate. Forty regional competitions in the U.S., Canada, and Israel, plus seven district competitions and one state championship in Michigan, will lead up to the 2009 FIRST Championship at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, April 16-18. FIRST programs are operated by over 85,000 dedicated volunteers worldwide, many of them professional engineers and scientists who mentor the next generation of innovators.
Honda Tests 49 Foot Robot
December 19, 2008 by admin
Filed under Motion Control, Robotics
TORRANCE, Calif.–Honda (http://www.honda.com) will test its unique Rose Parade float as part of a rehearsal of the parade’s opening show, conducted for media and invited guests in Pasadena, Calif., revealing the float design and giving parade fans a glimpse of this year’s event. Honda’s Rose Parade float, a 49-foot replica of Honda’s ASIMO humanoid robot, and the parade’s first-ever hydrogen-powered fuel cell pace car, the Honda FCX Clarity, will lead the 120th Rose Parade as well as kick off Honda’s 50th anniversary of U.S. operations.
In front of the millions of viewers watching from around the world on Jan. 1, 2009, Honda’s float will evolve from an opening ceremony stage into an animated replica of Honda’s ASIMO (Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility), standing about 12 times the height of the actual ASIMO humanoid robot. Honda’s float creation called “Hats Off in Celebration” will be completed with natural materials like lettuce seed, rice, carnations and strawflower. The float will be joined by the Prairie View A&M University Marching Band, a past participant in the Honda Battle of the Bands which features the music programs of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. A few members of the band will ride on the float, which will be immediately followed by the entire marching band. In addition, during the parade the FCX Clarity pace car will be accompanied by the Honda Super Cub motorcycle, the first model sold in the United States.
The Honda float includes a variety of flowers, plants and seeds that will later be ground up for mulch after the parade activities are concluded. The surface of ASIMO will be covered with super fine ground white rice and super fine ground everlasting; it is accented by fine cut blue statice and fine cut red statice as well as silverleaf to create accents and “shadows.” Fine cut everlasting, whole red carnations and white chrysanthemums will bring vivid color to Honda’s 50th anniversary logos, which will be decorated by Honda associates (employees) on December 27.
Honda is one of the parade’s longest-running corporate sponsors, and its Rose Parade entries have captured major awards in 13 out of the last 14 years. Honda is the official Tournament of Roses vehicle. This year, the company will provide 115 vehicles, including the Honda FCX Clarity pace car; 166 Metropolitan scooters; and, 12 generators for use by Tournament of Roses personnel. The 120th Rose Parade, themed “Hats off to Entertainment,” will take place Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2009 at 8 a.m. (PST).
