All in a day’s work for robots

As technologies mature, the way we think of them changes and affects how we use them. Manufacturing based on robotics is invested with a new level of finesse and flexibility. But do we appreciate what robots do, and the more they could do, for us?

In a packaging machine a robotic arm can be a single component, but it can have the powerful capability of implementing multi-axis programmable movements. Machine components tend not to command a user’s attention. The use of cams, gears or cylinders are an engineering decision to produce the most cost effective and reliable outcome.

But with the advances in robotics, it is interesting to look at the strides or, more aptly, the twists and turns the technology is making to add speed, flexibility, precision and all-important safety to high volume packing operations in dynamic retail and industrial markets.

Fanuc Robotics UK gave the first European demonstration of the compact M-1iA robot at the EMO show in Milan last October. Suitable for high speed and accurate picking and packing - of light components into cartons, for example - this robot with 4 or 6 axes options weighs just 14kg and 17kg, respectively.

Handling a payload of 500g it will complete the standard pick and place trial of 25mm up, 200mm linear and 25mm down in 0.3sec and with a repeatability of 0.02mm, Fanuc claims.

Morris Hanley, Fanuc sales & marketing manager tells Packaging Today that at 421mm wide by 500mm deep it takes up no more space than a human operator working at an assembly conveyor. A real-world application would be the packing of very small electrical components into containers.

Its articulated arm is more dexterous than conventional SCARA systems, says Mr Hanley. And it has the agility to package a set of spares more effectively than a person can, is not bothered by repetitive strain injury, requires no days off and is not prone to ‘off days’.

The actual work envelope, a 280mmdiameter, is maintained within the width of the robot body, which makes guarding requirements ‘straightforward and unobtrusive’ when human operators are working alongside, states Fanuc.

The M-1iA robot is also portable. With a removable stand it is easily integrated into a machine and mounted at any angle of orientation, which opens opportunities for multiple robot installations where work envelopes will overlap, concludes Fanuc.

A feed system by Apsol, of Italy, for its case packer - for packing food and non-food products in flexible packs into cases - is proving popular with ready meals manufacturers worldwide, says UK distributor Integrapak. The RCP was chosen for three turnkey lines totalling 10 machines by a company in the UK.

From the RCFP conveyor, RCP vacuum or mechanical picking heads pick and place the filled flexible sachets, doypacks and flowpacks into cartons, display boxes, trays and shelf-ready packs. It will load up to six cases per cycle at speeds of up to 25 cycles/min.

Integrapak also represents Spanish company Synchropack, which specialises in horizontal electronic flow-wrapping machines and automatic feeding systems, including those for irregular or fragile products and very delicate oven baked products.

HMK Automation & Drives designed the Neugart WPLN right angle performance gearbox series to offer quiet operation, high output torque and a compact space envelope, says the UK manufacturer. To assist gearbox selection, the latest WPLN products have been integrated into the Neugart calculation and sizing programme, which can be obtained free from the HMK website.

To achieve a quicker response to customers’ requirements, 2K Polymer Systems, a supplier of professional and DIY repair products to the private label market, is using a fully automated robotic production cell solution to check weigh and pack cartridges, which was built by Aylesbury Automation.

The robot-based machine check weighs a range of cartridges and palletises them ready for transfer to the next process. One complete part is checked every three seconds.