Manufacturing Technology

Choosing the right robotic solution for every application

Though industrial robots have their individual strengths, manufacturers should consider the requirements of their application before deciding which to purchase. The payload, stroke length, precision and flexibility needed will all influence whether a linear or articulated robot is the right choice. The existing infrastructure should also be a factor, and which type of robot would integrate more effectively. Three of the most popular robot types are Cartesian, six-axis and SCARA robots. Cartesian Robots Cartesian robots are a common choice in industrial applications. They operate by moving along three orthogonal axes using the Cartesian Coordinate system. They are also known as linear robots, as they move in a straight line along a support frame, rather than rotating. Cartesian robots do not offer as much in terms of flexibility as articulated robots. They are an excellent choice for processes that require strength and reliability, but for applications requiring more degrees of freedom, an articulated robot may be more suitable. The rectangular work envelope on a Cartesian robot means that more of its footprint is active workspace, with no ‘dead zone’. This is more circular in a six-axis robot, meaning that there is more dead space, but the larger number of axes allows more range in the types of movement that can be done. The footprint of a Cartesian robot is well defined and thus can be easily integrated into existing infrastructure. They may require a lot of space to install and run but can be mounted overhead or on walls depending on the size, saving space on the ground floor. Speed is another important factor to consider — speed impacts cycle times, so the speed capabilities of the robot should fit manufacturer requirements in terms of productivity and output. Cartesian robots are a great choice for processes requiring high speed and fast […]

With Cintoo Cloud work more efficiently

Cintoo Cloud continues to bridge the gap between Reality Capture and Digital Twins as it hits one million laser scans uploaded to its platform, demonstrating the demand from businesses for cloud-based technology to drive more efficient and collaborative ways of working. Industry 4.0 organisations are recognising the time, resource and cost savings to be gained by basing their Digital Twins of existing assets on meaningful, trustful Reality Capture data, which they can glean from the platform by uploading their laser scan data and BIM and CAD models. With a client base spanning utilities, oil and gas, energy, automotive, water treatment, food and beverage, construction, engineering, architecture and cultural heritage, the platform’s 12,000 users have uploaded more than 10,000 BIM models and 200 million square metres of laser scans – the equivalent of twice the surface area of Paris – to Cintoo Cloud. Companies are also leveraging their Reality Capture data in the platform for QA/QC and construction progress monitoring, scan-to-BIM, asset management, retrofits, predictive maintenance, decommissioning and much more. A SaaS platform, Cintoo Cloud turns massive laser scan data into cloud and BIM compatible Reality Data that can be shared, viewed, annotated, measured or distributed for collaborative Scan-to-BIM and Scan-to-CAD workflows. It also enables asset management and as-built versus model comparisons. The platform leverages a unique point cloud-to-mesh technology, allowing for fast streaming of high-resolution, mesh-based scan data in a web browser with no plug-in to install. Leveraging Cintoo SDK and APIs, mesh-based streaming can also be used to build VR and AR apps, mixing scans and BIM or CAD in the Unreal and Unity platforms. The platform has rapidly growing audiences in Australasia, and is being used to host and manage the laser scan data of teams working on a diverse range of projects such as automotive factories in Detroit, Michigan; North Sea oil rigs; the renovation of the Howard Middle School in Atlanta – Martin Luther King Jr’s former school; and cultural heritage sites such as the ancient city of Volterra in Italy. Businesses struggling to share, view or distribute massive as-built laser scan data to teams, contractors […]

Surf Loch creates the perfect wave

Surf Loch has been developing wave-making technology since the 1980s, and is using software from Siemens’ Xcelerator portfolio and automation technology to create wave pools that deliver ocean-quality waves which can be tailored to each individual surfer. By combining the digital and real worlds in a comprehensive digital twin, Surf Loch has been able to master the creation of custom waves through software simulations, before building and testing in a physical facility. This has enabled Surf Loch to deliver waves that match the needs of the surfer and produce them consistently and reliably according to their individual skill level. In addition to its software solutions, Surf Loch leverages other parts of Siemens’ Digital Enterprise portfolio, such as automation and drive technology, to optimize their surf pools. “When we make a wave, we’re controlling every aspect of how that wave gets formed, to the 1000th of a second,” said Tom Lochtefeld, founder and CEO of Surf Loch. “Working with Siemens gives us the unique ability to connect the real and digital worlds to achieve that level of precision. By embracing this kind of digital mindset, we can provide surfers with 400 waves an hour; in the ocean, the average surfer would be lucky to get five.” Surf Loch’s vision is to make the sport accessible to anyone anywhere while not compromising on the unique ocean experience. As surfing continues to increase in global popularity, Surf Loch aims to attract and serve more surfers in their pools to reduce the overall human impact on natural beaches. Surf Loch uses a range of solutions from the Xcelerator portfolio to create different wave variances while still ensuring they feel like surfing on the ocean. The team creates a digital twin of the wave, and then uses computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis and multidisciplinary optimisation […]

Raising the bar for automated microchip testing

esmo group a full-service systems integrator that provides innovative and advanced engineering services — has rolled out upgrades and additional features for the talos 2021 system. First launched in 2019, the talos engineering handler is a reliable and easy-to-use handling system for semiconductor test applications, and is esmo’s solution to the industry’s need to cost-effectively test increasingly compact and complex devices within a shorter period of time. At the core of the talos engineer handler is its state-of-the-art active thermal control system (ATC), which allows manufacturers to carry out multiple test temperature cycles and achieve the highest temperature accuracy. The talos engineering handler provides semiconductor companies with the most stringent quality control and assurance, ensuring products are tested to specification. A highly flexible and cost-effective test system, the talos platform helps manufacturers achieve faster time-to-yield with higher overall equipment efficiency. Furthermore, its remote control and monitoring feature allows businesses to remotely manage and conduct device handling. The talos system supports the testing of devices with any site pitch dimension, which allows semiconductor companies to use already existing production load boards and sockets seamlessly. Its tray or tube loading and unloading feature also makes it possible for manufacturers to run the talos system in a mixed media operation. As such, loading trays, tubes, and tapes can be combined with their unloading counterparts, and devices can even be sorted from one media to another, such as from tube to tray. Designed to meet both test and production floor requirements, the talos handling system features a highly accurate pick-and-place robot system and a standard docking interface that is compatible with all testers. The talos can also be employed as a basic, kit-less test handler, or as an advanced test handling system with its expansive selection of optional modules. Key features of the talos: […]

Supertec chooses NUM technology for its CNC cylindrical grinding machines

Supertec Machinery Inc., one of Taiwan’s leading machine tool manufacturers, has chosen to base new versions of its renowned Plunge type of CNC cylindrical grinding machines on NUM’s Flexium+ CNC platform. Founded in 1954, Supertec Machinery Inc. has grown to become one of Taiwan’s top machine tool manufacturers. The company specialises in precision grinding automation and produces a diverse range of centreless, cylindrical and surface grinding machines. Based in Taichung City, Supertec operates sales and support facilities at strategic locations throughout Asia and Europe, as well as in the USA and South America. Supertec has traditionally used Fanuc CNC systems for most of its machine tools. However, when NUM added non-circular grinding functionality to its popular NUMgrind cylindrical grinding software back in June 2020, the company realised that this innovative CNC technology provided exactly what many of its customers needed on their cylindrical grinders. NUMgrind simplifies the creation of G code programs for CNC grinding machines through the use of a highly intuitive graphical human machine interface (HMI), and unlike conventional CAD/CAM workstation tools, it is designed specifically for use by shop floor personnel in a production environment. After evaluating the software, Supertec immediately raised a purchase contract with NUM. According to Betty Chu, Supertec’s Assistant General Manager, “NUM has an excellent reputation in the grinding industry. Much like Supertec, this has been earned over many years. And the latest version of NUMgrind, which accommodates non-circular grinding, is a natural fit for our CNC cylindrical grinding machines. We also now benefit from very responsive local support – NUM’s Taiwan facility is less than 15 km away from our factory.” Supertec’s Plunge type of CNC cylindrical grinding machines offer a choice of six capacities, covering distances between centres from 500 mm to 2,000 mm. The machines can also accommodate grinding diameters from 300 […]

FARO introduces BuildIT 2021 Software Suite

FARO), a global leader for 3D measurement, imaging and realisation solutions, has released its most advanced BuildIT 2021 software suite, which represents the next evolution of this platform that simplifies workflows, improves performance and enhances ease of use. BuildIT offers three individual products – BuildIT Metrology, BuildIT Projector and BuildIT Construction – each designed to address the most challenging quality inspection, manufacturing and assembly or construction issues, offering the most flexible and intuitive user interfaces in their respective applications. While the BuildIT 2021 suite is integrated with FARO hardware products to ensure a best-in-class FARO solution experience, it also delivers high-quality outcomes for non-FARO hardware products. “The performance enhancements in BuildIT 2021 Software Suite are substantial,” said Vito Marone, FARO Senior Director of Software Product Marketing. “For example, by using this significant upgrade of our BuildIT Construction software, users can complete reports in five minutes or less – a process which used to take 10 minutes or more.” BuildIT Metrology 2021 features upgrades related to four key areas, including: user experience, probing, scanning and automation: Inspection annotations – Can now be defined prior to perform any measurement and then computed and populated dynamically as new measurements are added; dynamic annotations are supported for points, lines and curves, and surfaces FARO Laser Tracker Improvements – Integrates the latest SDK (software development kit) to provide a more seamless Wi-Fi experience by handling disconnections and reconnections automatically Improved GD&T (geometric distancing & tolerancing) – Runout and total runout tolerances are now supported with any DRF file extension that frees DoF (degrees of freedom) required for a proper evaluation of tolerances Faster alignment and analyses – By trading a few microns in accuracy, the alignments and analyses gets a boost in speed between 10X to 100X Auto-complete and syntax highlighting – Are now available […]

Testing machine advances filtration, face mask development and effectiveness

New Zealand nanofibre manufacturer Revolution Fibres has made a significant investment in a testing machine to enhance the development and performance of its filtration media. The PALAS PMFT 1000 testing rig – one of the world’s leading machines for testing protective face masks and filtration efficiency – analyses the ability of masks to filter particles, bacteria, and viruses such as Covid-19. Overseas, to help contain Covid-19 spread and better protect frontline health workers and patients during the pandemic, PALAS has been providing numerous hospitals with the ability to test the protective masks they use. Revolution Fibres’ new PALAS machine is the first of its kind in New Zealand. Ray Connor, Revolution Fibres CEO, says the machine is key to advancing the performance of its SETA nanofibre filter media product which is used in face masks that meet and exceed N95 and N99 standards. “The PALAS enables us to test face masks to ensure they meet required standards and properly protect people and health workers who are on the frontline of the pandemic in New Zealand and around the world.” The pedigree of PALAS’ technology speaks for itself, says Connor, with its certified fine dust measurement, in the context of environmental monitoring, making it one of the most important partners for manufacturers and suppliers when testing filters and filter media. PALAS gives Revolution Fibres the opportunity to test its filters instantly at the required international standards, as opposed to sending the material overseas to be tested. Once its products are ready to take to market, they are then sent to a third-party testing lab for certification. “Research and development are at the heart of what we do and the PALAS enables us to continue to analyse, develop, and advance new filter media applications before taking them to market.” The testing […]

Hexagon and Authentise partner to deliver first open end-to-end software for additive manufacturing

Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division and Authentise have partnered to extend the Additive Manufacturing (AM) control loop from the machine level to connect the end-to-end value chain from design, manufacturing operations and quality assurance to make additive manufacturing more predictable, repeatable and traceable. Data from shopfloor manufacturing operations, engineering data from the design phase, materials properties and quality data from validation and inspection processes hold the key to automating serial production improvements and enabling design improvements. However, the technical challenge of connecting these silos and applying these data have inhibited the ability to consistently apply AM to new designs. New solutions delivered through the partnership will apply Statistical Process Control (SPC) with Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) methods to mitigate waste and quality issues during the design phase and improve the repeatability of additive manufacturing processes within a site or between global locations. Through the partnership, Hexagon and Authentise will build solutions to industrialise AM technology by digitising every step of the workflow from part design through production to final product and quality assurance utilising their unique stack of technology capabilities to connect the digital thread of a part and trace its pedigree. This is made possible by a shared commitment to open architectures that integrate data and automate workflows between Hexagon´s best-of-breed applications for AM and the third-party equipment and software manufacturers chose to use. Mathieu Pérennou, Global Business Development Director Additive Manufacturing, Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division says, “Together with Authentise, we are building a next-generation framework for our customers to manage flexible, fully digitised production workflows in private cloud environments. “For manufacturers, AM is a complex and changing market with many excellent tools, printers and materials to apply. We believe our open and flexible systems will enable us to respond quickly to customer’s needs and integrate with […]

Hypertherm-Releases-Major-Version-Update-Of-Robotmaster-Robot-Programming-Software-e1587636836929

Major version update of Robotmaster robotic software now available

Hypertherm has released Robotmaster Version 7.4. This offline robot programming software version contains several enhancements designed to further simplify robotic programming, including: Major enhancements to Remote Tool Center Point (RTCP) that allow for an improved end user experience and exploit the full capabilities of any robotic cell. Additions to the surface paths with added strategies and advanced tools for applications such as polishing, grinding, deburring and more. The surface paths are designed to tie-in perfectly with the enhancements to RTCP or traditional configurations for robotic finishing. Faster processing times when saving, loading, and calculating jobs, plus improved real time feedback during simulation for faster part programming times. Enhancement to the Robotmaster Interactive Simulation Environment (RISE), delivering a more realistic simulation for external axes, along with tools to better control motion between the robot and external axes. “With Robotmaster V7.4 we’ve responded to our customer base with features and enhancements that we believe take a big step forward,” explained Garen Cakmak, leader of Hypertherm’s Robotic Software team. “Take the RTCP improvements as an example. These will allow users to realize more value from their robotic cell investment.” Building upon the redesigned V7 architecture, first introduced in 2018, Robotmaster uses integrated CAD/CAM functionality to make robotic programming easy and intuitive for everyone, even first-time users. The software is used by a wide range of industries to program robots for tasks that include surfacing, 3D milling, additive manufacturing, welding, painting, and more.

FARO introduces BuildIT 2021 Software Suite

FARO, a global leader for 3D measurement, imaging and realisation solutions, has released its most advanced BuildIT 2021 software suite, which represents the next evolution of this platform that simplifies workflows, improves performance and enhances ease of use. BuildIT offers three individual products – BuildIT Metrology, BuildIT Projector and BuildIT Construction – each designed to address the most challenging quality inspection, manufacturing and assembly or construction issues, offering the most flexible and intuitive user interfaces in their respective applications. While the BuildIT 2021 suite is integrated with FARO hardware products to ensure a best-in-class FARO solution experience, it also delivers high-quality outcomes for non-FARO hardware products. “The performance enhancements in BuildIT 2021 Software Suite are substantial,” said Vito Marone, FARO Senior Director of Software Product Marketing. “For example, by using this significant upgrade of our BuildIT Construction software, users can complete reports in five minutes or less – a process which used to take 10 minutes or more.” BuildIT Metrology 2021 features upgrades related to four key areas, including: user experience, probing, scanning and automation: Inspection annotations – Can now be defined prior to perform any measurement and then computed and populated dynamically as new measurements are added; dynamic annotations are supported for points, lines and curves, and surfaces FARO Laser Tracker Improvements – Integrates the latest SDK (software development kit) to provide a more seamless Wi-Fi experience by handling disconnections and reconnections automatically Improved GD&T (geometric distancing & tolerancing) – Runout and total runout tolerances are now supported with any DRF file extension that frees DoF (degrees of freedom) required for a proper evaluation of tolerances Faster alignment and analyses – By trading a few microns in accuracy, the alignments and analyses gets a boost in speed between 10X to 100X Auto-complete and syntax highlighting – Are now available […]

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