FIPA GmbH has developed a gripper for AUMA Riester GmbH & Co. KG that is designed to improve ergonomics in the workplace. According to the company, the gripper makes it easier to handle electric motors, shortens cycle times and offers a high degree of process reliability.
AUMA develops and produces electric actuators and valve gearboxes. A solution was required for removing delivered electric motor housings from their cardboard packaging. In the past, the parts, which weigh around 33 kg, were removed in a complicated and unsafe manner using simple aids such as slings and straps, and then placed in a shipping carton after assembly of the rotor.
As an interim solution, a swiveling jib crane with one-hand operation was selected to support the worker in removing the motor from the packaging and placing it back in the box after assembly. However, threading the tether into the four holes in the motor housing proved to be time-consuming.
The narrow packaging makes handling more difficult. There is very little room for maneuver, meaning that clasping the motor with a gripper is impossible. There was only one feasible solution: the gripper needed to attach to the four fixing holes of the motor housing. FIPA developed a customized gripper in close collaboration with AUMA Riester GmbH & Co. KG. It comprises two pneumatically driven half shells and four tappets for insertion into the holes in the motor housing. The front of each tappet is equipped with a horizontal resting surface on which the motor rests during handling.
Hung in a pivotable position on a swiveling jib crane, the operator moves the gripper into the correct position above the motor. At the touch of a button, the two half shells move outward by means of air pressure, so that the tappets are above the holes. The finishing touches for aligning with the holes are made by gripping the gripper itself.
As soon as the four tappets of the gripper are aligned with the holes in the motor housing, the operator lowers the gripper with the crane until the gripper is sitting flat on the motor housing and the tappets are in the holes.
The operator then presses the button on the gripper and the linear unit moves inward - the motor is clamped. Through a combination of traction and form fit, the motor is securely held by the gripper and can be quickly moved to the desired position in the shipping carton and deposited. The two half shells with the tappets are held securely in their original position using springs. According to the company, this guarantees that the motor will be held securely, even in the event of a loss of compressed air.
Automation of the alignment process would be uneconomical due to the high effort required. In addition to an image processing system, additional linear and rotational axes would be required, as well as a complex control unit.
"The customized gripper solution from FIPA protects employees' backs," said a company spokesperson. "And due to the easy operation and safe handling, fewer errors occur. Cycle times have also been reduced."
For more information contact:
FIPA Inc.
1855 Evans Road
Cary, NC 27513
919-651-9888
sales.us@fipa.com
www.fipa.com