IPF show: Robot series boosts environmental credentials

Robot supplier Yushin Precision Equipment (Kyoto, Japan) graced the recent IPF show in Japan with a take-out solution promising savings in energy and air consumption, plus faster part removal times to boot.

The YC/YC II Series for injection machines of 80-450 tonnes clamping force has undergone mechanical

Electricity and air savings delivered in latest Yushin traverse robot.

component design optimization that has reduced the weight of moving components by a total of 34.1 kg. The end result is that smaller servomotors can then be employed for driving and an energy saving of 26% can be derived versus the company's YA Series robots. Lighter components incorporating carbon fiber reinforced plastic, optimized end-of-arm-tooling (EOTA), and vibration control also enable a reduction in settling time (the time required for EOAT oscillation to attenuate to a set value) from 1 second to 0.28 seconds, which translates to faster cycle time.

Yushin has also gone to the trouble of minimizing the amount of air required for suction grip take-out by constantly monitoring suction pressure and shutting off air supply as long as gripping power is maintained. The ECO Vacuum system reduced suction air usage by 75% according to Yushin, which translates to an annual saving of $700 at 16¢/kWh, a compressed air supply of 2,300 NI/min, and air use per cycle of 4.75 NI with ECO Vacuum versus 19 NI for a standard vacuum circuit.

YC/YC II Series robots also employ a controller with predictive maintenance and real-time electricity and air usage monitoring. The E-touch-compact-YC controller also features an enhanced manual operation screen with all axes grouped on one screen as well as a new flow chart display.-[email protected]