Robotic Grippers
The range of add-on accessories to customise a robot is endless … There is an extensive range of “off-the-shelf” robotic accessories that can be added to the arm to perform specific functions. In addition, a company such as MAR can design and manufacture tools when no commercial product is appropriate.
The functionality of these accessories is endless, with the
main categories including grippers, sensors, burring and
sanding, welding, assembly, picking and placing,
alignments, vision, temperature testing, cutting … and the
list goes on.
One of the most common applications associated with robots is picking up an item, prior
to a secondary action taking place. The range of grippers available for such applications
far exceed what any human could achieve.
The parallel gripper has
parallel points of contact
which enables a positive
pick & place and high
clamping force for rapid
part transfer. It is
pneumatically operated,
offering high grip force to
moment ratio and
synchronous jaw motion.
True parallel motion of the
jaws is achieved through a
toggle mechanism linking
the double acting piston to
the jaws. The jaws remain synchronous and parallel through the range of motion of the
piston. The grip force can be adjusted by varying the air pressure. Parallel grippers offer
more consistent gripping force throughout the stroke of the jaws than do angular
grippers.
In harsh environments parallel grippers can also feature a double seal that ensures the mechanism is isolated from environmental conditions. This also applies in ‘clean’ environments where a double seal to assure that the mechanism is isolated from the contaminants in the environment. Grippers are also developed for applications that impart high acceleration to heavy objects or require extremely long, precisely positioned jaws, while miniature parallel grippers feature an independence of the force and synchronization which provides precision over the typical 10,000,000+ cycle-life of the gripper.
They are also ideal for picking and placing cylindrical parts which are not uniform in size.
For extremely delicate objects that have an exterior that can’t be held, the gripper can
work from the inside gripping outward.
Parallel grippers enable fail-safe, high quality, easy-to-implement solutions to complex problems – such as handling micro-plates economically without human error The 2-jaw parallel gripper was developed for general purpose use. It is ideal for applications requiring two points of contact, positive pick and place and a high clamping force for rapid part transfer.
There is also a 3-jaw parallel gripper which is ideal for applications requiring three points of contact, positive pick and place, and the flexibility of stroke. It offers self-centering of parts and a high clamping force for rapid part transfer and part gripping during grinding or de-burring, etc.
Machinery Automation & Robotics
1/101 Derby Street
Silverwater NSW 2128
Phone: (61) 2 9748 7001
http://www.machineryautomation.com.au