April 2021

n TECHNOLOGY April 2021 www.drivesncontrols.com 24 THE DANISH ROBOTIC end-effector developer OnRobot has announced what it claims is the world’s most-powerful electric vacuum gripper. The VGP20 gripper can lift 20kg loads and can handle applications that have traditionally relied on powerful pneumatic grippers, without needing complex compressed air installations. It is claimed to cut operating and maintenance costs by up to 90% compared to pneumatic systems. OnRobot has also launched a magnetic gripper that, it says, offers “unique” adjustable force and grip detection functions providing “unprecedented” levels of control. The multi-channel VGP20 electric gripper allows cups and airflows to be customised to handle multiple items of different shapes and sizes. Built-in “intelligence”, combined with easy-to-use software, provides precise airflow control that is claimed to be beyond the capabilities of traditional pneumatic grippers. Users can vary the type of grip according to the application – soft grips for delicate items, or hard grips for bulky cardboard boxes. “Our customers asked for a cost-effective, easy-to-deploy vacuum gripper that can pick up bulky, heavy-duty payloads while being intelligent enough to handle a wide range of items, including those with irregular shapes and porous surfaces,”says OnRobot’s CEO, Enrico Krog Iversen.“The VGP20 combines power, intelligence and ease-of-use that competes with expensive, complex pneumatic grippers.” OnRobot foresees many potential applications for the electric grippers in costly, labour-intensive, end-of-line operations such as palletising. In the packaging sector, where carboard costs have risen by 40% since 2010 and where there are shortages as a result of pandemic-driven e-commerce demands, shippers have been turning to lower-cost options including thinner, more porous cardboard and lightweight shipping bags. These can present challenges for traditional automated packaging and palletising systems, but OnRobot says that its customisable electric grippers can handle these materials “easily”, allowing shippers to save on both automation and shipping costs. The new MG10 magnetic gripper is designed to tackle some of the weaknesses of existing magnetic grippers which typically provide simple on/off functions. To adjust the force they apply, you have to add rubber “feet” to create space between the magnet and the part. OnRobot describes this as “a tedious and imprecise process that doesn’t always guarantee perfect results”. According to Iversen, “standard magnetic grippers are a real hassle because almost every time your application or workpiece changes, you have to make manual adjustments to compensate for the gripper’s lack of functionality”. The new gripper, he adds, “eliminates all that thanks to its adjustable force features that enable you to deploy precise material-handling applications quickly and easily”. Unlike conventional magnetic grippers, the new one has built-in sensors for detecting parts. It can handle machine tending, assembly and materials-handling tasks previously needing costly, complex pneumatic grippers. “While pneumatic systems require an external air supply, cabling and ongoing maintenance, the MG10 is ready-to-go out of the box, resulting in massively reduced deployment costs compared to its pneumatic counterparts,” says Iversen. The gripper also provides precise handling of objects with abrasive, uneven or perforated surfaces. Its multi-magnet set-up also means that it can handle a wide range of sizes and weights, as well as parts with odd-shaped geometries. Both of OnRobot’s new grippers are compatible with a wide range of industrial robots. https://onrobot.com Electrically powered vacuum gripper is ‘world’s most powerful’ OnRobot’sVGP20 vacuumgripper can lift 20kg loads Self-teaching robot picks unknown objects with 94% accuracy AUTOMATION EXPERTS at the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) have developed a robot that can teach itself how to pick up unknown objects from a randomly-arranged tray or bin. They say that tests on a wide range of objects – including metal components, cosmetic containers and fruit – have achieved success rates of up to a 94%. The robot can pick objects without needing expensive sensors or lengthy programming. The technology – codenamed Project Viper – uses a deep neural network, low-cost depth-measuring cameras and robot arms fitted with vacuum pick-up cups. “This project has shown the MTC’s ability to draw upon state-of-the-art academic research to develop new technologies for UK industry,” explains MTC senior research engineer, Mark Robson. “The result of this work is a flexible system that can quickly be adapted to the individual needs of different industrial handling problems without the need for complex robot programming. “We showed that learning to pick on one object set can translate well to new objects,” he adds, “giving us an excellent starting point for new tasks. Building the system around a neural network architecture allows us to update the model as we gather new data in operation, enabling the system's performance to continue to improve over time. “Using simulation to automate the creation of training data significantly reduces the cost and time typically required to manually produce the large quantities of data needed to train a neural network.” The researchers at the Coventry-based MTC believe that the technology could bring big benefits to the manufacturing, agri-food, logistics and waste management sectors, among others. The picking application follows another MTC project that developed a robot with decision-making capabilities for assembly operations. Using a combination of machine learning and visual recognition, this robot can be taught to make assembly decisions based on components placed in front of it. The MTC says that it could save manufacturers the costs of expensive fixed tooling. www.the-mtc.org/our-case-studies/viper