n TECHNOLOGY January 2025 www.drivesncontrols.com 16 THOMSON INDUSTRIES HAS released a seventh axis for cobot (collaborative robot) applications which is describes as “the first ever true collaborative extension of cobots”. The MovoTrak CTU (cobot transfer unit) axis adds a horizontal operating range of up to 10m to cobot installations and incorporates collision detection that stops the cobot if it encounters an obstacle, thus making collaborative operation with humans safer. Thomson has also launched an industrial robot transfer unit (RTU) that can be integrated with a user’s preferred motor and drive. “With the extension of the collaborative functionality along the seventh axis, manufacturers can deploy cobots to work more closely and flexibly with humans,” says Hans Dahlen, Thomson’s product manager for linear motion systems. “Using the same cobot for more than one workstation boosts productivity and extracts maximum value from the initial cobot investment.” Also known as a range extender, the seventh axis includes a Kollmorgen servomotor, as well as linear guide rails that move a cobot from one position and task to another. Unlike other seventh-axis systems, the new device has a collision detection function similar to those found in cobot joints. Users can adjust the collision sensitivity settings on a tablet during setup, and the system’s drive and digital I/O manage the collision monitoring and shutdown. The collision detection system also monitors the motor current continuously, detecting position errors and providing anti-collision capabilities along the entire axis. A reverse move function eliminates pinch points after a stop. The seventh axis can be used with many brands and sizes of cobot, including those from Universal Robots. In this case, all programming is done via the URCap interface on UR’s teaching pendant. All collision monitoring and safeguard logic runs in the Thomson drive, minimising competition for bandwidth with the UR controls. A freedrive function allows hand-driven setting of waypoints during programming. Users slide the cobot by hand to where they want it to stop, and register the position with the push of a button. The dual linear system is said to deliver good moment load capacity and stiffness, maintaining performance even when the cobot arm is fully extended. The seventh axis can operate horizontally, inverted or mounted onto a wall. It is said to be compatible with the largest cobots. Thomson’s new industrial RTU allows users to equip their robotic applications with a seventh axis. A Thomson RediMount adapter kit allows them to integrate their chosen motors in less than a minute and to use their own robot controllers. The system is compatible with many robot brands and sizes, and uses the same dual-linear design and carriage-mounted mounting plate as the Movotrak CTU. www.thomsonlinear.com p The Cambridge-based power electronics specialist Quantum Power Transformation (QPT) has filed a patent for a novel way to conduct heat away from high-power semiconductor packages – a big challenge for the sector. QPT developed the qAttach process for use with its gallium nitride (GaN) transistors used in motor controls, allowing them to handle large amounts of waste heat in highpower, high-voltage applications at high frequencies. It says this will allow GaN to be used for next-generation industrial and automotive motor applications, and deliver on the promise of low-cost, high-voltage GaN transistors. p ABB has entered into a strategic collaboration with the Austrian firm Engineering Software Steyr (ESS) to develop simulation tools intended to transform automotive paint shop operations, cutting costs by up to 30%, while accelerating commissioning by up to a month. The partners will develop algorithms that simulate dust and droplet behaviour, heat transfer and fluid flows, and offer software that eliminates need for prototyping. As part of the deal, ABB will take a minority stake in ESS. p Sick and Aeva and are collaborating to incorporate Aeva’s micron-accurate FMCW (frequency-modulated continuous wave) radar technology into Sick’s high-accuracy contactless sensors for applications including distance and motion control. Sick sensors using the technology will be able to deliver precise contactless measurements on a variety of surfaces over short to long distances, regardless of materials, texture or colour, and under a variety of lighting conditions. p Alva Industries, the Norwegian manufacturer of thin, lightweight frameless motors has formed a partnership with RLS, the Slovenian producer of rotary and linear magnetic sensors, to provide framed motor evaluation kits for rapid motor and encoder testing and technology evaluation. The kits are available for motors with outer diameters of 39, 75 and 130mm, and include an Alva SlimTorq slotless motor and RLS AsksIM absolute magnetic encoder. The motors are produced using Alva’s FiberPrinting technology that results in slotless, ironless windings with up to 60% copper fill factors, setting new benchmarks for precision, torque density and adaptability. www.alvaindustries.com p The Italian controls manufacturer Sfera Labs has announced a new version of its Strato Pi Max platform, based on the latest Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 (CM5). This module offers many improvements over the previous CM4, including a 2.5x boost in performance, an enhanced graphical processor, and more memory options. The modular controllers, with extensive customisation options, are housed in a 9- or 6module DIN-rail cases, and have two Ethernet ports, an SSD, eMMC and dual SD card storage options, as well as two USB 2.0 type-A ports. https://sferalabs.cc/strato-pi-max TECHNOLOGY BRIEFS 10m-long cobot seventh axis is the ‘first’ that can detect collisions Thomson’s seventh axis allows cobots to perform different operations at different locations
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