After this year’s FAKUMA has been canceled, WITTMANN presents the exhibits originally planned for the show by way of product videos, and to upload them on “Virtual Fakuma”. – The presentation of the videos is intended to take place primarily in personal meetings with customers. To present the product highlights as vividly as possible to a wide audience, the product videos will also be made available on the company’s YouTube channel. – In the following, a first overview of novelties in the area of automation.
New rotary A-C servo axis version 2020
Automated processes, maximum flexibility and more efficiency are increasingly called for – a trend very early recognized by WITTMANN. The company has won renown especially in the area of extra servo axes for robots. The B servo axis most frequently in demand was already adapted a considerable time ago in such a way that it could be integrated into the vertical tubes of most robot models. Thus no additional space is required in the demolding area, and in the vertical direction it has been limited to a mere 50 mm. Now WITTMANN is presenting another revision of its additional robot axes: a new version of the rotary A-C servo axis.
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The new combination axis for up to 30 kg handling load replaces the previous version. Viewed from the outside, hardly any changes are visible, since the dimensions of 250 × 248 × 179 mm have been kept virtually unaltered. The main difference compared to the predecessor version is found inside: WITTMANN uses a newly developed direct drive for the current version. By using this drive in combination with a re-design of the supporting structure, the company has succeeded in reducing the weight of the axis. By this reduction in weight, the total load on the robot system has been lightened as well, with a corresponding increase in the robot’s payload capacity.
The direct comparison with the previous rotary servo axis model shows an increase of about 40% in payload capacity for the 2020 model, with the drive performance for the A rotation (0–270°) and the C rotation (0–180°) of course remaining unchanged.
Completely new fields of application have been opened up for existing WITTMANN W8 pro robots by the option of having them retrofitted with the new A-C-servo axis. Thanks to the decentralized drive control system from WITTMANN (where the drive controllers are installed close to the motors), users will be able to upgrade the robots without elaborate new wiring. The R8 robot control system is able to control up to 12 servo axes (linear and rotatory) with a cycle time of 4 ms without an additional software package.
WITTMANN’s aims for this development were to create a powerful module for new parts removal devices, and to offer an interesting upgrade for existing robot solutions as well. Just a small investment makes it now possible to increase the robots’ flexibility substantially for the rest of their utilization period. From the 4th quarter of 2020 onwards, the new A-C servo axis version 2020 can now be ordered for use on the robot models WX142 to WX153, and on comparable appliances of the W8 pro series.
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PRIMUS 48/48T robot
In 2018, WITTMANN presented for the first time a PRIMUS robot with a movable X axis. The PRIMUS 26/26T introduced then combined the advantages of two appliances and made it possible to install PRIMUS solutions on injection molding machines with up to 900 t clamping force. Now the series is being extended once more with the PRIMUS 48/48T as the latest model.
This appliance is laid out for injection molding machines ranging from 500 to 1200 t in clamping force. Its horizontal strokes can reach a maximum of 9 m, which means that several pallet bays can be arranged beside the injection molding machine, or a place for parts depositing can be positioned behind the machine’s clamping unit. To further enhance its flexibility, the robot comes with a continuous drilling pattern as standard.
The demolding axis offers a maximum stroke of 1,200 mm, the vertical range is from 1,400 to 2,000 mm, with the vertical axis made telescopic from a stroke of 1,600 mm upwards to provide a further increase in stability. Within the range from 1,400 to 1,600 mm, customers can choose between the PRIMUS 48 single axis and the PRIMUS 48T telescopic version.
Both versions have the same load capacity of 20 kg. The PRIMUS 48/48T comes with a completely re-designed vertical tube, whose rigidity values are comparable to those of the WX appliances. On the vertical tube of PRIMUS 48/48T, only the quick couplers for vacuum, compressed air and gripper feedback are visible, the hosing is concealed inside.
