Robot dexterity

Citation

(2001), "Robot dexterity", Industrial Robot, Vol. 28 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/ir.2001.04928aaf.010

Robot dexterity

Robot dexterity

Keywords Robotics, Precision instruments

Because industrial robotic arms are typically made of metal castings, they are somewhat limited in their ability to suit specific applications. Maxtor Corp., a computer disk drive company, uses several robots designed to address those limitations.

The robots – developed by Mek.A.Nize Engineering Inc. of Colorado Springs, and marketed under the name of "No Compromise" – use arms made of precision, computer numerical control machined components that are welded together. This configuration enables engineers to optimise the arm geometry to serve the reach, travel, and stiffness required for its intended application. The system's direct drive servomotors are precisely matched to the speed and payload requirements demanded by the application.

Maxtor operates the No Compromise robots in a disk/drive pick and place application in its Class 10 clean room environment. The four-axis machines have a 32-inch reach over 360 degrees, are capable of seven inches of vertical travel, and have a 25lb payload capacity. The cleanroom robots are equipped with an optical sensor array that updates the moving target's position, a metered gravity float-down to prevent damage to the moving target, and vacuum scavenging of the arm.

An additional benefit Maxtor realised by using the Mek.A.Nize robots is that they disrupt airflow much less than gantry robots that Maxtor originally considered using. This is an important capability in Class 10 cleanroom applications.