ABSOLUTE MACHINE TOOLS will offer two perspectives on automation at IMTS 2022 – booth 338519 – including options for machine-tending and collaborative robotics.
AMT’s A+ Automation Team will co-exhibit the LoadMate Plus™ machine tending robotic cell with partner Mitsubishi Electric Automation, a package co-developed to combine the advantages of collaborative robots and industrial robot automation cells. The compact, heavy-duty portable robotic cell can handle payloads up to 20 kg with reaches up to 1,388 mm. It can be integrated with a CNC machine in one step using MEA’s Direct Robot Control function. Its machine-tending functions will be demonstrated with Absolute Machine Tools Seiki KT-420L CNC mill/drill/tap center.
Capable of loading, unloading and palletizing parts in any low-to-high volume mix application, the plug-and-play LoadMate Plus offers the strength of industrial robots in a safe, contained cell. Several Mitsubishi vertical robot models, including all RV07, RV-8, RV-13 and RV-20 series, have been tested and proven within the cell’s enclosure. Its portability makes it easy to add an automation function to a variety of CNC applications increasing throughput and saving valuable time.
Also, together with Productive Robotics, Absolute Machine Tools will exhibit a series collaborative robots, to help visitors understand how simple it is to integrate and apply cobots in manufacturing processes, and to gain hands-on experience.
Four different cobots in the OB7 series are engineered to handle various payloads and sizes, accomplishing simple to complex tasks. Cobots are becoming vital in manufacturing operations now as manufacturers seek alternatives to manual labor, to maintain productivity.
Fully compliant with ISO 102018-1 industrial robot safety requirements, OB7 cobots can perform operations ranging from machine tending, deburring, applying adhesives, painting, welding, and assembly without the need for expensive space inhibiting fencing to isolate them from human coworkers. They are built with a true 7th axis inside the unit’s arm, rather than 6 axes, which allows the cobot to be positioned at the side of the machine door, so as to not block operator access to the work envelope for changing things like tooling or inserts. This also eliminates the need to move the robot and have to re- determine the proper pick or way points again, which saves time and money.
OB7 collaborative robots are programmed on a “teach” platform, and require no coding or programming. Any shop personnel can teach the cobot new tasks simply by moving the arm and dragging and dropping tiles on the control tablet interface. Pre-programmed are available in the OB7 tablet, and custom job functions for complex or repetitive tasks can be created and then labeled and saved for future recall.
The OB7’s computer controls all axis joints and components, and network ports are locked to prevent unauthorized access.
Get more information at www.absolutemachine.com
