Simple Off-The-Shelf Tooling Solutions with Ease of installation highlight benefits for users in the growing robot market
DESTACO has announced the availability of Cobot Tooling Solutions that are designed to simplify tool selection and eliminate integration design work for applications employing small payload robots or cobots in their operations. The wide variety of tooling solutions is designed for gripping, palletizing, machine tending, tool changing, and tool extension applications up to 10 kg payloads.
“Small payload robots are commonly found in larger industrial-manufacturing facilities, but there has been significant growth recently in their use in small light industrial and commercial shops due to the low-cost entry into robotic automation,” said Gary Labadie, Global Product Director for DESTACO. “This low-cost entry into robotic automation is now a focus and a solution for both large and small facilities coping with the economic climate.”
The fast growth in the cobot market is driven by a number of factors, including increases in inflation rates, labor costs, labor shortages, and excessive workforce turnover. The low startup costs for new entrants into the automation industry and a relatively compact return on investment (ROI) period for a cobot system, which can be as few as 8 to 12 months make DESTACO tooling solutions attractive to users.
DESTACO has designed its cobot tooling solutions for simplicity and ease of use with off-the-shelf availability via kits that feature all of the end-user-selected accessories, along with the hardware and tools needed for installation, reducing the need to consult an application engineer. All of the tooling solutions are compatible with cobots that have an ISO 9409-1-50-4-M6 end-of-arm mounting pattern. Blank robot and tool plates are offered for those who wish to use their own mounting patterns.
A standout feature in DESTACO’s suite of cobot tooling is the Microtool End Effectors that enable the cobot to perform palletizing functions. Users that know the length, width, and weight of the packages to be lifted and transferred can easily select the palletizing kit type and pre-determined vacuum cup size necessary for the application eliminating tool design work with off-the-shelf kits.
Other cobot tooling solutions that DESTACO is now offering include:
- CB-200 Quick-Move Base: Allows the cobot to be moved from one workstation to another without the need to reprogram the robot.
- ARV-C Vacuum Gripper: Can pick up and move product via one air line with an auto-release vacuum generator; available in nine sizes and shapes
- MG Magnet Gripper: Available in two sizes, allows the picking of ferrous material or components with one pneumatically actuated air line
- MultiMount Tool Array: Mounts up to five different tools to the cobot wrist via various tool mounting plates and multiple extension lengths
- MultiMount Machine Tending: Can accommodate two grippers or two tools for use in work-piece exchange applications in CNC machining centers; features Blank, ISO-9409-50, and DirectConnect mounting plates
- MultiMount Tool Extension: Extends the reach of the cobot arm that the cobot’s standard wrist length and reach cannot. A variety of tool plates and multiple extension lengths are available
- MicroTool Palletizing: Off-the-shelf kits to handle boxes from 160 to 750 mm widths and 260 to 900 mm lengths weighing less than 10 kg.
- TC1 Manual Tool Changer: Allows the user to change cobot tools quickly and repeatably and offers electric and air pass-through capabilities
- Tool Storage Tree: Securely stores and organizes up to six cobot tools safely and securely; fully adjustable with three different tree heights
