5 Takeaways From The Pick, Place and Pall Cobot Expo

The Power of Flexible Automation in Case Erecting

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The Power of Flexible Automation in Case Erecting

In today’s rapidly evolving manufacturing landscape, adaptability and efficiency are paramount. As consumer demands shift and markets change, businesses must be agile in their approach to production. One area where flexibility plays a crucial role is in case erecting—a fundamental process in packaging operations. Traditional methods of case erecting often involve dedicated equipment tailored to specific box sizes and configurations. However, with the rise of flexible automation, manufacturers are discovering a new level of versatility and productivity in their packaging lines.

The Challenge of Traditional Case Erecting

Traditional case erecting equipment typically requires manual adjustments or changeovers to accommodate different box sizes and styles. This can lead to downtime, inefficiencies, and increased labor costs. Moreover, the rigidity of these systems limits the ability to respond quickly to changing production needs or packaging requirements.

Introducing Flexible Automation

Flexible automation revolutionizes case erecting by offering adaptable solutions that can handle a wide range of box sizes, styles, and materials without the need for manual intervention. These systems utilize advanced technology such as robotic arms, servo motors, and intelligent software to automatically adjust to varying packaging specifications on-the-fly.

6 Key Benefits of Flexible Automation in Case Erecting:

  1. Versatility: Flexible automation systems can handle multiple box sizes and styles, including regular slotted containers (RSC), half-slotted containers (HSC), and trays, with minimal changeover time.
  2. Increased Efficiency: By eliminating the need for manual adjustments and changeovers, flexible automation reduces downtime and increases overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), resulting in higher throughput and productivity.
  3. Cost Savings: With fewer manual interventions and reduced downtime, manufacturers can achieve significant cost savings in labor, maintenance, and material waste.
  4. Scalability: Flexible automation systems are scalable to accommodate future growth and evolving production demands, providing long-term value and investment protection.
  5. Quality and Consistency: Automation ensures consistent and precise case erecting, minimizing errors and ensuring product integrity throughout the packaging process.
  6. Adaptability: As consumer preferences and market trends evolve, flexible automation allows manufacturers to quickly adapt to changes in packaging requirements, offering greater agility and responsiveness.

Embracing the Future of Case Erecting

In conclusion, flexible automation is transforming the landscape of case erecting, enabling manufacturers to achieve new levels of efficiency, agility, and competitiveness. By embracing this technology, businesses can streamline their packaging operations, reduce costs, and meet the dynamic demands of today’s markets. As we look to the future, flexible automation will continue to play a crucial role in driving innovation and success in the packaging industry.

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Yaskawa Sigma-7: Engineering Excellence For A Smarter Tomorrow

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Yaskawa Sigma-7: Engineering Excellence For A Smarter Tomorrow

Written By Simab Khan

In the ever-evolving landscape of industrial automation, precision, efficiency, and reliability are paramount. As businesses strive to optimize their processes and enhance productivity, the demand for cutting-edge technologies has never been higher. One such groundbreaking innovation that has been revolutionizing the world of automation is the Yaskawa Sigma-7 servo drive. In this blog post, we will explore the wonders of Yaskawa Sigma-7 and delve into the myriad benefits it offers to industries worldwide.

Understanding Yaskawa Sigma-7: A Technological Marvel

Yaskawa Sigma-7 is a state-of-the-art servo drive designed to deliver unparalleled performance and precision in motion control applications. Engineered with advanced technology and years of expertise, Sigma-7 represents the pinnacle of servo motion systems. It combines speed, accuracy, and reliability, making it an indispensable tool for industries ranging from manufacturing and robotics to packaging and beyond.

The Benefits of Yaskawa Sigma-7:

1. Exceptional Precision:

Yaskawa Sigma-7 offers remarkable precision in motion control. Its advanced algorithms and high-resolution encoders ensure that every movement is executed with pinpoint accuracy. This level of precision is crucial in applications where even the slightest deviation can lead to inefficiencies or defects.

2. High-Speed Performance:

Speed is a key factor in many industrial processes. Sigma-7 excels in providing high-speed performance, allowing machines to operate swiftly and efficiently. This speed is not just about velocity but also about rapid acceleration and deceleration, enabling quicker cycle times and increased overall productivity.

3. Energy Efficiency:

In today’s eco-conscious world, energy efficiency is non-negotiable. Yaskawa Sigma-7 is designed with energy-saving features, ensuring that it operates optimally while consuming minimal power. This not only reduces operational costs but also contributes to a greener environment.

4. Seamless Integration:

Sigma-7 is engineered for seamless integration into existing automation systems. Its compatibility with various communication protocols and control interfaces simplifies the integration process, saving both time and resources for businesses. This adaptability ensures that industries can upgrade their systems without undergoing significant overhauls.

5. Enhanced Reliability:

Reliability is the backbone of any industrial automation system. Sigma-7’s robust design, built-in safety features, and extensive testing guarantee uninterrupted operation even in challenging environments. This reliability translates to decreased downtime, increased production continuity, and higher customer satisfaction.

6. Future-Ready Technology:

Yaskawa Sigma-7 is not just a solution for today; it’s an investment in the future. Its adaptive algorithms and firmware updates ensure that it remains at the forefront of technology, capable of meeting the evolving demands of industries. Businesses can confidently embrace Sigma-7, knowing that they are equipped with cutting-edge technology that can adapt to upcoming challenges.

Conclusion: Transforming Industries, One Movement at a Time

In the realm of industrial automation, Yaskawa Sigma-7 stands as a beacon of innovation, guiding industries towards a future of unparalleled efficiency and productivity. Its exceptional precision, high-speed performance, energy efficiency, seamless integration, enhanced reliability, and future-ready technology make it a game-changer for businesses across the globe. By incorporating Sigma-7 into their operations, industries can not only streamline their processes but also unlock new possibilities, paving the way for a brighter, more efficient tomorrow.

Interested in speaking to a motion control specialist? Send us an e-mail at info@shelley.com and our team will be delighted to assist.

Harnessing Precision and Efficiency: The Dynamic Duo of Cognex Vision and Universal Robots

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Harnessing Precision and Efficiency: The Dynamic Duo of Cognex Vision and Universal Robots

Harnessing Precision and Efficiency: The Dynamic Duo of Cognex Vision and Universal Robots

 

In the age of automation and advanced robotics, industries are constantly seeking innovative solutions to streamline their processes and maximize productivity. Two groundbreaking technologies that have emerged as game-changers in their respective fields are Cognex Vision and Universal Robots. When combined, these powerful tools create a dynamic duo that revolutionizes industrial automation, offering unparalleled precision, versatility, and efficiency. In this blog post, we will explore the capabilities and symbiotic relationship between Cognex Vision and Universal Robots, showcasing how they have transformed the manufacturing landscape.

Cognex Vision: Unleashing the Power of Machine Vision

Cognex Vision, developed by the industry leader Cognex Corporation, is a state-of-the-art machine vision system that uses advanced algorithms and sensors to replicate human visual abilities. By capturing and processing images or videos in real-time, Cognex Vision enables robots to perceive and understand their environment with remarkable accuracy. Its capabilities include object recognition, defect detection, barcode reading, optical character recognition, and much more

UR cobot performing a packaging application

Universal Robots: Pioneering Collaborative Robotics

Universal Robots, a Danish robotics company, specializes in manufacturing collaborative robots (cobots) that work alongside human operators to optimize efficiency and safety. These lightweight, flexible, and easy-to-program robots are designed to perform various tasks with precision and adaptability. They excel in applications such as pick-and-place, assembly, packaging, and machine tending, significantly augmenting human capabilities and expanding production capabilities.

The Perfect Synergy: Cognex Vision and Universal Robots

When Cognex Vision’s powerful machine vision capabilities are integrated with Universal Robots’ collaborative robots, a remarkable synergy emerges, enhancing automation processes and unlocking new possibilities. Here’s how this partnership benefits manufacturing industries:

Enhanced Accuracy and Quality Control:

Cognex Vision enables Universal Robots to identify and inspect objects with exceptional precision, detecting defects and ensuring the highest quality standards. This seamless integration minimizes errors, reduces waste, and boosts overall product quality.

Increased Flexibility and Adaptability:

Universal Robots’ cobots, combined with Cognex Vision’s ability to recognize and adapt to various objects and scenarios, enable swift and seamless transitions between different tasks. This flexibility allows manufacturers to optimize their production lines efficiently, accommodating changing demands and reducing downtime.

Efficient Pick-and-Place Operations:

The integration of Cognex Vision and Universal Robots facilitates efficient and error-free pick-and-place operations. With the ability to identify and locate objects precisely, cobots can handle intricate and delicate tasks, ensuring accurate placement and increasing throughput.

Streamlined Workflows and Simplified Programming:

The intuitive programming interfaces of both Cognex Vision and Universal Robots make it easier for operators and technicians to set up and program the system. This streamlines workflows, reduces training time, and empowers workers to become more productive and responsive to dynamic production needs.

Improved Safety and Collaborative Workspaces:

Universal Robots’ cobots are inherently designed to work safely alongside human operators. When combined with Cognex Vision, these robots can detect and respond to human presence, ensuring a safe and harmonious working environment. This collaboration opens the doors to shared workspaces, enabling efficient human-robot collaboration and freeing workers from repetitive or hazardous tasks.

cognex_ur3_021

As automation continues to reshape industries worldwide, the integration of Cognex Vision and Universal Robots represents a paradigm shift in industrial automation. Their combined capabilities empower manufacturers to achieve unparalleled precision, efficiency, and adaptability, fueling productivity and driving innovation. With ongoing advancements and technological developments, the future prospects for Cognex Vision and Universal Robots hold immense potential for further enhancing automation workflows, expanding collaborative applications, and revolutionizing manufacturing processes across diverse sectors.

Food and Beverage Industry: 3 Reasons You Should Invest in Robotics and Automation

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Food and Beverage Industry: 3 Reasons You Should Invest in Robotics and Automation

Written By Simab Khan

Considering adding robots to your food and beverage operations?

There are many reasons companies in the food and beverage industry choose collaborative robots when they increase the level of automation in their operations.

Here are three factors for you to think about when considering automation in your own facility.

1. Flexibility

Larger companies that process a consistently high volume of each product and that also have lots of space available may choose traditional industrial robots to automate their operations. Industrial robots have the advantage of speed. But they also require more space than a collaborative robot, they’re more expensive, and it’s difficult to change their function once they’re set up.

If your company has a high-mix, low-volume type of production, you’ll need a robot that can easily switch between different products and tasks.

This is when we can introduce collaborative robots.

Cobot is another term for a collaborative robot, which is a type of robot that can work with and near people. This contrasts with traditional industrial robots that operate independently in a fenced-off area.

Cobots have various safety features such as force limiting so that if a person strays into the path of a moving cobot, the force of impact will automatically be limited. Cobots also often operate more slowly than typical industrial robots, so that people in the workspace of the cobot won’t be injured due to high-speed operations. (Or they can be programmed to slow down when a person is near, and speed up when nobody is close by.)

In addition to these safety features, cobots are unlike traditional robots in that they are often designed to interact with people. For example, a cobot arm can be ‘trained’ by an employee (no robotics expert needed) to perform a task. Or a cobot and a human can work together, side-by-side on a specific task. It’s also easy for employs to make changes to cobots so they can perform different tasks.

A wide range of different end-of-arm tools and sensors are available for Universal Robots’ cobot arms. It’s also possible to customize tooling for the processes in your facility.

It’s easy for employees to adjust cobots so they can handle different types of products — from large loaves of bread to tiny, delicate cookies, from squishy bags of milk to cartons of fragile eggs. Because employees can change the end-of-arm tools and re-program the robot themselves, there’s no need for a programming expert to make a change to the robot’s task.

“I wanted a robot that my employees could program for other tasks and place in production by themselves. With our previous robot, we needed to call expensive specialists each time we wanted to make a change. That became too costly.”

Bo Berghdahl, Production and Analysis Manager at Nordic Sugar

Cobots can also help you manage the seasonality of your food and beverage operations. They can work around the clock during busy periods, avoiding the need to hire and train temporary workers. And they can work fewer hours when it’s less busy, without having to lay people off.

2. Quality Control

Using robotics in the food industry makes it easier to achieve the consistency in branded products that customers expect. Unlike humans, robots are able to perform the same task — icing cakes or depositing tomato sauce on pasta — over and over again with less variation than humans (either the same human over time, or different humans across shifts). Not only does this provide the consistency consumers demand, it also reduces waste and the costs associated with it.

Nortura is a Norwegian meat producer and their palletizing robot also helps with quality control. It checks for errors that may have occurred earlier in the production line:

“While humans might not notice that a box wasn’t filled properly, the robot measures the weight of each box and signals if a box comes down the line with fewer packages inside.”

Read the full case study here: Food industry palletizing cobot with vision system works in tight quarters.

Cobot vision systems can be used for reading bar codes or QR codes to facilitate inventory management, sorting, or quality control. The software can give you greater insight into your facility’s productivity. It also helps with traceability in the production line because all steps can be tracked and analyzed.

“Robotics in food processing will greatly facilitate the smooth transition into Industry 4.0 and allow for utilization of IoT concepts which promises to provide food manufacturers with better traceability and trackability of all ingredients, processes, and products, vastly improving food and consumer safety measures.”

3. Workplace Safety and Hygiene

Automation in the food industry can reduce the risk of employee injuries due to repetitive motions and heavy lifting of bins, totes, trays, and so on. Cobot arms are available in a range of reach and payload options.

“Many processes in large-scale food production are simple and/or repetitive… Over time, these can become tedious and mundane to human employees, which in turn can affect the quality of processing and products if they become tired or bored… Automating such processes may aid in eliminating labor fatigue and repetitive task injuries, which will improve employee safety, as well as limiting product faults and decreasing food waste.”

Cobots can work indefinitely in environments that humans find uncomfortable after a short period e.g. humid greenhouses, refrigerated rooms, or tending hot ovens. This may help with hiring and retaining employees in the current labor-shortage environment.

“Automation can also result in improved food hygiene, whereas human operations can lead to product contamination. Robots can be designed to work in harsh environmental conditions [while maintaining] hygienic conditions, which will increase the overall product quality. They are also made to withstand the effect of cleaning agents such as acids, cleaning enzymes, and bleach.”

Cobots can also work alone to reduce the risk of contamination in low-touch processes.

The Bottom Line

These are some of the advantages cobots can provide for your food and beverage operations. The payback time for an investment in collaborative robots in the food industry will of course vary based on many factors. For example, payback time was 365 days for Cascina Italia. For Orkla Foods Sverige, payback time was 6 months. For Nordic Sugar payback time was 124 days.

If you’d like to talk about how cobots could benefit your food and beverage operations, our team is always available to chat. Contact us or send us an e-mail.

Four Reasons You Need to Consider Robotics in Your Logistics Operations

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4 Reasons You Need to Consider Robotics in Your Logistics Operations

Written By Simab Khan

Working alongside your current employees, Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) can help improve your logistics operations. Here are four problems you may be facing and examples of how AMRs can help alleviate them.

1. Labour is hard to find, train, and retain

Given the current labour shortage in North America, it’s tricky to hire and retain enough permanent employees. And, during busy periods, hiring and training temporary workers is an additional challenge.

“In 2017, 2018, and 2019, employee attraction and retention were identified as the leading challenge for warehouses and distribution centers in the USA.”

AMRs, like other robotics in logistics operations, can help you hire and retain staff. They make job openings more attractive to potential hires, and the robots can work alongside your existing staff, moving inventory to where people need it.

“Reducing the number of walking employees by introducing automation… can make employees’ jobs easier.”

During busy periods, robots can work back-to-back shifts, day and night, so you can avoid the headache of hiring and training temporary staff.

Magna-Power is a manufacturer based in New Jersey. They improved the efficiency of their internal logistics operations by reducing the time employees spent moving materials between departments. The equivalent of three full-time employees that were freed from repetitive, low-value transportation tasks.

“The purpose of the robot is not to replace employees but to make them more efficient with their time. Now they can focus on the things that we can’t get a robot to do.”

Grant Pitel, Vice president of Engineering, Magna-Power.

Read the case study and watch the video here: MiR improves Global Competitiveness of Magna-Power

2. Online shoppers have high expectations for fast, accurate orders

Canadians have been gradually doing more shopping online over the past few years and e-commerce skyrocketed during the pandemic. Some experts predict this is a permanent change in shoppers’ behaviour. Online customers expect accurate, fast orders. If your company falls short in accuracy and speed, you can lose out to competitors.

Automation in logistics can improve your company’s order accuracy and speed. Sometimes, robots are intrinsically faster than humans. But even when they’re slower, they don’t get distracted or bored and make mistakes like humans do. AMRs deliver the right products to the right place at the right time. Higher accuracy means that there’s less need for rework to correct mistakes. Less rework means faster orders. Fast and accurate orders mean happier customers (and fewer returns).

“An inefficient order-picking process can lead to high operational costs and dissatisfaction among employees and customers.”

3. Warehouses can be unsafe environments for employees

Warehouses pose many risks for employees. As well as human safety, warehouse managers also need to consider the financial costs of these risks. The costs of insurance and time lost due to injuries (such as repetitive strains) and accidents (such as forklift-pedestrian collisions) can be considerable.

“Warehouses are dangerous environments for people. Many things can go wrong, including employees slipping, tripping, or falling from heights, accidents occurring while operating or working around equipment like scissor lifts and forklifts, pallets can fall and in severe cases racking can collapse. Such accidents often result in serious injuries and generate significant costs and revenue loss. The average work-related injury results in $38,000 in direct expenses and $150,000 in indirect costs.”

“According to the US Occupational Health and Safety Administration… one in six [industrial] accidents comes from a forklift event… and at least 80% of forklift accidents involve pedestrians.”

Warehouse automation with AMRs can make facilities safer for employees. For example, to replace a forklift in your warehouse, an AMR could be configured with a lifter module (with a payload up to 1000kg) to lift, transport, and deliver stacked pallets.

Other top modules — such as hooks, racks, and conveyors — can be attached to AMRs. The top modules are easy for employees to change so the same robot can be used for different tasks. 

AMRs can even have cobot arms attached to them so they can move around the warehouse to pick and place products, reducing human repetitive motions and decreasing the risk of injury.

4. Inefficiency

Given the expense of labour — and the difficulty of hiring workers — you may be seeking to maximize the value of each employee and to ensure each one is working as efficiently as possible. If workers are spending a lot of each workday walking from place to place in your warehouse, or doing other mundane, low-value tasks, that is not the best use of your labour costs.

Using mobile robots for warehouse automation so employees spend less time transporting inventory means they can focus on higher-value tasks that are more strategic, creative, and collaborative.

“For example, Amazon employees walked 18km in the order picking process during a shift. After introducing cobots, the performance improved which led to a reduction of the employees’ walking distance by 40–70%.”

Here’s a video about a Danish manufacturing company that’s using AMRs to improve its internal logistics. The robots reduce the amount of time employees spend moving materials around, and they also increase safety: MiR500 mobile cobots make traffic safer in Kverneland’s factory.

Are AMRs a good fit for your logistics operations?

If you’d like to increase the efficiency, accuracy, and safety of your logistics operations, AMRs may be a good fit. Get in touch if you’d like to chat about how autonomous mobile robots might help in your warehouse.

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