FANUC rolls out new mainstream production robots

Drawing on FANUC's position as a world-leader in CNC control and drive systems, both products focus on delivering energy savings and high-speed performance. Regenerative braking, path optimisation and intuitive teaching all help to provide manufacturers with a highly cost-effective alternative to specialist dedicated hardware.

General-purpose production robot

FANUC's latest version of its successful LRMate 200 robot is highly suitable for integrating into special-purpose machinery or for general-purpose handling and is now more compact, faster, has increased payload and a larger working envelope.

Weighing 25kg overall the new LRMate is 2kg lighter than its predecessor and, combined with a reduction in arm width of 15mm, the compact unit is cost-effective as a handling or transfer system for machine builders and system integrators.

The six-axis LRMate 200iD has an increased payload, up from 5kg to 7kg, with an uprated wrist assembly making longer tool offsets possible. Increased joint speeds on every axes of up to 25 per cent, together with wrist moment and wrist inertia improvements, have resulted in the LRMate 200iD being able to perform the industry-standard bench test (25mm x 300mm x 25mm) with a 1kg payload 35 per cent faster at 0.32sec or 187.5 cycles per minute.

Installation and access with the new arm are improved by the slim design and increased work envelope; reach is increased both horizontally and vertically. Its lower weight and ceiling-, wall- or floor-mounting options enable integrators to design machines with ease of access to reduce lost production time when retooling or carrying out maintenance procedures.

Integrated signal cable and pneumatics are enclosed within the robot arm, from base to forearm-mounted connectors, thereby helping to prevent snagging in confined cells and speed up programming. In addition to air, input/output connections and three double-acting solenoid valves, the LRMate is now equipped with integrated sensor, Ethernet and auxiliary axis cables.

High-speed assembly and picking robot

The new 3kg payload parallel link FANUC M-2iA fills a gap between the existing 1kg and 6kg arms in the FANUC Genkotsu Series. The M-2iA provides a large work envelope, with high-throughput performance for mid-range assembly and handling tasks.

Two variants of the M-2iA are being introduced, one with a standard reach and the other with a long reach, to address a wide range of applications in the food, electronics and general manufacturing sectors. Both robots are four-axis systems, the fourth axis being a wrist rotation providing speeds up to 3500deg/s.

The parallel link (also known as parallel kinematic or Delta robot) structure enables higher speeds and greater accuracy to be achieved than when using conventional SCARA robot arms. With a test payload of 1kg, the M-2iA will complete the standard pick-and-place trial of 25mm up, 305mm linear and 25mm down in just 0.27s, or 222 cycles per minute, with a repeatability of +/-0.1mm.

Aimed at assembly and packing operations, the parallel link structure is excellent for applications where space is confined; the cylindrical work envelope, up to 400mm deep and 1130mm in diameter, is concentric to the robot mounting base, making it straightforward to position and guard relative to peripheral equipment.

A hollow wrist enables control cabling and pneumatics to be routed neatly to avoid snagging, fast wrist rotations to be implemented, and it helps to make programming quicker.

Control

Both robots described above are controlled by the new energy-saving R-30iB controller, FANUC's latest generation of intelligent controller. Packed with smart features, the R-30iB is compact and, when used in multi-robot systems, can be stacked to save valuable space. Features include iRVision, real-time interactive iPendant Touch, Learning Vibration Control (LVC) for path optimisation, and auto motor braking for power saving.

All that the robots require to benefit from iRVision is a camera and a cable to connect it to the controller; a housing is provided in the M-2iA robot body to position a camera above the wrist.

Follow the links for more information about the LRMate 200-iD six-axis robot, Genkotsu M-2iA Delta arm robot and R-30iB controller.