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Overhung load adaptors provide load support and contamination protection

Overhung load adaptors (OHLA) provide both overhung radial and axial load support to protect electrified mobile equipment motors from heavy application loads, extending the lifetime of the motor and alleviating the cost of downtime both from maintenance costs and loss of production. They seal out dirt, grime, and other contaminants too. Zero-Max OHLAs are available in an extensive offering of standard models (including Extra-Duty options) for typical applications or customized designs.
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Why choose electric for linear actuators?

Tolomatic has been delivering a new type of linear motion technology that is giving hydraulics a run for its money. Learn the benefits of electric linear motion systems, the iceberg principle showing total cost of ownership, critical parameters of sizing, and conversion tips.
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New AC hypoid inverter-duty gearmotors

Bodine Electric Company introduces 12 new AC inverter-duty hypoid hollow shaft gearmotors. These type 42R-25H2 and 42R-30H3 drives combine an all-new AC inverter-duty, 230/460-VAC motor with two hypoid gearheads. When used with an AC inverter (VFD) control, these units deliver maintenance-free and reliable high-torque output. They are ideal for conveyors, gates, packaging, and other industrial automation equipment that demands both high torque and low power consumption from the driving gearmotor.
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Next-gen warehouse automation: Siemens, Universal Robots, and Zivid partner up

Universal Robots, Siemens, and Zivid have created a new solution combining UR's cobot arms with Siemens' SIMATIC Robot Pick AI software and Zivid's 3D sensors to create a deep-learning picking solution for warehouse automation and intra-logistics fulfillment. It works regardless of object shape, size, opacity, or transparency and is a significant leap in solving the complex challenges faced by the logistics and e-commerce sectors.
Read the full article.

Innovative DuoDrive gear and motor unit is UL/CSA certified

The DuoDrive integrated gear unit and motor from NORD DRIVE-SYSTEMS is a compact, high-efficiency solution engineered for users in the fields of intralogistics, pharmaceutical, and the food and beverage industries. This drive combines a IE5+ synchronous motor and single-stage helical gear unit into one compact housing with a smooth, easy-to-clean surface. It has a system efficiency up to 92% and is available in two case sizes with a power range of 0.5 to 4.0 hp.
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BLDC flat motor with high output torque and speed reduction

Portescap's 60ECF brushless DC slotted flat motor is the newest frame size to join its flat motor portfolio. This 60-mm BLDC motor features a 38.2-mm body length and an outer-rotor slotted configuration with an open-body design, allowing it to deliver improved heat management in a compact package. Combined with Portescap gearheads, it delivers extremely high output torque and speed reduction. Available in both sensored and sensorless options. A great choice for applications such as electric grippers and exoskeletons, eVTOLs, and surgical robots.
Learn more and view all the specs.

Application story: Complete gearbox and coupling assembly for actuator system

Learn how GAM engineers not only sized and selected the appropriate gear reducers and couplings required to drive two ball screws in unison using a single motor, but how they also designed the mounting adapters necessary to complete the system. One-stop shopping eliminated unnecessary components and resulted in a 15% reduction in system cost.
Read this informative GAM blog.

Next-gen motor for pump and fan applications

The next evolution of the award-winning Aircore EC motor from Infinitum is a high-efficiency system designed to power commercial and industrial applications such as HVAC fans, pumps, and data centers with less energy consumption, reduced emissions, and reduced waste. It features an integrated variable frequency drive and delivers upward of 93% system efficiency, as well as class-leading power and torque density in a low-footprint package that is 20% lighter than the previous version. Four sizes available.
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Telescoping linear actuators for space-constrained applications

Rollon's new TLS telescoping linear actuators enable long stroke lengths with minimal closed lengths, which is especially good for applications with minimal vertical clearance. These actuators integrate seamlessly into multi-axis systems and are available in two- or three-stage versions. Equipped with a built-in automated lubrication system, the TLS Series features a synchronized drive system, requiring only a single motor to achieve motion. Four sizes (100, 230, 280, and 360) with up to 3,000-mm stroke length.
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Competitively priced long-stroke parallel gripper

The DHPL from Festo is a new generation of pneumatic long-stroke grippers that offers a host of advantages for high-load and high-torque applications. It is interchangeable with competitive long-stroke grippers and provides the added benefits of lighter weight, higher precision, and no maintenance. It is ideal for gripping larger items, including stacking boxes, gripping shaped parts, and keeping bags open. It has high repetition accuracy due to three rugged guide rods and a rack-and-pinion design.
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Extend your range of motion: Controllers for mini motors

FAULHABER has added another extremely compact Motion Controller without housing to its product range. The new MC3603 controller is ideal for integration in equipment manufacturing and medical tech applications. With 36 V and 3 A (peak current 9 A), it covers the power range up to 100 W and is suitable for DC motors with encoder, brushless drives, or linear motors.
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When is a frameless brushless DC motor the right choice?

Frameless BLDC motors fit easily into small, compact machines that require high precision, high torque, and high efficiency, such as robotic applications where a mix of low weight and inertia is critical. Learn from the experts at SDP/SI how these motors can replace heavier, less efficient hydraulic components by decreasing operating and maintenance costs. These motors are also more environmentally friendly than others.
View the video.

Tiny and smart: Step motor with closed-loop control

Nanotec's new PD1-C step motor features an integrated controller and absolute encoder with closed-loop control. With a flange size of merely 28 mm (NEMA 11), this compact motor reaches a max holding torque of 18 Ncm and a peak current of 3 A. Three motor versions are available: IP20 protection, IP65 protection, and a motor with open housing that can be modified with custom connectors. Ideal for applications with space constraints, effectively reducing both wiring complexity and installation costs.
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Closed loop steppers drive new motion control applications

According to the motion experts at Performance Motion Devices, when it comes to step motors, the drive technique called closed loop stepper is making everything old new again and driving a burst of interest in the use of two-phase step motors. It's "winning back machine designers who may have relegated step motors to the category of low cost but low performance."
Read this informative Performance Motion Devices article.

Intelligent compact drives with extended fieldbus options

The intelligent PD6 compact drives from Nanotec are now available with Profinet and EtherNet/IP. They combine motor, controller, and encoder in a space-saving package. With its 80-mm flange and a rated power of 942 W, the PD6-EB is the most powerful brushless DC motor of this product family. The stepper motor version has an 86-mm flange (NEMA 34) and a holding torque up to 10 Nm. Features include acceleration feed forward and jerk-limited ramps. Reduced installation time and wiring make the PD6 series a highly profitable choice for machine tools, packaging machines, or conveyor belts.
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Air Force develops robotic technology for coating F-22 Raptor fighter jets

Robots are now being placed into operation at the Ogden Air Logistics Complex at Hill Air Force Base, UT, to make the process of restoring specialized coatings on F-22 Raptor engine inlets much safer for aircraft maintenance personnel. [Courtesy photo: Andrew McMurtrie, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co.]

 

 

 

 

By Bryan Ripple, 88th Air Base Wing, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio

Robotic technology developed through the Air Force Small Business Innovation Research program will soon make the process of restoring specialized coatings on F-22 Raptor engine inlets more efficient for aircraft maintenance personnel during depot maintenance at the Ogden Air Logistics Complex located at Hill Air Force Base, UT.

The initiative has been a team effort, led by engineers from the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center's F-22 System Program Office, both at Wright-Patterson AFB and Hill AFB.

Aerobotix, a small business located in Madison, AL, was selected as the SBIR Phase II winner for the project. The company specializes in providing turn-key robotic systems for aerospace, military, NASA, and general industrial applications, while providing a range of solutions for robotic and automated coating needs.

The robotics project has three goals: reducing the number of hours aircraft maintainers are required to work in confined spaces while wearing full personal protective equipment, improving consistency and overall quality of the coatings applied, and reducing the overall hours required to restore the inlets for the lifecycle of the aircraft, said Colin Allen, an AFLCMC F-22 structures and system safety engineer at Hill AFB.

As part of the $1.5 million SBIR contract, Aerobotix developed the robotic system, a complex multi-axis system with a long carbon fiber arm to reach deep into the engine inlet ducts.

The AFLCMC F-22 System Program Office at Hill AFB is in charge of managing the F-22 fleet from both an engineering and logistics perspective and is the lead agency for this effort.

"We're at a position within our F-22 fleet where we are restoring the intakes of the fleet here at the Hill AFB depot facility," Allen said.

Currently, this is a manual process where maintainers have to don a Tyvek suit and respirator as required PPE (personal protective equipment) in order to crawl into the intakes and recoat manually.

"It's not an easy process. It's kind of an awkward position to be in for a lengthy amount of time where the environment is actually considered a confined space here at Hill, so you need another person watching the person manually restoring the intakes," Allen said.

The ergonomics issues involved present a less-than-ideal situation for the depot maintainers to be in all day, so one of the goals of the program is to reduce the amount of time that a maintainer is exposed to that environment, Allen added.

"The depot F-22 maintainer's workload is challenging, and this project will help speed up that restoration process and ultimately the throughput of the depot. The number of F-22s to go through the restoration process on a yearly basis will be based on mission requirements and depot availability, but the objective remains to get the aircraft back into the warfighter's hands as quickly as possible," Allen said.

"The actual removal of coatings from the F-22 inlets remains a manual process where maintainers go inside the intakes and strip the coatings using hand tools," said Tech. Sgt. Justin Daywalt, the low observable/structures integrated support manager for the F-22 System Program Office at Hill AFB.

The coatings removal process is manual, and an automated process has not yet been qualified.

For Phase three of the SBIR process, AFLCMC has partnered with the Small Business Office at Hill AFB to procure Aerobotix robots for three of the bays at Hill AFB.

"We've gone through a validation verification of several of these booths by using the robots to coat one of our trainer aircraft -- a ground-based aircraft that the air battle damage repair group here loaned us for the purposes of our program. It's actually a representative of a production intake, so we can go through the full gamut of things that we need to do for production aircraft as far as bringing the aircraft in, jacking it up, locating it, positioning the robots, and actually physically applying the coatings we need to restore the intakes," said Allen.

The next step is to receive and analyze test results of the robot sprays, followed by depot personnel being trained to use the robots by Aerobotix personnel, Allen said. Based off that, the engineering group will get together and decide when to push forward with a full production aircraft in the depot for the intake coating restoration operation.

"From the engineering perspective, we like what we see. There are some issues we're working through, but any project has its issues that need to be smoothed out," he said.

"In addition to the ergonomics issues maintainers must face when restoring coatings inside an F-22 intake, another important factor that comes into play is the tolerance requirements of the application process," Strunk said.

"We will see consistency from jet to jet. With manual application involving different technicians applying the coatings through a spray gun, it's very hard to (meet the application requirements) the first time. With a robot, we're expecting to meet those requirements more consistently, reducing the additional time needed to manually work in the inlets. The second part of that is the hazards associated with the materials we're applying. Once we remove an individual out of the intake, they're not going to be exposed to those materials to the same degree that we are currently with manual application," Strunk added.

"If there's any concern right now that we have on the production side of it, it's just our schedule. We've gotten very good at what we do with this intake coating restoration process over the last three years or so. Now that we're introducing the robots, we want to still be able to see the schedule maintained at the same rate and get better. However, there's always that concern of being able to meet that tempo utilizing a new piece of equipment. Ultimately, I think we will see some hiccups, but in the end, it will be all for the better," he said.

The project has included the use of computing power using modeling and simulation to accomplish the objectives for the depot F-22 maintenance team, said Carl Lombard, a materials research engineer with the Electronics and Sensors Branch, Manufacturing and Industrial Technologies Division, Materials and Manufacturing Directorate at AFRL.

"This enables the maintainers to avoid collision with the inlets and the plane while developing the fastest paths to correctly apply the coatings," he said.

"We're producing fifth-generation aircraft maintenance capabilities for fifth-generation fighters," said Allen.

According to the project team, Aerobotix personnel have utilized their experience with the process to make the transition to F-22 robotic intake coating restoration as smooth as possible for all involved.

"One of the reasons Aerobotix was chosen is because they're certainly an industry leader as far as aircraft robotics goes in their use of robotics for aircraft maintenance on the F-22 and F-35 (Lightning II) programs. They have certainly been more than accommodating, to not only the AFRL and the SPO's needs, but also the depot's needs, as far as maintaining their schedule and reevaluating when they need to be in the depot doing work and during the validation process," said Allen.

The exact amount of time saved by using the robots for F-22 intake coating restoration is not yet known.

"There's definitely going to be areas where we shorten the time span. However, we are going to have to change our processes quite drastically, and that may cause some additional time that we are not normally used to. Once we get technicians in there working with it, they're going to find those ways to make things faster," Strunk said.

Published April 2017

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