Are you ready for a next-level experience that will help ensure your operations are always moving? If that’s the case, look no further than Automate 2024! Presented by the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), the Automate Show will offer one of the largest, most inspiring collections of robotic automation in North America. From proven technologies to breakthrough advancements, over 800 exhibitors will showcase a wide variety of solutions to address challenges in over 40 industries including aerospace, agriculture, automotive, construction, electronics, food and beverage, general industry, life sciences, logistics, warehousing and more!
Held at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois (May 6-9), this year’s show will also host nearly 30,000 attendees and feature 200 training opportunities. At the show, be sure to visit the Yaskawa booth (#841), where experts from both our
Robotics Division and
Drives & Motion Division will be present to discuss your specific operational challenges and application requirements. During your visit you will gain inspiration for your production floor from the following robotic demonstrations:
Handling
Flexible Machine Tending
Courtesy of
Vista Automation – a designer, manufacturer and installer of complete CNC automation solutions – the ROBOTEND
TM solution will be on display, showcasing extremely flexible and efficient machine tending. Ideal for manufacturers looking to increase utilization of existing equipment, this system uses a space-saving GP12 robot with a 12 kg payload capacity, a 1,440 mm horizontal reach and a 2,511 mm vertical reach. The intuitive Smart Pendant (Version 3.0) will also be featured. Radically changing how a robot is programmed, the Smart Pendant’s patented built-in Smart Frame technology helps determine the user’s orientation relative to the robot. This makes the robot user the frame of reference, eliminating the use of conventional coordinate (X, Y, Z) frames, while enabling an easier learning curve for fast system deployment.
High-Speed Induction
Featuring the incredibly fast and flexible six-axis GP12 robot, this demo highlights the use of efficient and reliable robotic automation for meeting order fulfillment demands. Expertly facilitating high-speed picking is PickOne – an AI-powered automated parcel induction software offered by Plus One Robotics. This award-winning platform is capable of providing human-like vision for intelligent 3D scene capturing and pick rates over 1,600 per hour for a wide variety of objects. Highly flexible conveyors from Dynamic™ Conveyor Corporation (DynaCon) and Dorner are also shown, along with safety guarding by Advanced Machine Guarding Solutions (AMGS).
3D Bin Picking
Combining high-speed capability with a slim wrist, this demonstration uses the extended-reach, six-axis GP8L robot with robust KEYENCE technology to facilitate fast, accurate bin picking. The GP8L offers an 8 kg payload capacity, a 1,636 mm horizontal reach and a 2,894 mm vertical reach. Likewise, the extremely precise KEYENCE 3D vision system uses pattern projections and structured lighting to accurately and efficiently recognize then pick randomly placed parts. Systems like this are ideal for part detection and inspection – as 2D data can sometimes fall short due to misalignment, glare or lack of contrast. The modular and lightweight SMC gripper on display can be tailored to specific applications to facilitate precise handling requirements.
Collaborative Robot Palletizing
Featuring the HC30PL collaborative robot controlled by the YRC1000micro robot controller, this system facilitates robust palletizing capability for demanding environments. Well-suited for safe and efficient fenceless production, the HC30PL with Power and Force Limiting (PFL) technology constantly monitors force and quickly reacts to contact, while offering a 30 kg payload capacity and a 1,700 maximum reach that expertly supports select handling, packaging and logistical tasks. Other key robot features include a plug and play tool flange (based on EN ISO-9409-1), an IP67 rating and easy-to-clean surface, NSF H1 certified food-grade grease, and a thru-arm category 6 Ethernet cable.
Interactive Pendant Kiosk
This hands-on programming experience features Yaskawa’s standard programming pendant and the intuitive Smart Pendant. Visitors will be able to compare the difference between the YRC1000 controller and the YRC1000micro controller, as well as test out the unique programming styles the standard and Smart Pendant have to offer. The Smart Pendant on display will also feature Pallet Builder™ – Yaskawa’s easy-to-use, no-code palletizing platform. Well-suited for users with limited robotic experience, this software tool is ideal for small- to medium-sized companies with high-mix, low-volume production, and it can support up to eight combined stations with multiple grippers/gripper types. Pallet Builder is compatible with GP-series and HC-series robots.
Welding
High-Performance Bore Cladding
Courtesy of
ARC Specialties – a designer and builder of advanced automated manufacturing solutions for metal joining, cutting and other robotic handling tasks – this demonstration highlights Yaskawa’s streamlined thru-arm AR1440 arc welding robot, performing a bore cladding application by simply teaching two points. Equipped with an expanded wrist motion range via activated endless T-axis rotation and a 12 kg payload capacity, this six-axis robot supports the featured DINSE REVO liquid-cooled rotary torch, which has a built-in slip ring for continuous rotation when deep in the bore. This capability provides manufacturers a more efficient and accurate way to reinforce and protect the inner wall of cylindrical parts at high wear points. The combination of an extremely robust 360° rotary torch, a Miller
® welding package with Yaskawa’s Universal Weldcom Interface (UWI) pendant application and ARC Specialties’ programming expertise provides manufacturers with a high-production cladding option with minimal programming and start-up steps.
Collaborative Welding Workcell
Included in our proven line of ArcWorld
® workcells, the ArcWorld HC is a portable job shop specifically designed for human-collaborative (HC) interaction. Ideal for optimizing small- to medium-sized part production for medium- or low-volume runs, this highly flexible solution with perforated Flextur™ table comes pre-engineered with safety features like arc flash protection, provisions for fume mitigation and an IP67-rated HC10DTP collaborative robot for use in harsh welding environments. Ideal for supplementing manual welding, this six-axis cobot with a 10 kg payload capacity and 1,379 mm maximum reach offers intuitive hand-guided teaching, and includes Power and Force Limiting technology that enables operation with or in close proximity to human workers. The presence of PFL enables safe operation at collaborative speed or the shift to full speed in industrial mode as production demands evolve. An integrated weld package with a Fronius TPSi power supply is shown, but all major brands are compatible. This demonstration also highlights the UWI application that helps users gain easy control of any weld process or parameter.
Economic and Flexible Welding Workcell
A suggested first step into robotic welding for job shop environments, the ArcWorld LC (LiteCell) is well-suited for mitigating labor shortages and quality concerns. Featuring the pre-engineered safety and efficiency of traditional ArcWorlds, this system with a 2,125 mm x 2,097 mm footprint is engineered to help ensure quick payback for ultimate ROI. Fast and simple to install and relocate, a single workstation configuration with a six-axis AR1440 welding robot, a Miller Auto-Continuum™ 350 power source (a Lincoln Electric Power Wave
® R450 is also compatible) and a single fixed tooling table with a 250 kg payload capacity is on display. A servo-driven MH185 headstock with a 185 kg payload is also available.
Fabricators looking for a cost-effective system (where parts can be loaded or unloaded, while another part is being welded) may want to consider the ArcWorld LC in a dual configuration (with either fixed tooling tables or two MH185 headstocks). Excelling at lighter volume requirements for small- to medium-part welding, this system can be tooled for different parts or can be used for sequential operations.
Novarc’s groundbreaking weld monitoring and control system, NovEye™, will also be shown. This intuitive tool enables a robot to adapt a programmed path based on characteristics of the weld puddle, ensuring the perfect weld.
Drives & Motion
Experts from our sister division, Drives & Motion, will also be in attendance to discuss their full suite of products, including:
iCube Control
Combining powerful, modular hardware with a flexible software infrastructure, the iCube Control™ machine controller provides the flexibility of an open system design, the scalability of modular system integration and the certainty of safety and support for which Yaskawa is known. Similarly, iCube Engineer software gives developers the freedom to program function modules in the language of their choice.
Food-grade and Hygienic Stainless Motors
To accommodate end user requirements, Yaskawa offers a range of white epoxy-painted food-grade and hygienic stainless servo motors for use with Sigma Series servo amplifiers. Extremely helpful is the FDA-approved, high-performance motor (600W to 4.5kW, 200V or 400V) that is specifically designed for food and baking industries. Capable of withstanding repeated high-pressure washdown, this motor also has a smooth housing to minimize entrapment areas. Similarly, hygienic stainless steel motors (600W to 840W, 200V or 400V) specifically designed for demanding washdown environments are also advantageous for select manufacturers, especially those in food and beverage processing where motors need to adhere to the EHEDG (European Hygienic Engineering and Design Group) hygienic standard.
Informative Sessions
Whether you attend a single class or an all-day session, be sure to participate in one of the many classroom-style trainings offered at the show. On Monday, May 6th, from 2:30p-3:15pm in room #S403b, Yaskawa Motoman's Division Leader of New Business Development, Roger Christian, will be a guest panelist for The Arm Institute’s session on “Strategies for Making Advanced Robotic Manufacturing Technology Accessible to System integrators and End Users.” Make plans to join this session, and learn how to better understand the opportunities and challenges that come with making robotics technology more accessible.
Plan Your Visit to Automate
Learn how proven technologies and adaptive solutions can keep your operations moving forward by joining our experts in booth #841 at Automate. From welding, machine tending and bin picking to palletizing, induction and more, Yaskawa’s highly efficient robots and cutting-edge systems can help your organization achieve transformative results.
While you’re in our booth, be sure to grab a refreshing beverage from our HC10DTP collaborative robot bar tender at our newly renovated
Yaskawa Pub. Come check out the changes that were made, and watch the Bottoms Up Draft Beer Dispensing System quickly pour your beverage of choice through the bottom of the cup, sealing it with a souvenir magnet.
Learn more and
register today!