Food Robotics - Page 5

A Motoman dual-arm robot is at the heart of all three RoboBar models. The robot is one of Motoman's standard robots that is also used for machine loading applications. Potter says, ‘‘Automotive manufacturers are currently using about 1,000 of these robots inJapan and the US.’‘ He went on to describe RoboBar's gripper: ‘‘The system uses a standard Schunk servo gripper, which is ideal for handling a variety of bottle and glass sizes and shapes.’‘ Both robot arms are equipped grippers to manipulate bottles and glasses. Automatic beer bottle decapping is also completed by the robot.

To successfully implement a solution for food-related work cells, integrators and end-users need to keep in mind that the robot is not dealing with just another manufactured product. Rick Hoskins, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Colborne Corp., Lake Forest, Illinois sums this up. ‘‘Integrators must understand how food products change over time and react to certain movements. You are not dealing with rigid products, you are dealing with living organisms that change rapidly and are very fragile.’‘

Editor’s Note:
For more information, you may contact any of the experts listed in this article or visit Robotics Online, Tips & Tech Papers.

Richard Tallian, Consumer Industry Segment Manager, Robotic Products Group,  ABB, Inc., 720-889-4003, richard.tallian@us.abb.com
Clay Cooper, Engineering Manager, Applied Robotics, Inc., 518-384-1000, ccooper@arobotics.com
Laxmi P. Musunur, Packaging Segment Manager, FANUC Robotics America, Inc., 248-377-7000, Laxmi.Musunur@fanucrobotics.com
Hans Schouten, Vice President of Marketing and Sales, Flexicell Inc. 804-550-7300, hans.schouten@flexicell.com
Rick Hoskins, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Colborne Corp., 847-371-0101, rick4@colborne.com
William M. Willard, National Accounts Manager for Food and Beverage, KUKA Robotics Corp., 404-475-3890, BillWillard@KUKARobotics.com
Ron Potter, Senior Director of Emerging Markets, Motoman, Inc., 937-847-6200, ron.potter@motoman.com
John Holmes, Key Accounts Manager, PIAB Vacuum Products, 781-337-7309, jholmes@piab.com
Michael Crane, Consumer Goods Segment Manager, QComp Technologies, Inc., 262-784-9034, mcrane@qcomptech.com
Derek Rickard, Distribution Systems Manager, RMT Robotics Ltd. 905-643-9700, DerekRickard@rmtrobotics.com
Joseph Reams, Technical Sales Manager, Schmalz, Inc., 919-713-088, j.reams@schmalzinc.com
Sylvie Algarra, Product Marketing Manager, Stäubli Robotics, 33-(0)4-50-65-67-57, s.algarra@staubli.com

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