In the next ten years, more and more people around the world will be working with robots. Automation is becoming mainstream and is finding its way into more and more areas. Easy access to robotics:
“Innovative automation with a system.” For HandlingTech Automations-Systeme GmbH, the slogan says it all. Founded in 1994 as an automation newcomer in his parents’ basement turned parts business, Managing Director Jörg Hutzel’s family-owned company has developed into a veritable robotics player.
A project, supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, formed the basis for the research institute ICM e.V. to open a training and application center (“SchAz”) in Chemnitz.
Robotic implementation is becoming more prevalent in the Food & Beverage industry, especially in our current climate. And when focusing specifically on primary food handling (handling of raw, unpackaged food) there is an increased concentration regarding the utilization of robotics to maintain the hygienic demands of raw food handling.
From electronics manufacturing to automotive assembly, grippers have become an important part of material handling processes in many industries. Their recent growth is tied to the rise of robotics—including the need for robots to take on specialty tasks and handle increasingly complex workpieces.
Before diving deep into air dryers, it’s important to understand the components involved in an industrial air system. Air dryers are one of many elements that comprise the installation even before providing key airflow to your numerous machines.
A local equipment repair facility was facing a huge problem which was costing them thousands of dollars in repairs to their own equipment and delaying projects: water in their pneumatic airlines. Fortunately for them, there was a simple solution at hand. This repair facility made use of a many pneumatic-powered air tools and machines.
In its simplest form a pneumatic system uses compressed air to complete work. It starts with a compressed air source which is most often a compressor. A typical compressor will convert electrical energy to potential energy in the form of compressed air. It is this potential energy that is stored and distributed through the air lines for a variety of purposes.
For today’s industrial pneumatic systems, automation and efficiency continue to be the driving factors in design. Automation in pneumatics incorporates a variety of design strategies and considerations.
More and more consumers want personalized products tailored precisely to their needs – from customized bicycles to self-mixed muesli and individualized printed Coke bottles to unique travel suitcases. The trend does not stop at the home either. And so kitchen equipment should also be designed as individually as possible.
Even the most neatly printed or perfectly etched barcodes can eventually degrade to the point of unreadability. As parts move through the various production operations, harsh environmental conditions may cause enough damage or distortion to their barcodes to cause no-reads. Damage can include scratches, tears, blotches, stains, debris and more.
Variations in the printing or marking method of barcodes and direct part marks (DPMs) – including poor ink distribution, incorrect thermal printer heat settings, or uneven pressure in surface abrasion – can hamper readability. Since no-reads can make production inefficient, it’s important to understand the types of print/mark inconsistencies and their causes.
Barcodes have several mandatory features that help them stay readable. If any of these are missing, a barcode imager or laser scanner may fail to capture the information contained within the symbol. When that happens, wasted time and product could be the result. For this reason, it’s essential to keep these key elements intact.
To extract data from a barcode, a reader must be able to differentiate between the symbol’s light and dark elements. If there’s insufficient contrast between them, the reader may be unable to distinguish the barcode from its substrate. This would cause a no-read, which in turn could result in wasted time and unnecessary amounts of scrapped product.
Rittal and EPLAN are starting the New Year by offering a chance to make their customers’ value-creating processes faster, more economical and more exact, with a value-filled event entitled “Panel building. Made smarter.” This is a great opportunity to attend this event live from anywhere around the World.
Automation solutions provider Omron Automation Americas has recently been honored with an Outstanding Achievement Award from Renton, WA-based automation tooling systems company ATS Automation. The award was presented in recognition of Omron’s valued support during the COVID-19 epidemic, particularly with regards to a recent project involving the construction of new equipment that will test for the novel coronavirus.