NEW GENERATION ROBOTIC PALLETISER IS TOP OF THE CLASS

FANUC Robotics UK has launched a new universal palletising robot that boasts best-in-class speed, payload, energy-efficiency and reach. The M410-iC/185 is the first of a new generation of palletising robots that combines FANUCÂ’s proven 99.99% reliability with tangible improvements in performance, allowing users across a range of industries to palletise heavier loads faster and stack pallets higher.

Thanks to advancements in servo drive and motor technology, the M410-iC/185 delivers a 16% higher wrist load and 13% greater throughput than its predecessor, the M410-iB/160, which serves over 300 customers Europe-wide. A 185kg payload coupled with an average speed of 1700 cycles per hour results in heightened productivity and more efficient palletising of heavier loads. The four-axis robot also has highest in class wrist load inertia, which renders it equally suitable for handling bulky items such as nappies using very large grippers, and compact, heavy items, like tins of paint or bottle crates.

“This robot is equally at home palletising bags of sugar as it is shifting slabs of concrete,” says Darren Whittall, technical manager at FANUC Robotics. “It can handle anything from bags, sacks, cartons, shrink-wrapped trays and crates to cans, barrels and bricks.”

In designing the new generation robot, FANUC engineers have built a four-axis arm that can stack pallets as high as 2.4m – higher than any other robot in the same class. At the same time, they have reduced the robot’s footprint to an ultra compact 610 x 806mm and energy consumption to 3kW/hr maximum. The robot’s extended reach and stack height capability create a large work envelope, which, in conjunction with high-speed operation, allows a single M410-iC/185 to service multiple lines in high volume environments. The balancer has been eliminated from the design, improving uptime by increasing the M410-iC/185’s reliability. The life of the gripper services is lengthened by a 56mm diameter hollow wrist for running cables and hoses.

According to Darren Whittall, these features combine to make the robot particularly appealing to high volume producers and packers. “We anticipate strong demand owing to its high payload, inherent reliability and ability to stack pallets high.”

The M410-iC/185 is more than just a palletising robot; the in-built PMC (Programmable Machine Controller) enables it to act as a complete cell controller, thereby reducing system controls costs and simplifying integration of stand-alone palletising systems.

“The PMC eliminates the requirement for another PLC to control peripheral equipment like the conveyors transporting products to and from the cell, guard panels and light curtains,” explains Whittall.

The intelligent robotÂ’s touchscreen pendant has been enhanced to display 4D graphics, giving operators a user-friendly tool for viewing process information including cell layout and status, as well as providing the capability to act as the system HMI.