Author: SD

At the 2020automatica, igus presented fast low-cost robots.

Grips easily, cost-effectively and quickly: that’s what the new delta robot from igus does! Comprising maintenance-free toothed belt axes, lubrication-free links, encoders and stepper motors, igus has now developed a new and easy automation solution for assembly tasks. Sourced directly from stock as a pre-assembled construction system or delivered ready to install, the unit can be used immediately. The acquisition costs are paid off after half a year.

Automate simple tasks quickly, easily and cost-effectively: this is the goal of igus with its low-cost automation products. Besides its room gantries, the plastics specialist has now developed a completely new product in the form of a delta robot. It was presented to a specialist audience at the 2018 automatica in Munich. The robot is based on three maintenance-free drylin ZLW toothed belt axes, lubrication-free igubal coupling bars and matching adapter plates. NEMA stepper motors and encoders ensure the quick handling of up to 1 kilogram with a precision of ± 0.5 millimetres. The complete system has an installation space of up to 420 millimetres in diameter and can carry up to five kilograms at low speeds. The lightweight construction with aluminium and plastic makes the delta robot extremely cost-effective and provides high speeds with a pick rate of at least 60 per minute. “The cost-effective delta robot enables our customers to have their own control box. They pay off after just a few months, a maximum of half a year,” explains Stefan Niermann, head of the drylin linear and drive technology division at igus GmbH.

Available as a modular kit or ready-made system
Depending on the customer’s requirements, the new delta robot can be delivered within 24 hours as a pre-assembled construction kit with assembly instructions in a box weighing 18 kilograms, or as a ready-to-install system in a transport frame. As an option, the customer can use their own software and control system, or the intuitive and easy-to-use dryve D1 control system. The use of the delta robot is very apt for simple assembly functions, pick and place tasks, as well as applications in inspection technology.In addition to the delta robot, igus also offers further low-cost robotics systems with its robolink product range. This range offers the user the opportunity to individually assemble robot arms with up to 5 axes from a modular system consisting of different joints with a wide variety of plastic gears, motors and interface connectors.

The terms “igus”, “chainflex”, “CFRIP”, “conprotect”, “CTD”, “drylin”, “dry-tech”, “dryspin”, “easy chain”, “e-chain”, “e-chain-systems”, “e-ketten”, “e-kettensysteme”, “e-skin”, “flizz”, “ibow”, “iglide”, “iglidur”, “igubal”, “manus”, “motion plastics”, “pikchain”, “readychain”, “readycable”, “speedigus”, “triflex”, “plastics for longer life”, “robolink”, and “xiros” are protected by trademark laws in the Federal Republic of Germany and internationally, where applicable.

iglidur coating technology with igus tribo-plastics makes surfaces of metal components resistant to abrasion

For lubrication-free sliding in a very small space, igus has now developed three new materials made of maintenance-free tribo-polymers as coating material for metal components such as metal sheets, valves or even shafts. This means that, for users who do not have enough space to install a plain bearing, a wear-resistant, compact and cost-effective solution is now available.

More and more compact, lighter and smaller: this is not only the slogan of electronic manufacturers; in industry as well, the demand for space-saving machines is growing unceasingly. Therefore, technical design engineers are creating small machines and equipment for use where installation space is at a premium. As regard components, more solutions are called for in the area of plain bearing technology as every single millimetre count. In order to meet the new requirements in the area of mechanical engineering, igus has made use of its decades-long experience in the development of tribologically optimised plastics and has now developed three new maintenance-free and lubrication-free tribo-polymers as coating materials specially for very small installation spaces. As a result, not only the lubrication-free iglidur plain bearings but also the iglidur coating service for metal surfaces with the material iglidur IC-01 and the new IC-02, IC-03 and IC-06 materials are now available to the user.

Less installation space due to coating

The installation space needed for a plain bearing can be reduced using a coating: ideal for small and compact machines and equipment. Thanks to the polymer coating, the surface of moving components is extremely durable and wear resistant. The surface is also corrosion-free and resistant to chemicals thanks to the tribo-polymers. The coatings are used in valves, pumps, for guide plates and for guide systems.

The terms “igus”, “Apiro”, “chainflex”, “CFRIP”, “conprotect”, “CTD”, “drylin”, “dry-tech”, “dryspin”, “easy chain”, “e-chain”, “e-chain systems”, “e-ketten”, “e-kettensysteme”, “e-skin”, “flizz”, “ibow”, “igear”, “iglidur”, “igubal”, “kineKIT”, “manus”, “motion plastics”, “pikchain”, “plastics for longer life”, “readychain”, “readycable”, “ReBeL”, “speedigus”, “triflex”, “robolink”, and “xiros” are protected by trademark laws in the Federal Republic of Germany and internationally, where applicable.

Abrasion-resistant iglidur sliding plates made of high-performance plastics provide even more geometric design options

Wear-resistant parts ordered quickly, easily and individually manufactured with increased service life. The motion plastics specialist igus offers this service, among other things, with its bar stock product range. To provide users with even more tribologically optimised special solutions, igus now offers five high-performance plastics resistant to wear and abrasion as bar stock plate strips in its product range. These provide the designer with new geometric design freedom.

High-performance plastics from igus are in demand wherever freedom from lubricant, corrosion and maintenance is required. Be it in the glass industry, food technology or special mechanical engineering. igus already has more than 50 high-performance polymers as plain bearings in the product range, for a wide variety of applications. The specialist also offers 27 of its materials as bar stock. Customers can use the high-performance polymers to mill custom solutions and small batches themselves or order them from igus. In order to give users even more design freedom in terms of geometry when designing their wear-resistant special solution, igus now also offers five of its materials as highly abrasion-resistant plate strips. In addition to the classic iglidur W300 and the cost-effective J4, the FDA-compliant iglidur A500 material as well as the high-temperature endurance runner C500 and iglidur J350, the specialist for temperatures up to 180 degrees Celsius, complete the range. All sliding plates are offered by igus with a 15 millimetre thickness and 160 millimetre width.

Lubrication-free high-performance plastics for sliding solutions
The new plate strips are used, for example, as sliding surfaces made of the high-performance plastic iglidur W300 in abrasive environments in the glass industry. Here, the material impresses with its wear resistance and freedom from maintenance. Special solutions made from the iglidur A500 plate material are available, for example, in the form of slide rails in the food, packaging and semiconductor industries. Here, the chemical-resistant material, in addition to its FDA approval, boasts a high temperature resistance. In contrast, iglidur C500 is especially suitable for applications where aggressive media and extreme temperatures of between-100 and +250 degrees Celsius prevail. For example, design engineers in the fields of medicine, pharmaceuticals and chemicals can resort to a chemical-resistant solution. The sliding plates are manufactured by igus in Cologne in a newly built production facility. Due to the in-house development and production, further iglidur materials will be available in the future as plate strips in different thicknesses and lengths up to two metres.

Ordered quickly online and individually made
If the user is looking for larger plates, igus can choose from plate materials with a width of up to 1,000 millimetres out of a total of six different high-performance plastics. All plates can also be ordered at igus in lengths with millimetre precision. For simple design requests igus manufactures special parts for its customers according to a 3D model or a 2D drawing. Within a few days, the user receives the matching wear-resistant part quickly and cost-effectively.

The terms “igus”, “Apiro”, “chainflex”, “CFRIP”, “conprotect”, “CTD”, “drylin”, “dry-tech”, “dryspin”, “easy chain”, “e-chain”, “e-chain-systems”, “e-ketten”, “e-kettensysteme”, “e-skin”, “flizz”, “ibow”, “igear”, “iglide”, “iglidur”, “igubal”, “kineKIT”, “manus”, “motion plastics”, “pikchain”, “plastics for longer life”, “readychain”, “readycable”, “ReBeL”, “speedigus”, “triflex”, “robolink”, and “xiros” are protected by trademark laws in the Federal Republic of Germany and internationally, where applicable.

The igus offline configurator helps you to find the right iglidur plain bearing material

Regardless of whether it is high-volume production in injection moulding, small batches or a prototype made by 3D printing or from bar stock, when it comes to wear-resistant tribo-polymers, the igus user is spoilt for choice. In order to find the right iglidur material for the appropriate application, igus has now developed a new compact offline configurator for its 39 iglidur standard materials. The customer can use templates to determine the right material. Alternatively, the online iglidur expert system helps in the selection and calculation of the service life.

Small, compact and clever: this describes the new iglidur offline configurator from igus. “With the sample box, users can quickly and easily find the right iglidur plain bearing material for their individual application”, explains Stefan Loockmann-Rittich, head of the iglidur plain bearing division at igus GmbH. But how does the offline configurator work? The user has various templates at hand, which he places over the various materials. For example, if he needs a plain bearing with high temperature resistance, he places the appropriate template over the bushings so that it filters the materials. Other properties such as “high loads”, “dirty environments” or “chemical resistance” can also be placed over the plain bearings using the templates until an appropriate material remains. igus has been presenting the offline concept worldwide as a dry-tech sample box since 2013. In the new, more compact option, users can now see which materials are also available for free design as bar stock. In addition, igus presents its 3D printing service and 3D printing material for the production of prototypes and small batches. “In the new configurator, we limited ourselves to 39 of our 57 iglidur materials that are used in most plain bearing applications”, says Loockmann-Rittich. “In discussions with customers and interested parties, we have only had positive experiences with the practical box so far. Because, the configurator leaves a lasting impression and can be consulted at any time, even if no igus consultant is available.” An iglidur catalogue is also included with the box.

Find the right material online and calculate service life
However, tools developed by igus not only help offline but also online for choosing the right iglidur plain bearing material, for example the iglidur online expert system. Like its offline counterpart, the online configurator is very easy to use. The user only must enter the parameters of the application for design, load, movement and counter partner. Then the expected service life of all suitable iglidur materials is displayed. To do this, the expert uses the data from the igus test laboratory. Since 2013, more than 40,000 additional tribological test data has been available for the service life calculation. This allows the user to select the tribo-polymer with the best price-performance ratio for their area of application. All plain bearings are available directly from stock with no minimum order quantity.

The new sample box is available online free of charge at: www.igus.in/iglidur-offline-configurator.

The terms “igus”, “Apiro”, “chainflex”, “CFRIP”, “conprotect”, “CTD”, “drylin”, “dry-tech”, “dryspin”, “easy chain”, “e-chain”, “e-chain-systems”, “e-ketten”, “e-kettensysteme”, “e-skin”, “e-spool”, “flizz”, “igear”, “iglidur”, “igubal”, “kineKIT”, “manus”, “motion plastics”, “pikchain”, “plastics for longer life”, “readychain”, “readycable”, “ReBeL”, “speedigus”, “triflex”, “robolink”, “xirodu” and “xiros”are protected by trademark laws in the Federal Republic of Germany and internationally, where applicable.

The igus offline configurator helps you to find the right iglidur plain bearing material

Regardless of whether it is high-volume production in injection moulding, small batches or a prototype made by 3D printing or from bar stock, when it comes to wear-resistant tribo-polymers, the igus user is spoilt for choice. In order to find the right iglidur material for the appropriate application, igus has now developed a new compact offline configurator for its 39 iglidur standard materials. The customer can use templates to determine the right material. Alternatively, the online iglidur expert system helps in the selection and calculation of the service life.

Small, compact and clever: this describes the new iglidur offline configurator from igus. “With the sample box, users can quickly and easily find the right iglidur plain bearing material for their individual application”, explains Stefan Loockmann-Rittich, head of the iglidur plain bearing division at igus GmbH. But how does the offline configurator work? The user has various templates at hand, which he places over the various materials. For example, if he needs a plain bearing with high temperature resistance, he places the appropriate template over the bushings so that it filters the materials. Other properties such as “high loads”, “dirty environments” or “chemical resistance” can also be placed over the plain bearings using the templates until an appropriate material remains. igus has been presenting the offline concept worldwide as a dry-tech sample box since 2013. In the new, more compact option, users can now see which materials are also available for free design as bar stock. In addition, igus presents its 3D printing service and 3D printing material for the production of prototypes and small batches. “In the new configurator, we limited ourselves to 39 of our 57 iglidur materials that are used in most plain bearing applications”, says Loockmann-Rittich. “In discussions with customers and interested parties, we have only had positive experiences with the practical box so far. Because, the configurator leaves a lasting impression and can be consulted at any time, even if no igus consultant is available.” An iglidur catalogue is also included with the box.

Find the right material online and calculate service life

However, tools developed by igus not only help offline but also online for choosing the right iglidur plain bearing material, for example the iglidur online expert system. Like its offline counterpart, the online configurator is very easy to use. The user only must enter the parameters of the application for design, load, movement and counter partner. Then the expected service life of all suitable iglidur materials is displayed. To do this, the expert uses the data from the igus test laboratory. Since 2013, more than 40,000 additional tribological test data has been available for the service life calculation. This allows the user to select the tribo-polymer with the best price-performance ratio for their area of application. All plain bearings are available directly from stock with no minimum order quantity.

The new sample box is available online free of charge at: www.igus.in/iglidur-offline-configurator.

The terms “igus”, “Apiro”, “chainflex”, “CFRIP”, “conprotect”, “CTD”, “drylin”, “dry-tech”, “dryspin”, “easy chain”, “e-chain”, “e-chain-systems”, “e-ketten”, “e-kettensysteme”, “e-skin”, “e-spool”, “flizz”, “igear”, “iglidur”, “igubal”, “kineKIT”, “manus”, “motion plastics”, “pikchain”, “plastics for longer life”, “readychain”, “readycable”, “ReBeL”, “speedigus”, “triflex”, “robolink”, “xirodu” and “xiros”are protected by trademark laws in the Federal Republic of Germany and internationally, where applicable.