Mobile Workstation Set Up for End-of-Arm Tooling and Gripper Systems
AGS designs a unit for end-of-arm tooling and gripper systems
On the opening day of the Fakuma plastics show in Germany (Oct. 17), end-of-arm tooling specialist AGS Automation Greifsysteme, based in Bergisch Gladbach, Germany, featured a mobile manual workstation for plant floor operations that includes a collaborative robot (cobot) with its own assembly station and an automatic gripper changing system.
The workstation is designed to be an efficient and flexible way of assembling components by human workers as well as cobots and incorporates the latest technology offered by the company.
Workstation Mobility Boosts Production Efficiency
The mobility of the workstation helps streamline production. While fixed assembly stations are the norm in many plants, the mobility of the AGS workstation—and the cobot with it—allows the unit to be deployed wherever work areas need to be created to get jobs done. Resources can, as a result, be used more efficiently and bottlenecks avoided.
The assembly station is equipped with the company’s innovative PreciGrip system, one of many gripper systems it offers. PreciGrip enables the precise pickup of parts. Its components are positioned to ensure precise assembly. When necessary, individual component fixtures can be designed and fabricated with 3D printing.
The PreciGrip construction kit is a solution for creating customizable and flexible gripper systems. The kit is designed to optimize the orientation of gripper components at a 90-degree angle. AGS says this enables active elements such as suction cups, sprue grippers or gripper fingers to be easily adjustable for different tasks.
Flexible Gripper Configurations With Modular System
The PreciGrip kit works seamlessly with AGS Automation’s standard gripper modular system, allowing for a high degree of flexibility in configuring a gripper to meet job requirements. Users can readily adapt PreciGrip to their needs, making it a versatile and cost-effective solution for a range of gripping applications, the company says.
Additional features of the system include camera inspection of mounted clips. After assembly, an automatic visual inspection is carried out to ensure that all components are correctly positioned and fastened. This helps to ensure that gripper products are free from defects.
The workstation is height adjustable, so employees can set optimal working heights for individual comfort. This improves the ergonomics of its design and helps to increase the quality of work done by humans, says AGS.
AGS has no North American office but is represented in many European countries, as well as Israel, South Africa and Thailand.