Gudel extends collaborative robot reach with CoboMover

Güdel Inc. is expanding the reach of collaborative robots and light industrial arms. At FABTECH this week, the company unveiled CoboMover, a seventh-axis linear track that extends the working range of robots up to 5 m (16.4 ft.), allowing them to operate multiple workstations and perform a variety of tasks without manual repositioning.

“The CoboMover is designed to help integrators and end users expand the range of cobot and lightweight robot applications, with the same reliability, repeatability, and ease of use which Güdel’s global customers have become accustomed to,” stated Brenda Courim, head of sales at Güdel Inc. “The CoboMover is more than just another linear axis—it’s a game changer.”

Güdel Inc. is the U.S. subsidiary of Güdel Group, a Langenthal, Switzerland-based provider of automation products and services. The company supplies linear motion modules, robot track motion units, and gantry robots, as well as components to the automotive, aerospace, logistics, heavy industrial, press automation, and power-generation industries.

Güdel US is headquartered in Ann Arbor, Mich., in a dedicated 45,000 sq. ft. (4,180.6 sq. m) facility, providing North American customers with engineering, design, production, and customer service support.

Güdel addresses work-envelope challenges

The collaborative robot market is approaching 25% of the total North American robot market, according to the Association for Advancing Automation (A3). Güdel said its innovation solves two major constraints: mobility within large workspaces and facility layout limitations.

The company asserted that it has a reputation for robust robot track systems and heavy-payload gantries. Güdel said it is continuing to expand its product range to help automation integrators solve real-world challenges. The CoboMover is its latest entry for cobots.

“This was an application-specific solution,” noted Mike Peek, marketing manager at Güdel Inc. He explained that an integrator came to Güdel with a challenge: Move a precision paint robot in and out of place without installing embedded tracks in the floor.

“Our engineering team delivered a new product that allows the entire track to be moved into and out of the work cell when needed,” Peek said. “We look forward to showing these innovations to the FABTECH audience and discuss how our engineering team can help attendees with their next automation breakthrough.”

CoboMover designed for repeatability

The new track is compatible with more than 60 cobots and small traditional robots, offering mounting positions at 0° and 180°. The maximum payload, including robot weight, is 78 kg (172 lb.) with a drive system using a toothed belt and Güdel’s HPG045 angular gearbox.

Available stroke lengths include 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, 4,000, and 5,000 mm (39.37, 78.74, 118.11, 157.48, and 196.85 in., respectively). The CoboMover has a maximum speed of 2 m/s (6.56 ft/s) and a maximum acceleration of 2 m/s² (6.56 ft./s²), providing repeatability of ±0.05 mm (±0.002 in).

Güdel added that its modular track system fitted with air bearings can move 3.5 tons by hand. Using just 34.47 kPa (5 psi), the system can levitate the TMF-4B track and a FANUC M900iB/280L robot weighing over 3,175 kg (7,000 lb.) at 12.7 mm (0.5 in.).

This enables it to easily float into and out of position on a cushion of air, the company claimed. Güdel initially developed the track for aircraft painting applications, eliminating the need for cranes, high-payload forklifts, autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), or embedded rails.

Güdel tracks can handle heavy loads

Güdel said all of its gantry and track motion products are built around its guideway and roller block system. With sealed cartridge bearings, the CAM follower approach to linear motion is designed to handle harsh environments such as demanding welding applications exposed to spatter, metal dust, base metal fragments, and carbonized debris.

Unlike traditional linear bearings, the Güdel CAM follower system allows bearings to be serviced or replaced without disassembling the entire linear motion system. The company said its mean time to repair (MTTR) is measured in minutes or hours, versus days for linear motion-based systems.

Güdel gantry robots, with one to 20 axes of motion, can be found embedded in OEM tools, tending press brakes, machine tools and other production machines. With a standard payload range from 16 to 3,125 kg (35.2 to 6,8899.4 lb.), the company said its gantry robots can help solve the biggest application challenges while delivering +/- 0.02 mm repeatability.

Güdel Track Motion Units are available in both floor-mount and overhead-mount configurations for machine tending, welding and cutting applications. The company supports all major traditional and cobot brands, ranging from the 78 kg capacity of the CoboMover to the 22,000 kg (48,501.6 lb.) capacity of the TMF-6 track, designed specifically to handle the largest industrial robot in the market, the FANUC M2000iA/2300, to a +/- 0.05mm repeatability.

In addition, Güdel Metal Sheet Handling systems range from high-speed press-to-press transfer to front-of-line de-stackers and end-of-line stackers. The company said they routinely handle the largest sheet metal parts from automotive, appliances, and other industries at speeds up to 21 parts per minute.