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The spring‐assisted gantry robots, described in this paper, were designed primarily for the rapid transfer of lightweight objects from one point to another, e.g. to pick objects from a conveyor belt and to place them in a box. The average amount of work required for pick‐and‐place operations carried out by a conventional gantry robot was decided. Springs were added to conserve the kinetic energy of the main bar, which slides in the X‐direction and the work of the same pick‐and‐place operation was decided. A theoretical study showed that when the spring constant was optimized the required motor work of the spring‐assisted robots were 42–95 percent less than the required work of the conventional robot. The conceptual robot exists in mathematical models in Matlab and SIMULINK.

Motoman Europe has opened new facilities at its UK operation in Banbury. During the ceremony news was given of the company’s market share in both the UK and all of Europe. Details were also released of technical developments including synchronous multi‐robot control, large gantry systems, off‐the‐shelf welding packages, a new torch for fast welding of aluminium and press brake tending software. A partnership in warehousing automation was announced with details on recent UK applications, including one at Premier International Foods blending Typhoo Tea. Soon Motoman will be able to supply robot painting systems in Europe following the acquisition of a painting robot manufacturer in Japan.

Describes the latest robot, the IRB 340 FlexPicker, from ABB Flexible Automation that is designed for high speed picking and placing operations found in the food and beverage industry. The new gantry mounted robot is based on a triple arm configuration licensed from a Swiss company. The robot is available with a vision system developed by Cognex utilising the patented PatMax image analysis system that is able to tolerate a high degree of image degradation and is ideal for industrial applications where ambient conditions may vary. A variety of possible layouts for picking, collating and mixing products are described.

The purpose of this paper is to review the Promat Show (material handling) and the Automate Show (robots and vision) run jointly in Chicago with emphasis on new automation innovations for packing and order filling applications.

In‐depth interviews with exhibitors of material handling automation which addresses packing and order filling.

Mobile robots have come of age with multiple vendors offering units for handling goods. Delta robots have found a niche in quick handling of packing and order assembly.

Customers will have to begin thinking of mobile robots as much more autonomous and self‐guiding for goods handling in the warehouse. Logistics customers need to examine the abilities of the delta style robot to do more and faster picking and packing than ever before.

The paper provides an expert insight into how automation innovation continues to reduce cost, improve accuracy and speed of logistics and order filling.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the capabilities, technological features and applications of a particular industrial robot simulation package.

The paper begins with an introduction to the general characteristics and distinguishing technological features of RobotStudio. Next, there is a detailed study of how the tool is used by a company developing bespoke automation solutions, particularly in the food industry. Finally, the educational value of the software is addressed.

RobotStudio is used to improve the efficiency and accuracy of robot programming and reduce downtime. It also has a role in remote maintenance and troubleshooting, risk management and education.

A study of the approach and achievements of an automation integrator makes the technological features of the software easier to understand, in their proper context.

At its Deeside plant in North Wales, Pilkington Micronics produces 0.4‐4mm glass panels for use in LCD and emissive displays for watches, calculators and laptop computers. The material for these panels is cut to size, ground and packed at Deeside. Describes the automation of the packing operations on three purpose‐built machines designed and developed by the Advanced Manufacturing Technology Research Institute (AMTRI). It was found that dedicated two‐axis electric drive gantry loaders most efficiently perform the process of stacking the glass sheets interleaved with special non‐contaminating paper. AMTRI was able to use experience with the first machine, which uses three gantries, to simplify the design of the second and third machines that use just one gantry each. The result is easier, with faster set‐ups, while maintaining the capability to meet the maximum cycle time set by Pilkington Micronics.

Optimising welding performance SUBSTANTIAL gains in productivity in many welding operations have resulted from the use of arc welding robots. However, possibilities for even greater gains are being overlooked because many robot suppliers simply set up installations to take over from manual MIG welding with solid wire. Often output could be boosted and costs reduced by up to 30%, simply by changing from solid to metal‐cored wires.

This paper aims to illustrate the growing role of robots in the electronics industries.

Following a short introduction, this paper discusses robotic applications and products in three sectors of the electronics industry: semiconductor processing, printed circuit manufacture and electronic product assembly. Finally, conclusions are drawn.

The major application in semiconductor manufacture is the handling of silicon wafers during both front- and back-end processes and products include cleanroom certified multi-axis robotic arms, some mounted on mobile platforms, and automated guided vehicles. Applications in printed circuit board production include component handling and insertion, soldering, inspection, testing and packing. These exploit Cartesian, SCARA and six-axis articulated robots and cobots play an important role where automated and manual processes operate in close proximity. Electronic product assembly applications include part handling, soldering, bonding and sealing, screw driving, test and inspection and packaging. Cobots offer the benefits of a small footprint which allows deployment in the often limited space and use in proximity to humans. As yet, robotic assembly of complex electronic products such as smartphones and computers has not been realised for technical reasons.

This study provides a detailed review of robotic products and applications in three key sectors of the electronics industries.