Finalists in Industrial Automation for 2019 LEAP Awards declared
Paul J. Heney, Vice President, Editorial Director, Design World, said, “Our judges, all of whom are independent engineering industry professionals, did a remarkable job in quickly turning around the scoring this year. We had a combination of judges from last year and several new judges.”
This year, the program changed from having a single declared winner in each category to a medalist concept, with the potentials for a Gold, Silver and Bronze winner in any category, as well as Honorable Mentions. Depending on the scoring ranges, not all categories will necessarily have all medals awarded, and Honorable Mentions are also optional — and tied to how close an entry came to the medalist scores.
The winners will be recognized at a ceremony in Santa Clara, California, in conjunction with the Healthcare Robotics Engineering Forum and DeviceTalks West events, on December 9th. Information on how to register for the ceremony will be posted shortly.
The medalists and honorable mentions for the Industrial Automation category are:
Gold • OnRobot US Inc. • One-System Solution to Simplify Automation
The One-System Solution from OnRobot redefines the end-of-arm-tooling (EoAT) industry. It is a full line of intelligent grippers and sensors that provide a unified mechanical and communications interface that allows for quick plug-and-play tool changes and fast and easy programming across multiple production lines, robot brands, and applications.
With the One System Solution, all OnRobot products now have a unified mechanical and communications interface based on the OnRobot Quick Changer, which is now fully integrated in all OnRobot products. An additional Dual Quick Changer incorporates these same new capabilities while allowing the simultaneous use of two tools in one cycle, mixing and matching to suit application needs and maximizing robot utilization.
With the OnRobot Quick Changer, a single cable provides a universal interface for tools and communications, so there is no need to disconnect cables when changing tools. Extended communications options support a full range of robotic platforms.
Silver • Dunkermotoren GmbH • Integrated DC servo motor BG 95 dPro
The BG 95 dPro from Dunkermotoren is an integrated dc servo motor. It integrates together into one unit the drive, communication interface, controller, encoder, brake and gearbox.
In addition, hardware and software are no longer separate individual components, but networked modules to which further modules are added. Depending on customer requirements, these can supplemented by an additional encoder interface or a customer-specific servo function, for example. This makes the system extremely flexible.
The BG 95 dPro is the first fully integrated low voltage 24-V motor, that will outdo the threshold of 1 kW continuous or 3,900 W peak output power. To minimize heat loss, wires were replaced by punched copper sheets and soldering processes were replaced by welding processes.
Bronze • Advantech • WISE-710
Designed to serve as in-cabinet machine protocol conversion and data collection gateways, Advantech’s WISE-710 series terminals connect legacy equipment to new mesh networks. Ideal applications for the WISE-710 include machine data gateway, protocol converter and asset monitoring.
The WISE-710 works to connect legacy equipment to new mesh networks. With its rich I/O and wide operating temperature design, this gateway plays a role as a PLC-side protocol converter and also a data logger for multiple industrial applications. The WISE-710 industrial IoT gateway has an open platform with Cortex 9 processor, equipped with 3x RS-232/485 serial ports, 2x 10/100/1000 Ethernet ports and 4x DI/DO.
The WISE-710 implements lean manufacturing onto product design, which brings many advantages to the overall engineering process. Due to the consideration that was done in the design and manufacturing during the early stages, excess waste (such as materials, certification process and lead time) was reduced, which allowed for expedited development time.
Honorable Mention • Maxim Integrated • Go-IO
Go-IO is a compact PLC reference design that enables factory subsystems to optimize size and performance based on real-time health and status information. It allows designers striving to bring greater intelligence into Industry 4.0 digital factory equipment while meeting the stringent size and power demands of the programmable logic controllers inside.
Digital factories can dynamically adjust the manufacturing line on the fly based on new or changing requirements. To fully realize industrial convergence, automated equipment must possess self-diagnostic and optimization capabilities. Go-IO pushes intelligence closer to the edge, enabling active monitoring and communication of equipment health and status information as well as higher throughput and productivity.
It meets increasingly stringent size and power requirements of PLCs, providing a 10x smaller solution (packs 17 configurable IOs in a space one-half the size of a credit card) with 50 percent less power consumption compared to its industry-leading predecessor, the Pocket IO. It is ideal for industrial automation, building automation and industrial robotics applications.
Honorable Mention • Universal Robots • The UR16e
The UR16e from Universal Robots expands the e- Series platform and delivers an impressive 16 kg (35.3 lb) of payload for heavy payload applications where cobot automation was previously not possible. The new UR16e combines the high payload with a reach of 900 mm and repeatability of +/- 0.05 mm making it ideal for automating tasks such as heavy-duty material handling, heavy-part handling, and machine tending.
Developed on UR’s innovative e-Series platform, the UR16e offers a number of benefits, capabilities and value for manufacturers. These include fast and frictionless deployment with easy programming and a small footprint. Programming and integration is simple – regardless of the user’s experience or knowledge base.