MOTION SYSTEM APPLICATIONS
These are Allied Motion Technologies motors and integrated wheel assemblies for traction and steering applications in robots and automated vehicles.
Electric motors, sensors, mechanical components in
off-highway and mobile designs Automated mobile equipment, which transports items in warehouses and freight centers as well as assembly operations, continues to boost demand for power-transmission and motion control systems. In fact, the global mobile-robot market will reach $15 billion by 2026, according to researchandmarkets.com. Nearly all run off electric-motor drivetrains that are relatively expensive upfront but with high controllability, low cost of ownership due to economical electricity for power, and modest maintenance requirements. Utility task vehicles (UTVs) and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) are a couple examples.
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DESIGN WORLD — MOTION
Motion in AGVs and Other Mobile Designs 2019 - MC V3.indd 16
11 • 2019
Of course, many autonomous ground vehicles (AGVs) and other professional service robots (including those for logistics, remote inspection, and off-highway markets) carry subsystems to execute very specific tasks previously done manually. These require sophisticated motion controls. Geometries abound and include a wide variety of grippers, linear actuators, and multi-axis platforms and kinematic subsystems for manipulating and transporting payloads. Even for end-effecting tasks such as quickly picking items from storage racks and comingling them into shipment boxes, electric actuators are often more efficient than the pneumatics traditionally used for gripping. That’s because electric actuators draw power only when operating to let operators run (for example) electric forklifts and material-handling vehicles all day and only charge them overnight. motioncontroltips.com | designworldonline.com
11/18/19 3:41 PM
