igus® Inc. has announced it will be exhibiting at the forthcoming IMTS show in September. The company produces industry-leading Energy Chain® cable carriers to house, protect and extend the service life of moving cables and hoses attached to automated machinery. Some of the more challenging applications using its cable management systems will be highlighted at the show.
Modern, reinforced plastic cable carriers are the umbilical cord for automated machinery. They can travel at high speeds, carry heavy loads and ensure the safe supply of energy, data and other media in a wide range of industries. Although the task they perform seems basic, igus continually finds new application challenges around the world.
A recent first for the industrial automation sector was the use of an igus cable carrier to guide cables around a handling system over 148 feet, which included 90 degree bends. This design optimizes the manufacturing process, because several trolleys can be operated using one system, unlike with conventional gantry systems.
A special design cable carrier from igus was found to be the best solution for a palletizing system which moves back and forth 5,000 times a day. The Rol-E-Chain replaced a cable carrier that could not withstand the loads involved and frequently failed. The igus cable carrier was specifically developed for more demanding applications with high loads, long travels and high speeds. Stainless steel bearings in the cable carrier ensure low friction and a reduction in the required driving force.
In another application, an ultra-quiet, low-vibration System E6 cable carrier from igus is used in a cutting tool where it is characterized by its smooth operation at high speeds. The carrier travels just under 20 feet at accelerations up to 98.4 feet per second. The targeted life of the cable chain is around seven to 10 years in continuous operation.
In a portal milling machine used to manufacture points for railway networks, the cables wore out after around nine months; destroyed by the 1,112 degrees Fahrenheit hot metal chips. Future production downtime due to this has been prevented by using a fully enclosed
igus cable carrier made from a special high temperature material able to withstand hot metal chips up to 1,562 degrees Fahrenheit.
igus has also extended its scope into the robotics arena with the introduction of its multi-axis cable carrier: "Triflex R"-'R' for 'round'. Triflex R was developed to protect moving cables and hoses on 6-axis robots used in demanding industrial environments, such as in automotive production plants or welding applications. The cable management system is able to move multi-dimensionally through all axes and can twist up to 380 degrees per yard, enabling easy movement through complex configurations. The smooth, tubular design permits the cable carrier to glide around the exterior of the robot without getting caught up.
igus will be exhibiting at booth #4691 in the Lakeside Center East, Hall D, at IMTS 2008.
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