A leading manufacturer of AI-powered robotic warehouse automation systems approached us about a design and engineering issue with a new system they were developing. An axle assembly that enabled the drive-wheels of autonomous robots to extend and retract as needed along a track system was giving them some problems due to dust and dirt in the environment as well limitations present in the bearings they had chosen for the job.
Robotic Warehouse Automation is an Idea Whose Time Has Come
These days we hear a lot about robots, AI, quantum computers, and other technology that even a few years ago was unimaginable. Here in 2024, these technologies are rapidly becoming part of our daily lives. The goal of robots, even back to the B9 robot on Lost in Space, was and is to assist humans with daily workloads and to make our lives easier overall. Even in areas like distribution (or fulfillment centers as they are now called), robotic technology is being incorporated.
An Advanced System with Some Unique Challenges Required a Creative Bearing Solution
This new system that was developed for a major distributor of consumer goods incorporates product picking robots that can move about freely over multiple levels of racking systems, picking everything from fruit to laptops. The items are combined in “baskets” and transported to a packaging operation for customer pickups and deliveries. The system incorporates a series of elevators, “delevators,” and track systems that also incorporate the power supply for the robotic pickers.
The customer had designed a unique axle assembly that allowed for the extension and retraction of drive wheels along the track system and had selected a standard, off-the-shelf linear ball guide with a round shaft to make this work.
However, there was a problem with cantilevered loads on the bearing, dust and dirt in the environment, and instability due to the interface between the round shaft and multiple rows of balls. In other words, the design was a bit wonky!
FCJ Bearings Proved an Ideal Fit – With One Critical Customization
Our engineers immediately identified our self-lubricating FCJ composite bearing product as a likely solution, since friction, abrasion resistance, load carrying capacity, and a zero-maintenance requirement, were all part of the challenge. However, FCJ’s are also round (like the bearing it was replacing) so there was some concern it would not fully address the problem.
In the end, we chose to make a simple change in the ID configuration - from a round hole to a square one - to help stabilize a square shaft and prevent any rotation during extend and retract. We also had the option of a hexagonal shaft design since we can make any shape on the ID of the CJ/FCJ product by simply changing the mandrel shape.
Ultimately, the design proved to be a perfect fit for this state-of-the-art robotic automation system, and we have since applied this system to other style pick-and-place robots with ongoing success.
TriStar Plastics has extensive experience sourcing and designing bearings and other components for a variety of robots, from automatic pool cleaning systems, to bomb diffusion bots. If you have an application you need assistance with (robotic or otherwise), feel free to reach out to our experts – we are here to help.
Composite Bearings: A High-Performance Alternative To Bronze
