Subscribe

Tag: logistics

Stop storing and shipping fresh air

Posted on by Keith McKinley

A simple-to-use track-and-trace system that collects measurements and images of incoming stock or packaged goods and turns them into valuable Master Data is being launched in the UK by sensor manufacturer SICK with a free trial offer.

The SICK Master Data Analyzer is already deployed at hundreds of retail logistics hubs worldwide capturing 100,000s of products every hour. Now UK operators are being given their first opportunity to see for themselves how easily the system records and integrates data into warehouse management and ERP systems.

The SICK Master Data Analyzer is a Dimensioning, Weighing and Scanning (DWS) system with the option of associated image capture, supplied as an all-in-one static or mobile operator station. It promises significant returns on investment through more consistent track and trace of products, reduced packaging sizes, and space-saving efficiencies both during storage, and when loading goods for onward transportation.

Threats to Cost-Efficiency

“The greatest threat to both cost-efficiency and environmental performance in logistics, comes from storing or shipping fresh air because packages are oversized, or because they are stacked in bays or packed into transport inefficiently,” says Mark Harris, SICK’s UK product manager for Systems & Auto Ident. “Equally, the danger of the wrong, or incomplete, products reaching a customer can mount up to significant cost through returns or customer penalties.

“Not only does the SICK Master Data Analyzer provide the data building blocks to eliminate these inefficiencies, it has also been shown to increase operator capacity by more than 20%. A study conducted with one major international retailer demonstrated a significantly reduced cycle time in inputting data of a wide range of Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) entering the customer’s facilities.”

Unpack, set-up and connect the SICK Master Data Analyser to begin capturing the weight, length, width, height, image and the bar code of goods or packages in a single step. The trolley-mounted mobile version is powered by a rechargeable battery and transmits data via WLAN so it can be moved to the best location for efficient input of data.

Simple to Operate

Simply place the item to be measured on the toughened glass weighing plate and use the hand-held scanner to read the barcode. Slide the Measuring Light Grid (MLG) frame across the object in either direction to reliably capture the dimensions. A consistently stable measurement is produced whatever the shape of the object, and even if it has a highly reflective surface, such as a foil.

The system then merges the barcode, dimensions and weight into a single data string which is output immediately in a format that can be imported into any management software, such as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system.

The SICK Master Data Analyzer can also be supplied with an IP Camera so that an image of the product can be associated directly with the object’s barcode, part number, or European Article Number. A correlating physical image of each SKU or package is saved in the system, enabling the shipper to check back to verify that the correct item was delivered, and identify any in-transit tampering or damage.

The SICK Master Data Analyzer has a volume measurement accuracy of 2.5 x 2.5 x 2.5mm and weight determination with an accuracy of ±5g and can work to a maximum objects size of 800 x 600 x 600mm.

Free Trial

“Recording basic data accurately, consistently and quickly is the starting point of any efficient warehouse or logistics operation. Armed with these valuable Master Data building blocks, operators are better equipped to drive logistics processes more efficiently and save costs,” Mark Harris continues.

“That’s why we are offering a one-week trial to any operator on a first come first served basis. We want customers to see for themselves how easy it is to start collecting Master Data. Whether you use one unit, or many across a site, we are confident you will begin to make cost and storage savings immediately.”

The ecommerce packaging challenge

Posted on by Keith McKinley

The rise and rise of ecommerce, accelerated by the pandemic, brings new challenges for packagers looking to meet their customers’ sustainability targets. Logistics Business editor Paul Hamblin speaks to experts from Sitma about the opportunities.

More parcels in more shapes and sizes means more packaging solutions, whether bagged or boxed. Invention, creativity and practicality are all part of the ingenious processes bringing those new solutions to us.

Then there is sustainability. Everyone cares about the planet, right? Sure, but when you are hit in the pocket it focuses the mind sharply. With the news that the EU is bringing in taxes on the use of plastics, with further restrictions on single-use plastics, it’s time for businesses that rely on packaging quality and cost efficiency to sit up and take notice.

Customers care, too. Research shows that consumers are concerned about environmental issues related to the packaging industry, such as sea pollution, landfill and deforestation; those consumers are taking increasing notice of the packaging their goods arrive in – and, in growing numbers, are making buying decisions partly based on their conclusions.

That’s where Italian packaging experts Sitma come in. The company has an illustrious history in both conveying and packing high-volume items – it made its name wrapping newspapers and magazines for distribution across the world – so it is well placed to lead the field in the ecommerce packaging arena. “It’s well over a decade since we started seeking paper solutions to replace our plastic packaging models, so we’ve been working on this innovation for a long time,” reveals Orsola Cavina, from Sitma’s strategic marketing department. “It means our competences have grown for the benefit of new and existing customers and it was a natural move for us to go into the logistics sector.”

Sitma is using its experience and knowhow to help clients arrive at exactly the right choice for them in terms of their packaging priorities. The company is calling the initiative ‘Zero Impack’. “It is all about giving our customers the possibility to choose,” says Orsola Cavina. Criteria identified include packaging materials, with a preference for renewable, recyclable paper likely to figure strongly where relevant. Sitma’s R&D activities are focused on finding, testing and offering the greatest variety of bio-based materials – examples include paper, bio film, lightweight corrugated cardboard, recycled paper – that can be used within the same machinery portfolio without mixing materials that need to be recycled via different processes (and therefore incurring more time and financial cost).

Choices available to the ecommerce customer – and, it should be pointed out, non-ecommerce customers as well – via the Zero Impack consultancy are pack-to-fit technology, which automatically reduces void-fill and unnecessary surplus packaging; personalisation and branding options and a guidance through the world of sustainable packaging and what the options are. “It can be very confusing, so our customers are, understandably, not always 100% clear on what sustainability small details are,” explains her colleague Denise Gibbin, marketing expert.

Some of the options might surprise – for instance, plastic should not always be demonized, they say. “Sometimes it’s the right choice,” comments Orsola Cavina. But what about paper – should paper not be demonized because it destroys the rainforests, I ask? “No. We are very attentive to research and select only partners and/or suppliers who are FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified – fortunately the majority today – and have an active and concrete sustainability policy, so are basically committed to our same goals,” she says.

The result is a range of Sitma solutions which meet global sustainability goals, enhance customer brand value and are able to adapt to meet today’s consumer home delivery requirements cost effectively.

London Gateway to get fourth berth

Posted on by Keith McKinley

DP World will begin work in October 2021 on a new fourth berth at its London Gateway logistics hub to increase supply chain resilience and create more capacity for the world’s largest vessels.

The £300m sum – which builds on the £2bn investment DP World has made in Britain over the last decade – represents the next step by the provider of smart logistics in delivering integrated supply chain solutions for customers.

Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World, said: “I am delighted to announce that we will go ahead with our latest major investment in the UK, which will give London Gateway more capacity to handle the world’s largest vessels than any other port in the country.

“As a central pillar of Thames Freeport, London Gateway’s new fourth berth will allow even more customers to benefit from world-class ports and logistics, with unrivalled global connectivity, on the doorstep of Europe’s largest consumer market. DP World plans to be at the heart of Britain’s trading future and this investment shows that we have the ambition and the resources to boost growth, support businesses, create jobs and improve living standards.”

Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer, was guest of honour at the commercial launch of Thames Freeport at the Savoy Hotel in London. He added: “Our new freeports will create national hubs of trade, innovation and commerce, and attract more investment to regenerate communities and level up the UK.

“Bringing ports and business together to invest in their regions is crucial to the Freeports success story – that’s why I’m thrilled that DP World is investing £300 million to support Thames Freeport – creating new opportunities, boosting growth and supporting local jobs.”

In the first six months of 2021 London Gateway saw record throughput of 888,000 TEU, a more than 23% increase on the previous best performance for the first half of a year. The new fourth berth will raise capacity by one-third and completion will coincide with the delivery of a new wave of 24,000 TEU vessels in 2023/2024, which will all be operated between Asia and Europe.

Along with the Port of Tilbury and Ford’s Dagenham plant, DP World London Gateway will form Thames Freeport after being awarded freeport status by the Government earlier this year, with the partners currently progressing the business case with a view to receiving formal accreditation. DP World Southampton has also been awarded freeport status as part of Solent Freeport, further cementing the critical role of both logistics hubs in the UK’s international trade.

Doosan launches new reach truck series

Posted on by David Priestman

Doosan has launched a  highly versatile range of productivity enhancing electric reach trucks. Designed by a team of specialist engineers utilising customer feedback, the BR14JW 9-Series combines faster operating speeds with advanced ergonomics and greater driver comfort, making lighter work of heavy warehousing tasks.

As the latest additions to Doosan’s extensive range of warehouse trucks, the new 9-Series electric reach trucks are available in six moving-mast models with capacities between 1,400 and 2,500kg, and in three chassis types: Heavy, Narrow or Standard. All models are equipped with Doosan’s renowned Guardian Stability System and Smart Sensor control, reducing mast oscillation by 40%, for greater stability and safer load handling when operating at heights of up to 13m.

Every warehouse application

Businesses across a broad spectrum of industry – from manufacturing, wholesale distribution and food & drink to engineering, building supplies and transport & warehousing – will benefit from the improved efficiency, speed and performance of Doosan’s latest, 9-Series electric reach trucks. With warehouse space at a premium, maximising available storage space using a narrow-aisle, high-bay configuration combined with Doosan’s latest top performing reach trucks, can transform the capacity and productivity of a warehouse.

Making the most of the narrowest aisle widths, Doosan’s new ultra-compact BR14J-9 and BR16J-9 models are 12% narrower than the previous models, which together with a shorter chassis, offers a much tighter turning radius – allowing the operator to manoeuvre with confidence in aisles under 3m wide.

Providing heavyweight-lifting muscle, the BR20JW-9 and BR25JW-9 heavy models have the capacity to carry loads up to 2t and 2.5t respectively, and the standard BR14JW-9 and BR16JW-9 reach trucks offer all-round value and performance for standard applications.

Maximum productivity

Operational performance has received a boost in Doosan’s 9-Series, with design and engineering improvements delivering 15% faster travel speeds, 20% faster lifting speeds and 10% faster lowering speeds, helping to get the job done more quickly and efficiently.

Maximum manoeuvrability is available to the driver with a choice between 180°or 360° steering. The 360° steering system is easier on arms, wrists and shoulders when changing direction quickly or manoeuvering in tight spaces.

Stronger ergonomics

The sleek looks of the new 9-Series reach trucks are combined with sound ergonomics, taking safety, driver comfort, ease of maintenance and productivity fully into account.

The cab is designed for operator comfort and to reduce fatigue, with a fully adjustable premium Grammer suspension seat as standard, and excellent all-round visibility for safer manoeuvring with greater awareness. An upgraded mast design improves forward visibility and a new diagonal overhead guard offers enhanced visibility of the fork tips when working at height.

Other standard features are: an adjustable steering column, an easy and intuitive instrument panel, a wider armrest and plenty of leg room for driver comfort.

Optional extras include: Pre-height selection, side-shift auto-centring function, auto-tilt levelling, mast laser indicator, fork camera and joystick control.

A growing warehouse range

As part of a major upgrade programme of Doosan’s expansive warehouse truck range, the new 9-Series reach truck complements a growing list of enhanced products, including high-performance pedestrian stackers, powered pallet trucks, and platform double stackers, as well as a huge variety of three and four wheeled electric and IC counterbalance trucks in capacities from 1.3t to 25t. All reflecting the company’s commitment to delivering simple, powerful and robust equipment suited to customer needs.

Standard features across the warehouse range include low-noise and maintenance-free AC motors, electric power steering, regenerative braking, sensitive proportional hydraulics, multi-functional display for monitoring energy and machine status, turtle speed button, hydraulic damper for shock-free load lowering – all combined with a robust, compact chassis that offers high manoeuvrability in tight spaces and designed-in stability for lifting confidence and safety.

The warehouse range is fully supported by Doosan’s worldwide service network and backed-up by genuine Doosan parts, underscoring Doosan’s commitment to maximum performance with minimum downtime.

All new warehouse models reflect Doosan’s renowned design characteristics of compact functional form, high manoeuvrability, durability and rugged, reliable performance.

Ryan Lenihan, Commercial Director at Doosan Industrial Vehicle UK, says: “Productivity within the warehouse is a highly important focus for businesses in manufacturing and retail. Labour availability is under pressure across the UK and customer expectations for service and delivery is unrelenting, so companies need higher performance materials handling equipment to support their plans for productivity gains.

“The scale and scope of Doosan as a large global engineering business enables us to make significant, on-going investment into our warehouse product range – bringing design enhancements, new battery and charging technology upgrades, advanced safety features, and a whole range of performance boosting innovations.

“Our warehouse truck range and new models complement our extensive range of IC engine and electric counterbalance trucks. This is all part of a comprehensive remodelling programme that further supports Doosan’s position as a powerful brand supplying robust and reliable solutions across a broad spectrum of industrial activity – in the yard, the factory and the warehouse.”

Doosan’s all new 9-Series electric reach truck range offers everything a business needs in a reach truck to run a safe, high-performance warehouse.

Felixstowe welcomes world’s largest container ship

Posted on by Keith McKinley

The Ever Ace, the world’s largest container ship, has made its maiden call at Port of Felixstowe. Operated by Taiwanese line Evergreen Marine, the 24,000TEU capacity vessel arrived at the UK’s largest container port from Hamburg, having commenced its voyage at Qingdao, China in July.

Commenting on the arrival, Chris Lewis, Chief Executive Officer at the Port of Felixstowe, said: “We are delighted to welcome the Ever Ace on its maiden call at the Port of Felixstowe. Our relationship with Evergreen dates back to 1979 when Evergreen launched its first Asia-Europe service. The scale of growth since then has been nothing short of staggering; those first ships had a capacity of just 1,200TEU, one-twentieth of the number the Ever Ace can carry.

“It is particularly fitting that the arrival coincides with the start of London International Shipping Week which promotes the best of the UK maritime sector. The Port of Felixstowe has long been the country’s No.1 container port and we are continuing to invest to secure that position long into the future.”

Work is due to commence in the autumn to increase the depth of the main approach channel into the port. Undertaken by Harwich Haven Authority and due for completion in 18 months, the £120m scheme will increase the depth of the channel from 14.5m to 16.0m below chart datum.

The channel deepening will give Felixstowe unrivalled access for the largest container ships and complements work completed in July to deepen Berth 7 at the port to 16.5m. Further work to deepen Berths 6, 8 & 9 is scheduled for 2022.

The Ever Ace is the first of 12 24,000-teu class container ships ordered by Evergreen. The A-type vessel is 400m in length and 61.5m wide, has a design draft of 14.5m and can cruise at speeds up to 22.6 knots. With a nominal carrying capacity of 23,992 TEU, Ever Ace is one of the largest container ships in the world.

Managing finance and payments within logistics

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Self-employment technology specialist, Wise, is working in partnership with over 250 delivery providers across the UK to try and improve their financial affairs through its software and in-house expertise.

The UK logistics industry is ever-evolving, with retailers, delivery providers and self-employed delivery drivers working harmoniously to get goods transported quickly and efficiently.

However, when it comes to handling finance, tax and compliance issues relating to this vital workforce, many firms are still struggling, spending vast amounts of admin time sorting these recurring issues.

Tom Hills, Chief Operating Officer at Wise, said: “With the impact of Brexit on workforces across the UK and a natural surge in demand from online retailers, it is a crucial time for logistics firms to recruit the right self-employed delivery drivers and importantly retain them.

“By using our platform, our clients are now able to take the stress out of this array of finance issues which need time and attention when you’re engaging a large self-employed workforce. For instance, we help a large number of our clients with payroll management saving them time and stress and providing completely transparent payments through to their subcontractors.”

Improving satisfaction and reducing friction between main contractors and their self-employed workforce will naturally improve retention and reduce driver turnover as the industry continues to recover following the pandemic.

Paul Rodney, Managing Director at PanAm Logistic Solutions, said: “Our business depends on working closely with a number of self-employed delivery drivers and traditionally sorting their onboarding, invoices and expenses has taken a lot of administrative time. However, through using the Wise platform we’re able to hand this over to specialists and through their mobile app our drivers are able to get complete transparency over their invoices, expenses and even automatically generate their tax returns.”

Logistics Business Show – panel discussions now online

Posted on by David Priestman

With almost 4,000 visitors to The Logistics Business Show – which took place online from 20th-24th September 2021 – the second-ever staging of the event has been deemed a great success.

The most popular aspect proved to be the 10 industry round-table sessions, moderated by Logistics Business editor Paul Hamblin, which covered current challenges and future opportunities across the major sub-sectors of the transport and logistics industry.

All 10 of these sessions are now available to view free of charge, both here on the Logistics Business website, and also on our YouTube channel.

CLICK HERE to view all of the panel discussions.

Half of businesses are not transparent about sustainability

Posted on by Keith McKinley

UK businesses admit they are not being transparent enough with consumers and customers about the true sustainability of their supply chains, research by the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS) has found.

The survey of 318 UK supply chain managers found that nearly half (48%) do not believe their organisation is transparent enough with consumers, clients and regulators about sustainability, with 19% admitting they don’t even know how sustainable their products are themselves*. However, only 5% feel their marketing actively misleads clients or customers about sustainability.

What are the top barriers preventing businesses from building more sustainable supply chains?

  • The challenges of Covid-19 made it difficult to focus on sustainability – 43%
  • A lack of supply chain sustainability data – 27%
  • The business is unwilling to invest in sustainability – 27%
  • A lack of relevant skills – 22%
  • Senior executives do not see sustainability as a priority – 17%

The news comes as the CMA prepares for a new crackdown on misleading environmental claims made to consumers. The survey suggests that a surprising lack of procurement involvement in setting corporate sustainability strategy in the UK is at least partly to blame. Much of the UK’s carbon footprint is generated abroad, several tiers down the supply chain in the extraction of raw materials, manufacturing of products and transportation.

The procurement function has a crucial role in understanding, measuring and addressing the sustainability of this supply chain but 1 in 5 (19%) of UK supply chain managers said they were not involved at all in their organisation’s sustainability strategy, while 43% said they were only lightly involved. A further 18% said they were unaware of any corporate sustainability strategy at all.

Malcolm Harrison, Group CEO, Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS), said:  “The choices UK businesses make ripple through their supply chains to impact everything from water security and carbon emissions, to waste management and deforestation in other countries. Much of an organisation’s environmental impact will be outside their internal boundaries, and it is important that organisations understand this complexity so they can begin to track, communicate, and address the sustainability of their own unique supply chain.

“Collaboration is critical to tackling climate change. This includes internal collaboration, between marketing teams and the supply chain managers, and external collaboration between suppliers across the supply chain. No one organisation can solve climate change on their own and there needs to be more initiatives encouraging competitors to collaborate together to improve the sustainability of common supply chains.

“Sustainability strategy must be led by the CEO but it requires input from across the business and procurement is perhaps the most crucial ingredient. Supply chain managers can take a more active role by improving their skills in this area and being more vocal internally about the importance of supply chains in addressing sustainability issues. We all have a role to play to help meet our climate change goals and the time to act is now.”

Businesses set to miss 2050 net zero target

In 2019 the UK set a goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050, a target with particular importance given the UK’s role as host of the COP26 climate conference at the end of the year. However, two years on from the commitment only 59% of supply chain managers believe they will be able to deliver against the target. Worryingly, 1 in 10 (11%) of UK supply chain managers said their business has done nothing since 2019 to improve the sustainability of their supply chains.

There have, however, been some positive signs of progress with 53% stating that since 2019 they have begun taking sustainability into account when choosing suppliers and 36% saying they have redesigned products to reduce waste, increased the use of recyclables or introduced more sustainable materials.

* Findings were drawn from a survey of 318 UK supply chain managers. The survey ran from 28th July to 10th August 2021.

 

 

Vehicle logistics threatened by microchip shortage

Posted on by Keith McKinley

The Finished Vehicle Logistics (FVL) industry faces major new challenges. The current microchip crisis threatens the very existence of the logistics industry that moves new cars.

Inventories are close to zero, volumes have fallen dramatically, factories are closing without notice, unbalanced flows are destroying efficiency and thus profitability. The result is empty yards, empty workshops, idle and under-utilised car transporters, trains and ships.

The industry has never before been so unpredictable and planning has become impossible with supply chain visibility in vehicle manufacturing almost non-existent in the lower tiers. A consequence of this is an almost total absence of meaningful volume forecasts to logistics operators.

The Covid pandemic destroyed profitability in many industries and vehicle logistics is no exception. Unbelievably the global shortage of microchips is now causing an even more disastrous crisis. While governments worldwide supported industries through the pandemic this new crisis is hitting the sector even harder, and it not only lacks government support but company reserves have been eroded or destroyed over the last 18 months as the sector has lost an estimated €4.5 billion in turnover.

ECG – the Association of European Vehicle Logistics – is calling for the automotive industry to take all possible steps to support their logistics suppliers. Many potential measures are available to them including suspension of bonus-malus performance measures, postponing tenders until markets have regained some stability, sharing of production schedules in real time, reviewing lead times and shipping frequency and so on.

Wolfgang Göbel, ECG President, said: “Components are manufactured worldwide and delivered to the automotive industry via global supply chains involving highly complex planning. The problem is not the lack of planning competence of the companies, but the fact that other industries are competing for the semiconductor products and global demand exceeds supply for the foreseeable future.

“As a result the FVL industry is seeing huge variations in volumes at very short notice making capacity planning almost impossible. The problems are not so much in the logistics chains, but mainly in the production lead times and also a bit in the classic bullwhip effect.”

He went on to say: “Long-term contracts with our customers narrow the operational planning scope for us. We need more accurate information for planning certainty to ensure our efficiency and avoid significant additional costs that are not offset by customers. Our member companies are happy to deliver, but the industry must also let them.”

All of this comes at a time when the industry is coping with astonishing levels of change – a topic that will be addressed during the annual ECG Conference in Brussels on 14/15th October 2021. Not only are the products changing fast as electric vehicles replace the internal combustion engine drive trains, but the manufacturers are completely reinventing their sales and distribution models which will require different assets as online activities take business from the historic dealer networks.

In addition, as with all supply chains, there is immense pressure to decarbonize as fast as possible and to address the aspirations of the European Commission in the ‘Fit for 55’ proposals. All of this is going to require significant investment in people, assets, systems and so forth. In short, almost every aspect of the FVL industry will change. If the industry is not supported and protected from the impact of the short-term crisis such long-term investments will prove impossible.

Motion: the next dimension of hand-eye applications

Posted on by David Priestman

In robotics, a hand-eye system denotes a setup where a vision system is directly attached to the robotic arm, generally behind the very last joint. This approach offers an alternative to the more traditional fixed mounting of the vision system, usually above the working volume of the robot.

Though the hand-eye approach may benefit many applications, its potential has so far been largely limited by standard vision systems. Photoneo comes with an ultimate solution that finally puts an end to these vision-based limitations.

Advantages

The hand-eye approach is very useful in specific applications as it offers a number of advantages over the fixed-vision-system method. First of all, it can cover a much bigger scanning volume as it can be specifically directed to the area of interest, offering much more flexibility than the latter approach. The vision system is thus only limited by the reach of the robot rather than by its own scanning volume.

Scanning distance is one of the main parameters that determine scanning accuracy – a hand-eye vision system with a shorter scanning range can provide a much higher level of detail than a fixed vision system with a large scanning distance. If a customer has a large bin filled with small parts, the highest level of detail will be achieved by using a small scanner with a short scanning range mounted to the robotic arm.

A hand-eye system is also an advantageous option in case an application comprises two or more containers. A standard setup with a fixed vision system would either require a linear axis above the bins or multiple vision systems. A hand-eye system will do with one scanner moving with the robotic arm from one container to another.

Furthermore, bin walls or a vision system mounted above the container in a fixed manner may cast shadows on certain sections of the container, inhibiting proper scan acquisition of some parts. In such cases, a compromise needs to be made for finding an optimal position for the scanner in relation to the bin and sometimes the parts need to be manually rearranged. The hand-eye approach can easily overcome this challenge.

Hand-eye systems present a modern approach with rising popularity, which gains a firm foothold in an increasing number of robotic applications. Its benefits become even more important with the rise of collaborative robotics. However, one should keep in mind that the deployment of the hand-eye approach makes real sense only in specific types of applications.

Important considerations

Though the hand-eye setup provides a number of advantages, there are certain factors that need to be considered before adopting the approach.

Hand-eye systems require a more difficult installation than setups with a fixed vision system. It is also more difficult to find an optimal way to handle the cables that power the deployed vision system.

In addition, because the scanner is attached to the robotic arm, it may restrict the robot’s movements. It is therefore advisable to use a smaller vision system.

Another drawback of hand-eye systems is a higher risk of colliding with the sensor and possible difficulties with finding the optimal position on the robotic arm for the vision system, especially if it is of a larger size.

Moreover, robot movements cause vibrations, which standard high-accuracy area-scan vision systems cannot handle. Because of this, the robotic arm needs to stay still during scan acquisition, which may prolong the cycle time. As a result, the hand-eye approach is not the right solution for time-critical applications.

Of course, there are applications where the hand-eye setup is the best option and that do greatly benefit from this approach. In those cases, the vision-based limitations can be overcome with Photoneo’s revolutionary ‘Parallel Structured Light’ technology.

Hand-eye coordination in motion

The ‘Parallel Structured Light’ technology, implemented in the Photoneo 3D camera MotionCam-3D, enables hand-eye coordination without trade-offs between quality and speed. MotionCam-3D is the only 3D vision system that provides high-quality scans even during the movement of the robotic arm. The camera is highly resistant to vibrations and does not require stopping the robot.

The technology enables the capture of objects moving up to 144kmh, providing a resolution of 0.9Mpx and an accuracy of 300–1250μm, and in the static mode a resolution of 2Mpx and an accuracy of 150–900μm. MotionCam-3D is available in five models – most suitable for hand-eye applications are models S, S+, and M.

The greatest benefit of the novel technology is that the robot does not need to stop to make a scan, which dramatically shortens the cycle time when compared to standard technologies. It thus opens the door to new applications such as instant tracking of the object position.

Collaborative robotics has also been limited by the drawbacks of standard methods. Collaborative robots are slower per se than industrial robots and when combined with the hand-eye approach, the cycle times are prolonged even more. MotionCam-3D overcomes this limitation and works perfectly also if attached to the arm of a collaborative robot.

Motioncam-3D comes as an ultimate solution for any kind of robotic tasks. Vision-system-based limitations of the hand-eye approach are now an issue of the past. The technology offers the best resolution and accuracy for scanning at fast speed, effective resistance to vibrations, and shorter cycle times than ever.

Subscribe

Get notified about New Episodes of our Podcast, New Magazine Issues and stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter.