Bosch Rexroth Highlights Machine System at PACK EXPO

David Miller: Hello, and welcome to Take Five with Automation World. I'm David Miller, senior technical writer for Automation World. Today, I'm actually going to take a backseat and instead of talking to you the way I usually do, I'd like to share with you a brief demonstration given by Dave Cameron, director of sales at Bosch Rexroth at the recent Pack Expo Las Vegas Convention.

I spoke with Dave at Pack Expo about Bosch Rexroth's ctrX store, which is an online application marketplace for automation technology. You can actually read more about that by clicking on the link below this video. However, in the video I'll be showing today, Dave is exhibiting a machine solution that utilizes technologies from Bosch Rexroth's various business units. So, everything on display, the conveyance, the linear motion models, the servo motors and drives, and even the aluminum frame is all Bosch Rexroth technology.

When I asked Dave why he had chosen to exhibit this particular machine, he stressed two points with me, which I also think have been recurring themes in much of the coverage we do at Automation World. First, he said, it's a cabinet-free solution. The servos, drives and controls are mounted directly on the machine, which saves significant space. And as many viewers and readers know, this is increasingly important as many manufacturers are trying to engage in more production in smaller and smaller spaces, not to mention that space is expensive.

The second thing that's important is that, because the machine and uses Bosch Rexroth technologies, there's no need for multi-vendor integration, which can introduce all kinds of complexity and can raise costs. And these sorts of integration challenges are something our viewers and readers are very well accustomed to hearing about, if they follow Automation World. I don't want to talk too much more and without any further ado, we're going to go ahead and cut over to that video.

Dave Cameron: Hi, my name is Dave Cameron. I'm the director of sales for Bosch Rexroth out of Hoffman Estates, Illinois. Today, I want to talk a little bit about a solution set that we're offering in factory automation for a typical mechanical electrical machine solution involving different products that we offer. This is really simulating material handling, and conveyance of packaging but it's really featuring technology that we have from multiple business units. The framing that you see made out of aluminum is a product that's offered by Bosch Rexroth. The conveyance that you see moving the golf ball carriers and the golf balls is product made out of our Charlotte group, mechanically. You also see some linear modules that are making linear motion to be able to grab the golf balls and fulfill an order.

The idea of this demo is really just fulfillment, showing golf ball fulfillment from an ordering process. And from the mechanical standpoint, that's what we're seeing here. But then you see these electrical boxes here, and this is actually featuring what we're really best in class and that is about a cabinet-free solution involved in the machine space. What does cabinet-free solution mean? It means we're actually able to mount servo motors and controls right out on the machine space. This is actually the power supply that you see here, that's controlling all the servo motors, but notice it's not in a cabinet, it's on the machine frame. So, you can actually save the cabinet space completely by putting the power supply and the drives mounted on motors that are normally on a machine, all out in the space where the manufacturing or production's happening. And there's no actual cabinet required except for maybe auxiliary stuff, but traditional servo stuff is not required to have a cabinet.

That's what we're featuring. We're really a best in class provider in the space of integrated motors and drives. The advantage again, smaller footprint by not having a big control cabinet. And in packaging, we have applications that go 40, 50, 80, a hundred plus, axis on a production line. Imagine all the cabinet space required for a servo drive. So, this is really a unique, great technology to have on a packaging machine. Unique, in stating mainly around the fact that the power supply is something Bosch Rexroth offers without a cabinet. Other people can make an integrated motor and drive, but offering it completely a full featured system on the complete control system is something we did really do great. That's what we're showing here today in this space, and it really just simulates what you would see on a modernized cabinet-free solution involving conveyance material, handling of a Cartesian system and robotics all controlled by servo motors and controls.