From perspective of maintaining long-term operation of injection molding machine robot, always paying attention to some important operating conditions will reduce downtime and reduce costs. Here are a few things to pay attention to.

Guide rails and bearings at all shafts should be kept clean and well lubricated. If manipulator is running in a dusty environment, guide rails need to be cleaned frequently. If you find any metal fragments or powder, it may indicate poor lubrication. In order to ensure proper lubrication, it is critical to have a proper linear guide system. Most manipulators have automated lubrication systems and parts that need to be replaced regularly.

One of main points to keep robot running well is to simply observe and listen. Doing so can reveal a lot of information about overall operation of robot. Manipulator works through specific actions, so it listens to any abnormal sounds, such as howling, clicks, etc., which indicate that bearing cannot rotate normally or some other component is stuck.
Link part of manipulator moves along guide rail equipped with power cable and vacuum hose, and it will make a normal ticking sound, but sound is smooth and stable. Check any observable bearings to make sure they rotate smoothly. Just need to check and listen to some signs of wear or adjustment, which can greatly help to maintain the best operating condition of manipulator.

 

If manipulator is driven by assembly frame-transmission gear, pay attention to whether there is any hesitation or shaking during operation. Except for smooth movements, all movements can indicate that drive system is damaged or some foreign objects are registered inside. When manipulator pushes down to move, method to quickly check action or backlash between assembly beam and transmission gear is to push and drag moving arm, feel abnormal movement (back and forth movement is different).
However, due to high tolerance accuracy of normal manufacturers, this test method will be very inaccurate. If you suspect that there may be a problem with the assembly beam and transmission gear, a better method is to use a long-range magnetic stand. After adjusting backlash according to manufacturer's instructions, check full stroke of shaft to ensure that there is no tight place between assembly beam and transmission gear.
If backlash cannot be adjusted, assembly frame and transmission gear may be worn and need to be replaced. If it is necessary to repair assembly frame and transmission gear, it is best to replace both components at the same time to ensure long-term performance. As for shaft driven by conveyor belt, pay close attention to debris from conveyor belt wear and its own damage. Check pulleys carefully and watch for signs of dust originating from conveyor belt material.
Ensure that conveyor belt, drive pulleys and sheaves are completely aligned in a row. Conveyor belts that deviate from direction will wear out very quickly. As long as it is a conveyor-driven system, you can check preload of conveyor belt itself according to manufacturer’s instructions. These specifications will tell you: relative to pulley, appropriate amount of error in specific location of conveyor belt.

Including multi-axis servo drives, almost all manipulators will have pneumatic functions as long as they have wrist swivel and vacuum gripping actions. Pay close attention to suction cup of filter regulator unit. Accumulation of water in it indicates that compressed air source passing through system is too humid. Presence of a small amount of moisture may be transmitted to pneumatic valve and actuator, causing oxidation and internal pollution, eventually may cause pressure regulator to stick or actuator to stick or fail intermittently.
If suction cup is equipped with an automatic dehumidification system, contamination or discoloration on suction cup also indicates that moisture is increasing before it is removed. If water accumulates in suction cup, it can enter system even for a short time, causing above-mentioned problems. If you notice any physical damage to pneumatic hose, there may be a leak in the system.
If pneumatic circuit is filled with air at normal operating pressure and there is a leak somewhere in the circuit, then you should be more likely to find a noticeable hissing sound, which will help you determine location of leak.

Standard configuration of manipulator is usually installed on mold plate of molding equipment. When equipment is running fast, vibration from molding equipment may be transmitted to manipulator and may cause damage. Simply observe operation of molding equipment to ensure that mold movement is adjusted to a reasonable state, reduce number of shaking or vibration, and extend life of manipulator. In the case of high-speed operation, vibration frequency may be very high, and it is best to install manipulator on a supporting structure independent of molding equipment.

 

When inspecting surface of manipulator, if black particles or powder are found, it indicates that wiring of manipulator circuit has signs of wear. However, even if you can’t detect these signs of wear, carefully check all power supply, transformer or encoder cables, inner and outer sides of wiring path, because during production cycle, wiring of robot continuously rubbing, or wiring connected to the cable guide, will eventually wear and fail. Ensure safety of wiring ties and reasonable installation of cables.

Manipulator uses a spring-loaded lubricating rod. Unless there is evidence that guide rail is not sufficiently lubricated, it only needs to be replaced once a year. Equipped with an automatic lubrication system, it can be lubricated continuously along movement of manipulator. But if there are some surfaces on which manipulator cannot move normally, then manually lubricate these areas, or realize lubrication of automatic system lubrication on a regular program-controlled action.
If you find rust spots, corrosion or wear on any moving surface, or just too dry, it means that they are insufficiently lubricated. Always refer to manipulator manual for proper lubrication of metal parts. Assembly beam-traditional gear system is automatically lubricated through a lubricating oil storage unit, but it needs to be replaced every year.

Vacuum should be formed almost instantaneously, and appropriate controller input should be equivalent to grabbing product. If you find that vacuum is turned on, then input light source appears, delay time exceeds 2 seconds, then it indicates that there is a leak in vacuum line, a defect, or an improper adjustment of switching device. Main control panel can be easily tested through plug-in. If manipulator is equipped with a digital vacuum switching unit, it can quickly and automatically fine-tune minimum threshold of vacuum required to grasp product.
This process can be completed when robot is running in automatic operation mode. Save setting parameters of each production cycle in memory, which can save time in next production change. Digital vacuum switching device has two other advantages: electronic filter of threshold signal grabbing, which compensates for vibration of product on vacuum chuck during rapid movement. Product release threshold is different from grab threshold, and can be programmed to ensure proper release under fast production cycle conditions.