FABTECH 2024 took place in Orlando, Fla. from Oct. 15-17, showcasing the resilience of the manufacturing industry even in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton. The event, which proceeded as planned despite the hurricane, was a significant gathering for industry professionals.
With more than 800,000 square feet of exhibits, the expo featured more than 1,500 exhibitors from a range of domains, including machine makers, software companies, contract manufacturers and service providers. This created an expansive platform for the latest innovations in fabricating and manufacturing. Key highlights of the event included cutting edge technologies tailored for industry. Attendees had the opportunity to explore advances in metal forming, fabricating, welding and finishing technologies.
Here are just a few of the new products that were on display at this year’s event.
Automation Solutions from Cincinnati Machinery
Cincinnati Machinery showcased its latest advancements in automation and smart manufacturing technologies, focused on improving productivity and reducing operational costs. Addressing the challenges of skilled labor shortages and machine programming, Mark Watson, product consultant at Cincinnati Machinery, told Machine Design that the company is changing the way machines are managed to optimize efficiency.
One of the key highlights of the company's offerings is an innovative automation solution that simplifies the management of multiple laser systems, Bryant Downey, software business unit leader, said. This technology eliminates the need for operators to manually track machine outputs, instead automating scheduling and load balancing to ensure optimal performance across all machines. “We’re moving toward fully automated systems, freeing operators from the traditional clipboard tasks,” Watson said.
Downey also talked about the importance of lights-out manufacturing, enabling machines to operate autonomously for extended periods. With advanced software tools, operators can monitor real-time machine performance through mobile applications, allowing for quick identification and resolution of issues. “Our technology provides insights into machine output and efficiency, ensuring operations run smoothly,” he said.
Safety is paramount, Watson, added, and Cincinnati Machinery’s introduction of cameras on machines is designed to maintain safe working conditions while enhancing operational monitoring. “We focus on overseeing production processes to ensure safety protocol adherence,” he said.
Downey added that the company is integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to empower machines to make intelligent decisions during operation, reducing the need for continuous human oversight, noting this will allow operators to concentrate on higher level tasks and strategic decision making.
igus Served Up a Burger-Flipping Cobot Robot and More
Visitors to the igus booth witnessed the company’s latest advancements in automation and robotics, including a range of zero-lubrication, maintenance-saving solutions. A highlight was the igus ReBeL cobot robot, which captivated attendees by flipping burgers on a Blackstone grill as part of an interactive demonstration.
Alongside this display, igus showcased energy-efficient cable management systems, low-cost automation and drylin linear guides, emphasizing their commitment to sustainability and reducing downtime for manufacturers across industries.
THG’s Coordinated Motion for Harmonious Multiple Robot Axes
THG Automation announced the launch of its coordinated motion capabilities with their Universal Robots and Fronius Perfect Welding collaborative robotic welding. Coordinated motion allows multiple robot axes to work in harmony, enabling robots to execute complex weld paths with precision and fluidity.
This advancement is particularly beneficial for applications that require welding on curved, intricate or multi-dimensional surfaces, where maintaining consistent weld quality is critical, Robert Sibley, co-founder and partner at THG Automation, told Machine Design during a booth visit.
By integrating coordinated motion, Sibley says its systems can now handle more advanced welding tasks, such as multi-axis simultaneous movements and synchronized tooling operations, which enhances productivity, reduces cycle times and ensures higher weld quality even on the most challenging geometries. He adds that coordinated motion opens up new possibilities for fabrication processes in a range of industries, including aerospace, automotive or any industry requiring precise and consistent welding.
AWS Showcased Innovating, Inspiring and Impactful Welding Solutions
Attendees got to discover the latest manufacturing equipment, industry-specific innovations and advanced solutions to boost productivity and efficiency when they visited the American Welding Society (AWS) booth at FABTECH 2024. This year’s theme, “Innovation. Inspiration. Impact,” highlighted AWS’ dedication to connecting, collaborating and shaping the future of the welding industry.
At their main booth, visitors learned how AWS can advance careers with educational programs and certifications and were able to join or renew their memberships. At the AWS bookstore, the society displayed publications and toolkits.
The AWS welding track allowed members to maintain certification or earn PDHs with sessions led by industry experts, focusing on best practices and new developments in welding and manufacturing. And the professional program included sessions on materials joining technology and processes, including additive manufacturing.
Did you know the AWS Foundation awards more than $3 million in scholarships, grants and fellowships to advance welding education? The foundation booth highlighted recent recipients as well as the opportunity for visitors to learn more about AWS scholarships and grants.
No Need for Compressed Air: Piab’s piCOBOT Electric
As part of the company’s product development, Piab’s engineers last year focused on a version that would perform on the same level as its sibling piCOBOT, but without the need for compressed air. Visitors to Piab’s booth got to see the fully electric, slim design and absence of air-tubing and cabling on this vacuum pump unit that maximizes the lifting qualities of cobots.
The unit’s light weight and small size, paired with energy efficiency and cutting-edge gripper tools, enable performance and flexibility. The piCOBOT Electric is made to enhance productivity when handling sealed and slightly porous materials and any other application demanding the absence of compressed air.
EtherCAT Communication for Delta Motion’s Controllers
Delta Motion displayed an EtherCAT communication module to its flagship RMC200 Motion Controller family. The module enables the RMC200 to efficiently connect to EtherCAT-enabled devices, and control electric motor drives and hydraulic valves over EtherCAT. The new R200-ECAT MainDevice module is compatible with both the RMC200 Lite and Standard, allowing control of up to 18 and 50 axes, respectively.
The module plugs into any RMC200 base, occupying the slot adjacent to the CPU module. Existing customers can upgrade by purchasing the R200-ECAT module and performing a firmware update. The enhanced functionality supports Delta’s renowned position, velocity, pressure and force control capabilities via EtherCAT or a combination of EtherCAT devices and plug-in modules.
With its widespread global acceptance, particularly among motor drives, EtherCAT also broadens the connectivity of RMC Motion Controllers, easing integration with a diverse range of actuators and sensors from third-party vendors.
ATI’s Compliant Angle Grinder (CGV): Alternative to Hand Grinding, Finishing
ATI Industrial Automation’s CGV-900 tool is designed to bring versatility to robotic grinding and finishing processes while reducing employee safety concerns. Visitors to ATI’s booth at FABTECH got to see the tool, which offers offers built-in compliance, allowing the unit to compensate for irregularities in part surfaces and maintain contact with a workpiece. The compliance force is adjustable, which enables users to fine-tune their finishing processes in real time.
The CGV also provides position sensing data to help indicate media wear, which lets users establish media replacement intervals, eliminating unexpected rework and downtime; the data can be used for process verification. Its governed, vane-style motor provides a consistent speed during grinding and finishing processes to ensure an even finish throughout the contact path of the tool.
Universal Robots Accelerates Its AI-Powered Cobot Innovations
The company showed off its AI Accelerator, enabling a new wave of AI-powered cobot innovations. The ready-to-use hardware and software toolkit created to further enable the development of AI-powered cobot applications is designed for commercial and research applications and provides developers with an extensible platform to build applications, accelerate research and reduce time to market of AI products.
Key features include:
- Integration with NVIDIA Isaac accelerated libraries and AI models, running on the NVIDIA Jetson AGX Orin system-on-module
- Compatibility with the PolyScope X platform
- Support for developers creating applications in areas like pose estimation, object detection, path planning and quality inspection
- Orbbec Gemini 335Lg 3D camera
The toolkit provides users with an extensible platform to foster innovation in robotics, significantly reducing time to market for new AI solutions while improving accessibility in a range of industries.
