New Scale Technologies (NST), based in Victor, NY, develops and manufactures highly precise closed-loop positioning solutions that enable smaller, smarter imaging systems, scientific instruments, medical devices, aerospace and defense systems and more. In 2018, the company released the NSR-PG parallel gripper, which is certified for use with the 6-axis Universal Robots (UR) collaborative robot (cobot) arm and is the smallest UR certified gripper with the lightest weight. It has high precision for small parts handling, measuring, sorting and assembling and is smart with teachable finger positions and the ability to collect data on what it picks up.
New Scale Technologies Gets a Grip on Robotics Automation
Description
"New Scale Technologies leveraged the information learned from working with the FuzeHub funded TM Omron 'cobot' into our launch of the Q-Span Workstation; an automated inspection station for small and mid-size manufacturers. See www.newscalerobotics.com. This new product line added three full-time jobs at New Scale and adds a new option for small part inspection that will save companies money and improve their internal inspection operations."
Allison Leet
VP Finance
The Challenge
NST and Dr. Sam Samanta of Finger Lakes Community College (FLCC), who have informally collaborated for the past 8 years, wanted to adapt the NSR-PG for use on other cobot arms such as Aubo, TM/Omron, Fanuc, ABB, and Epson. The next generation of FLCC students needed to be prepared to support the fast-growing use of cobots and best practices of Industry 4.0, but the college could not fund the purchase of a cobot.
The Solution
FLCC and NST applied for a FuzeHub 2019 Manufacturing Grant and received $50,000. The money was used to purchase an Omron Cobot TM5-700, accessories, and supplies. It also supported payments to student co-ops from the college’s Instrumentation and Control Technologies AAS degree program.
Outcomes / The Impact
“The project helped develop the interface between the OmronTM cobot and NST’s NSR-PG, resulting in one additional employee at NST. The company was able to leverage the knowledge gained from this project to enhance and grow its latest product offering – Q-Span Workstation Solutions, which is one of the first automated quality control workstations in the market.
The FuzeHub project funded participation of students in R&D activity with the New Scale Robotics division of NST. After the key phases of the project, the OmronTM robot was moved from NST to the Instrumentation and Control Technologies Lab at Victor Campus Center of FLCC, allowing for training in the use of cobots, which is very important for small and medium-sized businesses.”