One Platform, Numerous Smart Solutions

March 20, 2021

With the Smart MechatroniX solution platform, which combines best-in-class linear motion technology components with electronics and software, Bosch Rexroth is responding to market trends in factory automation on the way to the Factory of the Future. The resulting solutions can be used in a wide range of areas. Not only do they allow quick commissioning — they also offer full process transparency and ensure a short time-to-market and high productivity.

 

The Smart Function Kit offers quick and intuitive commissioning and configuration for a range of processes, such as joining, pressing, and handling. It works according to the plug and produce principle by combining preselected mechanical and electronic components with software.

 

Bosch Rexroth presented the first smart mechatronic solution at Hannover Messe in 2019: the Smart Function Kit for pressing and joining applications. This modular toolbox consists of an electromechanical cylinder, a force sensor, a motor, a servo drive and a motion controller, plus a software package that enables easy commissioning and operation as well as comprehensive process analysis.

 

The second solution package — the Smart Function Kit for handling tasks — is currently being prepared. It is a single or multi-axis system with innovative control technology and preinstalled software. This kit is suitable for a range of handling tasks where components or workpieces must be moved precisely and reliably within a defined space. In this application, plug and produce is also possible thanks to the associated software package.

 

Other advantages of the Smart Function Kits include easy product selection and dimensioning via Bosch Rexroth’s LinSelect tool as well as quick online configuration and ordering.

 

Another Smart MechatroniX solution that is currently being developed is a compensation module with an active measuring function in six degrees of freedom. For example, it increases the precision of handling robots and opens up new areas of use for robots and Cartesian systems. The Smart Flex Effector can be used in numerous applications, including joining small tolerances, quality documentation, Tool Center Point detection or compensation of position drifts in the x, y, and z-direction.