As the impact of climate change and land use continue to harm aquatic environments, it is becoming increasingly important to measure and monitor changes in water quality. When Dublin City University (DCU) Water Institute was developing its new mobile lab technology to help predict future changes in water quality, it turned to precision drive and motor specialist, maxon for help.

The project, led by Professor Fiona Regan, Joyce O’Grady, a PhD student at DCU, and Dr. Nigel Kent, then the director of the centre of research and enterprise in engineering (engCORE) at the Institute of Technology Carlow. The project was sponsored by the Irish Marine Institute and involves studying freshwater sites where the quality is good and monitoring any changes that could impact the ecosystem.

The centrifugal microfluidic disk that acts like a mobile lab

The team developed a sensor to detect low phosphate levels in selected catchments for real-time monitoring. Phosphates are a measure of nutrient pollution and control the pace at which algae and aquatic plants are produced. To mix and measure the water sample and the reagent fluid, O’Grady and Kent developed a centrifugal microfluidic disk that acts like a mobile lab, with six tests per disk. The ability to use a mobile lab reduces the risk of contamination, delivers a faster turnaround for results and produces real-time data.

When they needed support developing the disk, Kent contacted Martin Leahy, maxon’s sales engineer in Ireland, who specified a DCX 22 mm DC motor and the robust ENX 10 EASY 3-channel encoder for the necessary high precision and speed control. Also, modifications were made to the shaft length since a longer shaft was required with a flat edge to mount the disk.

It was critical that the motor could spin above 5,000 to 6,000 rpm to drive fluids towards the outside of the disk for at least 60 seconds and, at the measurement stage, index the disk through 60 degree increments with sub 1 degree precision. The DC motor and encoder form part of a more extensive integrated firmware system. The system needed to be fully integrated with minimal sample handling to lessen contamination.

Leahy also introduced the team to maxon’s Young Engineers Program (YEP). The program, aimed at students and start-up companies, supports innovative projects with electric drive systems. It offers technical support, maxon products at discounted prices and promotion opportunities on maxon channels.

Joyce O’Grady, a PhD student at DCU

“I assumed pricing would be a barrier, but the YEP made it a no-brainer as maxon products would have always been on my wish list. The level of customisation available, especially at such low volumes, was impressive, and Martin’s advice has been invaluable to the project,” added Kent. “I had previously only considered maxon products in final applications but not for prototyping.”

The sensor is now fully validated, and studies are continuing in other areas with the full device. One study has been completed on the River Liffey, and another is due in a lower catchment area. The system will be replicated for four more studies to complete the project in its fifth year.

“Industry 4.0 is finding its way into many different industries. The kind of system that Joyce is developing will be prevalent; autonomous sensors that you can leave out and get real-time feedback on the state of rivers or lakes will play a huge role in areas like Agriculture 4.0. For example, the interconnected nature of technology, using drones for smarter spraying, reduces water runoff, which helps prevent water pollution and protects our drinking water resources. This will be the industry focus over the next decade,” concluded Kent, currently assistant professor in the school of mechanical and manufacturing engineering in DCU.

Dublin City University (DCU) is part of Beyond 2020, a research cluster consisting of six Irish and UK institutes examining new technologies for monitoring environmental waters to understand the role of aquatic ecosystems in a changing global environment.

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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Additive manufacturing of ceramic components speeds up the production of prototype parts and opens up new possibilities.

“What is even more wear-proof than steel and can be turned into axes and shafts for our planetary gearheads, to make them even more precise and reliable?” This is the question that the people at drive specialist Maxon Motor GmbH asked themselves more than 20 years ago. Stefan Zilm, Head of Business Development & Quality Engineering at the Competence Center CIM/MIM in Sexau knows the answer: Ceramic components produced with ceramic injection molding, a process that is similar to metal injection molding.

Today, the company has extensive know-how in the field of technical ceramics. With CIM, components can be series-produced in quantities of several tens of thousands. Yet, in spite of all the experience, and even with the use of state-of-the-art engineering methods such as CAD, finite element calculations and simulations, reality remains the ultimate test that determines whether a new idea is sound, or whether a ceramic part can be produced at all and behaves as planned.

The customary path from idea to real ceramic component is long and costly. An expensive mold is needed to create the green compact to be sintered. Subsequently, it is turned and cut, sintered and sanded in work-intensive processes. Zilm admits: “For a first sample, this is very complicated, it costs a lot of time and money.”

The precision and the fairly large print area of 300 by 300 millimeters persuaded maxon to choose the printer from French manufacturer 3DCeram.

Ceramic out of the printer

But there is another option: using the shortcut offered by 3D printing, which is already well-established for plastic components, and is increasingly also being used for metals. Whereas printing of plastic and metal has been part of industrial production for several years now, ceramic printing is still in the process of venturing from the lab to the factory halls. But the advantages were so tempting that maxon already started pilot tests five years ago, with the aim of getting prototypes of ceramic components to the customers faster – and doing some real pioneering work. Zilm: “With such a printer, the first two to three development loops can be completed a lot easier and faster.”

After intensive market research, maxon decided on a printer from French manufacturer 3DCeram, which has been customized to meet the company’s own requirements. “For us, the main selling points were the precision and the rather large printing area of 300 by 300 millimeters,” explains Zilm. The printer is based on the stereolithography method, in which a laser solidifies an emulsion consisting of binder and ceramic powder, and thus constructs a component layer by layer from bottom to top. The layers are between 0.025 and 0.125 millimeters thick. After each layer has been applied, the printer bed moves down one step. This ensures even shrinkage during the solidification, as well as high precision and rendering of very fine details. A support structure is not required. The special strength of the 3DCeram systems is that it is also possible to create very small parts, with a volume of only 50 cubic millimeters.

After printing, the parts are cleaned using compressed air and an additive to remove the excess material from the component.

Depending on the requirements, ceramic components are usually made of zirconium and aluminum oxides. These are the “bread and butter” materials of the technical ceramics field. Both are available as emulsion for the 3D printer. The debindering and sintering technology corresponds to the CIM procedure, with the result that the green compacts created in the 3D printer can progress through the same manufacturing systems as the series parts. Depending on the complexity of the desired component and the required tolerance level, small series are also possible and a good alternative to ceramic injection molding (CIM).

According to Zilm, the procedure does have its limits, due to the diameter of the UV laser beam, which determines which minimum wall thicknesses can be produced. The components are cleaned using compressed air and an additive, to remove excess material from the component. Holes with sizes of 0.5 millimeters and smaller cannot be made as perfectly round as in injection molding, but for prototypes, it usually suffices.

Intricate details, fine geometries and hollow structures are made possible by 3D printing with technical ceramics.

Development partners right from the start

Today, the customer simply sends a file in the standardized STEP format (Standard for the Exchange of Product model data) that has become commonplace in 3D printing, and gets an offer shortly thereafter. Just 10 to 14 days after the order confirmation, the customer can already hold the first prototype parts in their hands. “In the past, that took several weeks or even months, and involved high mold costs,” remembers Zilm.

Ideally, the customer involves maxon right from the start. “We are development partners from the first idea and can thus influence the design to make it as suitable for ceramics as possible,” explains Zilm. Thus it is possible, for example, to combine several components into a single component with optimized functionality. According to Zilm, such optimizations are very important, considering that the price for a kilogram of the commodities needed for ceramic is around ten times that of steel. “We have to justify this by providing significantly better functionality, for instance through wear resistance, temperature stability or not requiring lubricants.”

But the limits of additive manufacturing have not yet been reached. Andreas Philipp, Head of the Competence Center CIM/MIM, is certain: “We have to start thinking in 3D and not in the classical way as before.” Then completely new possibilities will open up, so that 3D printing could be a real alternative to the established processes.

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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In late September, maxon France inaugurated its dedicated mechatronic production and innovation center with some key players from its ecosystem: customers, country subsidiaries of the maxon Group, the Swiss Ambassador, and the Swiss Consul General. We look back on a few intense weeks for all the maxon teams in France.

A new mechatronic Innovation and Production Center in France

The new maxon site in Beynost (15 minutes from Lyon) required a €10m investment of the maxon Group’s own funds, and is located at the heart of a center of excellence for mechatronics. It is dedicated to:

• The design, development, and production of customized mechatronic systems and modules
• The production of motorized multi-axis systems for applications such as laboratory equipment and autonomous robotics (smart multi-axis systems)
• Distribution of multi-technology drives and accessories (the MDP range), including a selection of products for industrial automation

The Swiss family-owned Group is investing in developing its operations in France, where it aims to achieve turnover of EUR 40 million by 2030.

To accomplish this, maxon France plans to extend the international reach of French expertise in mechatronics for drive systems, in particular by exporting its expertise in the design and production of multi-axis drive systems aimed at laboratory equipment, autonomous connected logistics, and Industry 4.0.

“Establishing a long- term facility in France is a real opportunity.”
Bianca Braun, co-owner of the maxon Group at the opening of maxon France in September 2021 with Alain Pontille, CEO maxon France in the background

“maxon France is an important step in our development as a producer of high-tech drive systems. Establishing a long- term facility in France is a real opportunity.

We at maxon believe in our future, and we invest in it every year. Over the last four years we have invested more than 100 million euros in production facilities like the maxon France site. We must always keep moving forward. I am delighted to be here today to celebrate maxon France with you, and to be able to develop motion intelligence for your applications!” said Bianca Braun, co-owner of the maxon Group, who came to support the initiative of Alain Pontille, CEO France.

The company will also ramp up recruitment in order to achieve this goal, doubling the headcount at its French subsidiary from 50 to 100 employees by 2030.

Ultimately, the development of maxon France and the creation of its subsidiary in Beynost in the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region will open up many opportunities for the French market:

• Better conditions for the development of mechatronic innovation projects
• Long-term establishment of offerings and services for motion intelligence for innovative French industries and companies
• Opportunities for collaboration with European institutions and universities for the development of mechatronic systems and for high-volume or high-risk projects

Inauguration in the presence of the Swiss Ambassador to France

“I am happy to be here, because this company provides a very solid example of Franco-Swiss collaboration. Investing in France is investing in the future, and Switzerland is the second-largest investor in France. maxon embodies this partnership perfectly: high technology, finding expertise, and combining them to produce added value and prosperity. This maxon France site shows that innovation, which stems from many collaborations and partnerships, can be achieved through local, regional, national, and international cooperation between the public and private sectors,” said Roberto Balzaretti, Swiss Ambassador to France.

Technological exchanges and meetings

maxon France used this day to invite selected customers from different business sectors for a technological tour of the company: the mechatronics production workshop, the mechatronics design department, and special arrangements for quality management, stock management, and shipping required for the production of customized mechatronic systems.

More than 30 of maxon France’s customer companies attended this event. Some of them also demonstrated their applications in front of an audience that included Roberto Balzaretti (the Swiss Ambassador to France) and Pascal Bornoz (the Swiss Consul General).

More than 30 of maxon France’s customer companies attended this event. Some of them also demonstrated their applications in front of an audience that included Roberto Balzaretti (the Swiss Ambassador to France) and Pascal Bornoz (the Swiss Consul General).

• XSun, solar drone powered by maxon motors
• Vitirover, sustainable autonomous vineyard robot powered by maxon technologies
• The Smart ArM team from Sorbonne University, who designed and developed a prototype for a motorized bionic arm prosthesis. This French team, supported by maxon France, also represented France at Cybathlon 2020, showcasing the creation of mouvement powered by maxon technologies.

Another highlight of the day was the presentation of the Global maxon Academy, whose purpose is to educate both maxon employees and customers about the technology of mechatronics. All the participants enjoyed this very friendly approach to technology sharing.

maxon France aims to spread this knowledge of mechatronics throughout its ecosystem: customers, suppliers, universities, etc. in order to generate industrial momentum for mechatronics throughout the country.

This action will be further leveraged by the work of the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in France, of which maxon France has been an active member for several months.

Pictured (from left): Mr. Pascal Bornoz, Swiss Consul General, the host of this event; Ms. Anne-Laure Lemerre, Delegate General of the CCSF; Mr. Claude Deffaugt, President of the CCSF; Mr. Roberto Balzaretti, Swiss Ambassador to France, handing the CCSF 2021 Award to Mr. Alain Pontille, CEO of maxon France.
® Crédit photo CCSF : Marine Gonard

Focus on the 1st National Convention of the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in France (CCSF) on the theme of “Innovation: a shared ambition of France and Switzerland”

A creator of connections and conversations between Switzerland and France since 1919, the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in France is a business organization that operates in three main areas: the economy, culture, and training. The CCSF gathers and mobilizes Swiss companies in France around stakeholders in the country to promote their establishment and development, and favorable conditions for their operation.

On September 16, the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in France partnered with the Swiss Consulate General in Lyon to organize its first national convention. Hosted by Mr. Pascal Bornoz at the Residence of the Swiss Confederation in Caluire-et-Cuire, its theme was “Innovation: a shared ambition of France and Switzerland.”

maxon France receives the CCSF 2021 Award

On this occasion, as a Swiss company operating in France, maxon France received the CCSF 2021 award from the Swiss Ambassador to France, Roberto Balzaretti. One of the main reasons for this award was the company’s outstanding performance in the Mars mission, with the Perseverance rover and its little helicopter Ingenuity (maxon motors have equipped every Mars mission since 1997). Another was the opening of the new maxon France production site (a €10m investment), a symbol of Switzerland’s great industrial potential in France.

maxon’s commitment to CCSF

2021 marks the beginning of maxon France’s official membership of the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in France. With numerous mechatronics companies active in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, maxon France (actively supported by CCSF) favors the exchange of best practices with other Swiss manufacturing and motion companies in France, to stimulate industrial synergies.

For more information, visit: https://www.ccsf.com/convention-nationale/

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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Wherever it goes, it is sure to attract attention. The red walking robot ANYmal provokes a reaction, which is why it also made it to the cover of the maxon magazine driven – representing the ever-increasing number of inspection robots worldwide.

Climbing, crawling, walking, or flying: inspection robots can be found everywhere, whether in sewer systems, on wind turbines, or at the bottom of the ocean. And their numbers are expected to increase dramatically in coming years. This is because they do work that is either too monotonous or too dangerous for humans. One of the most well-known of their ranks is the red walking robot ANYmal developed by Zürich-based startup ANYbotics. The editorial staff of driven magazine took a look behind the scenes and found out from the engineers how they taught their “baby” to walk.

Which BLDC motor to choose?

The technical article in the current issue of driven gives engineers an excellent overview of the various brushless DC motors made by maxon and their properties. All beautifully summarized using graphics. Least but not least, readers are transported to Great Britain and the gear motor specialist Parvalux. The long-established company joined the maxon Group in 2018. What has changed since then? And what synergies can be used in future?

driven magazine from maxon brings you interesting reports, interviews, and news from the world of drive technology, and is published in three languages. The current edition is available online and can also be ordered in print, free of charge: magazine.maxongroup.com

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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XSun designs and manufactures a drone that is both energy-independent and can make its own decisions, for fully-automated missions. The company needed reliable, high-performance sub-assemblies to design it’s SolarXOne. This is why the start-up approached maxon for the propulsion system.

Benjamin David, benefiting from a decade of experience at Airbus Defense & Space, created the company XSun based on a rather simple idea: Adapting space technologies for use at lower altitude. This approach produced SolarXOne: A solar-powered, electrical, self-contained drone with a tandem wing design. SolarXOne, with its dragonfly-like design, has excellent aerodynamic performance and a large surface area of solar panels, to collect as much solar energy as possible. This is all within a very high-performance, fully-electric environment.

“We firmly believe that a combination of new technologies and renewable energy sources will best meet current environmental, economic, and societal challenges,” says Benjamin David. He also points out that solar power increases the on-board battery life by a factor of 3.

Just like a satellite, SolarXOne is packed with technologies. Half airplane, half drone, this UAV weighs 25 kg, has a 4.50 m wingspan, and is innovative in several ways:

• Easy to use: SolarXOne is as easy to operate as a drone, but with the high-performance of an aircraft.
• Fast deployment: Ready to fly in 30 minutes.
• Range: 12 hours of non-stop flight.
• Silent: As the drone is fully-electric, it flies without making any noise.
• Excellent handling: This is due to its aerodynamic configuration combined with the technical choices implemented.
• Reliable: Back-up systems to ensure a high-degree of reliability for users.
• Low-maintenance: All-electric devices require little maintenance.
• Ability to fly day or night: On-board batteries that are charged by solar power.
• Exceptional payload capacity: Gyroscopes, high-performance cameras, thermal imaging cameras, LIDAR, etc.: SolarXOne can carry up to 5 kg of payload, including the latest communication and safety technologies.
• A system compliant with aeronautical standards: This means the UAV can be certified to the highest level and easily obtain flight authorization worldwide.

A wide range of applications

SolarXOne, with a daily flight range of 600 km, can fly over thousands of acres, producing image resolution of cm accuracy. Consequently many sectors are interested in the drone for a wide variety of missions:

• Mapping and topography of large areas on land or at sea, such as nature reserves,
• Very high-resolution photographic surveys for large-scale linear infrastructure (pipelines, electricity lines, roads, rivers, etc.),
• Photographic surveys for precision agriculture, in the context of forest mapping, for example,
• Monitoring and inspection missions.

XSun markets its drone, but also offers SolarXOne services via its operations team. The team flies the drone on behalf of clients who just want to collect data.

SolarXOne is equipped with two adapted ECX 87 Flat motors positioned at the front of the aircraft.

“maxon is definitely the best”

Efficiency, quality, reliability, and durability. Those were the guiding principles of the SolarXOne design. “Because of the fully electric design, we had to strive for cost and energy efficiency in every assembly. This is why it was essential to work only with the best, and that means maxon for the propulsion system,” says the founder of XSun. For propulsion, the challenge was to find the most reliable, highest performance, and smallest systems possible, with virtually the same requirements as in the aerospace sector. “In those three areas, maxon is definitely the best. There are very good reasons why they supply NASA with its robot motors! We were delighted to see maxon enter the drone market, and our collaboration was set up very quickly,” adds Benjamin David.

Every aspect of the technology had to be pushed right to the limit for the drone to be able to fly completely independently for over 12 hours. XSun took advantage of maxon’s expertise in the following three areas:

• Controller
• Motor
• Propulsion

“From an energy point of view, the aim was to keep consumption as low as possible while remaining as light as possible: a genuine technological challenge!”, recalls Michael Niemaz, Aerospace Project Engineer at maxon, who has been working with XSun since 2019. Back then, maxon had just released its first drone motor range. To meet XSun’s requirements, maxon adapted one of its brushless drone motors, the ECX 87 Flat.

Luise Löskow, Aeronautics Project Manager at maxon, says: “When we started working with XSun, the design of this type of motor only existed in its basic form. This is why we had to customize a product that was still under development, to which we had to incorporate new features such as sensors. Our experienced team (design engineers, test engineers, quality engineers, purchasers, and production operatives), had in-depth discussions about the various technical requirements and problems, so as to find appropriate solutions. Finally, we increased the power of the ECX87 Flat motor and modified its winding for optimum propulsion. SolarXOne is now equipped with two adapted ECX87 Flat motors positioned at the front of the aircraft.”

“For SolarXOne to be able to fly over cities in total safety, XSun wanted to have its drone certified as far as possible. This where maxon’s expertise played an important role, because we provide a build quality that guarantees a sufficiently reliable motor to be certifiable in the future,” Michael Niemaz pointed out. The founder of XSun agrees with this, adding: “It would have been hard to achieve the same level of quality with a partner other than maxon. Very few companies would be able to provide a highly detailed 25-page test report!”

Ever since they met at the Paris Air Show in 2019, the maxon and XSun teams have been working in close collaboration. In July 2020, for its first long-range solar flight, the SolarXOne succeeded in flying silently for 12 hours without any CO2 emissions, and completely independently. Since then, it has completed operational assignments for various clients in France and other parts of Europe.

For more information, visit: XSun.fr

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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In the following article we will discuss how one company employs creative design techniques and online configuration tools to provide customized motors and gearheads for their latest robotic arm and gripper – able to fit into a wide variety of applications.

The CEO of Blueprint Lab, Paul Phillips has combined his passion for mechatronic engineering with his love of surfing and diving in the ocean. The company, located in the Sydney, Australia suburbs, designs and manufactures products that operate in the harsh environment of the ocean floor. According to Paul, “I realized at an early stage that subsea vehicle manufacturers were in need of specialized hardware for performing remote manipulation tasks. Developing such tools themselves was prohibitively expensive and complex. The Blueprint Lab team “love tech more than anything else” which is why we are intent on inventing technically innovative products. We love what we do,” he explains.

The Reach Alpha 5 is the world’s lightest underwater five-function manipulator.

The unique selling point of the company’s robotic manipulators and grippers is size. The Reach Alpha 5 is the world’s smallest ROV manipulator, according to Paul. When curled up, it’s only ~23x15x4cm (~9x6x1.5-inches)—and is ~58cm (~23-inches) at full extension with a dynamic reach of ~40cm (~16-inches). The arm is able to life 2kg (~2 pounds) of weight at full reach and an axial load rating of 100kg (~220 pounds). End-effector closing force is about 600N. The units are designed to operate at depths of up to 300 meters (nearly 1000 feet).

As a usable addition to any ROV, the Reach Alpha 5 is an all-electric device that runs off of 18-30 VDC. The system is fast and easy to integrate through standard RS232/RS485 protocols. The unit offers leak detection for peace of mind prior to vehicle launch. Interchangeable end-effectors include standard pincer grips as well as quad jaws, specialized recovery jaws, needle nose grippers, soft jaws, parallel jaws, and rope cutter jaws. The units are primarily made of hard anodized AL6061aluminum. Both arms and end-effectors can be made from stainless steel for harsher environments and where increased strength is needed.

The Reach Alpha 5 is driven by maxon DCX 16mm motors and planetary gears. The motors are integrated in a side-by-side arrangement so that they are able to drive in both directions efficiently. An in-house designed controller fits between the motors to maintain a compact arrangement. A spiroidal gear assembly, also designed in-house, is used as the final drive element. Feedback for the system is supplied by a built-in hall-effect absolute position encoder. “For the higher torque joints, we use high-torque gearboxes due to their increased load capacity. For other joints, such as the grabber and the inline rotation motors, the standard DCX components were sufficient,” Paul said.

“Because we developed the hardware, firmware, and software for our products in-house, we were able to deliver much higher levels of optimization, serviceability, and support to our customers,” Paul said. The biggest challenge for the company has been taking a product from the prototype to production stage of development. The need to get everything perfect every time is essential in order to provide the conformance, process capability, and repeatability in production that customers require. Because of this, Blueprint Lab sees one of maxon’s major advantages is their online configurator for customizing motors—with production in 11 days—which allows customers to order motors 24/7. And then deliver the product in production level quantities as the market demands.

The maxon DCX program includes motors that offer high power density, high efficiency and are a smooth-running line of motors. The motors are available for online configuration in sizes from 6mm to 35mm. Customers can choose between precious metal or graphite brushes, ball or sintered bearings, and much more in a contained or frameless package. maxon allows users to configure and combine DC or BLDC motors and planetary gearheads and sensors according to their individual specifications. Through the different generations of the product the motor and gear ratio changed to better meet customer requirements and improve robustness. According to Paul, “The DCX range allowed for these changes to be seamless without requiring any mechanical design.

During the development stage for an actuator, for example, the company might order as many as 20 motor variations online before settling on the right product. This actually saves the company money, since research time is so much more expensive. Plus, it allows Blueprint to test all available options prior to selection.

maxon’s DCX 16mm motors are used throughout the Reach Alpha 5 manipulator.

During a brainstorming session with maxon’s Bianca Braun and Brett Motum, additional ideas were offered. During the session, Paul and his team turned to maxon controllers as a subject. One initial desire for the company would be to incorporate a stripped-down version of maxon’s ESCON servo amplifier to suit motor diameters. The conversation further drifted into methods where a controller could be configured by an engineer. The designer would select from features already resident in the motor controller hardware and then configure the shape of the controller online. “maxon’s openness to new ideas is important,” Paul said.

Most applications for the company’s robotic manipulators are in hard to reach or dangerous locations. Units are used on ROVs for search and recovery operations, conducting offshore infrastructure inspection for oil and gas operations, collecting samples for marine science research, as well as in Special Recovery Operations by the military and civil first responders. Besides operating under the ocean for research, the Reach Alpha 5 can be used for police and military operations such as bomb disposal robots and for close visual inspecting in petrochemical and nuclear operations.

The build-up of core technologies in-house for the Reach Alpha 5 provides Blueprint Lab with a strong technical advantage over other companies while they expand into broader markets, such as nuclear, petrochemical, land, and aerospace applications. “We are always thinking of the next developments,” Paul explained. For example, machine learning algorithms are a hot topic at the company as they are implementing hardware in their latest products that will help lead them into the AI future.

Blueprint Lab is a forward-thinking, tech-savvy company operating with over 20 creative engineers who love what they’re doing. Paul admits that he’d like to see more women engineers applying at the company. “It would be great to see more female mechatronic engineers in Australia,” he said. “We are always looking for dynamic people and there are simply not enough female graduates for the robotic industry right now.”

It’s amazing what can be done when you put together the right engineers and the right products. Blueprint Lab has made it their mission to incorporate precision components such as maxon motors in their products. With the growth in remotely operating vehicles of all kinds that are using robotic arms and grippers, there will be a place for companies like Blueprint Lab for years to come.

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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CubeRover, engineered by Astrobotic’s Planetary Mobility department, was designed to offer an affordable service used to carry and operate diverse scientific instruments and payloads on the surface of the moon.

Developed by Astrobotic with input from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, the CubeRover has been funded through NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Tipping Point programs—and will culminate with a rover that is ready to fly to the moon. Astrobotic has refined and commercialized the CubeRover product line to provide mobility as a service (MaaS) so that it can reduce the barriers to entry for technology demonstrations and scientific investigations on the surface of the Moon. The rover is designed to be compatible with multiple lunar landers to maximize its utility for upcoming lunar missions.

CubeRover needed to be compact and lightweight, handle extreme climate fluctuations, and maximize mobility for instruments operating on the rover. Given the emphasis Astrobotic placed on the lightweight design, material usage, battery size, and motor selection, the CubeRover has become the lightest commercial planetary rover to date, at about four kilograms. This dramatically reduces flight costs, making the Moon more accessible to more customers.

CubeRover is outfitted with a calibrated camera used to orient itself relative to known objects on the lunar surface—such as Astrobotic’s Peregrine lander. This localization data, used by the rover’s operation team, augments the value of the mission data collected, thus allowing payload customers to make informed decisions about where to travel next and stamp data with local position information. Furthermore, Astrobotic has incorporated industry standard interfaces throughout the rover that are defined in its CubeRover Payload User’s Guide to simplify the payload integration process.

Testing is ongoing at Astrobotic and the Kennedy Space Center’s Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Laboratory, where the team is conducting mobility tests on CubeRover in different lunar regolith simulants. These tests characterize the performance of the rover on slopes, gaps, and across other surface irregularities encountered during missions.

According to Troy Arbuckle, Planetary Mobility Lead Mechanical Engineer at Astrobotic, “We have created mobility platforms for numerous payload applications.” CubeRovers are basically ride shares for anyone wishing to do research on the Moon. CubeRovers use a methodology akin to CubeSats in that they support diverse instrument packages in a standard form factor. CubeRovers leverage the internationally recognized CubeSat sizing method to define the payload volume and carrying capacity, where a 10cm x 10 cm x 10cm volume that supports 1 kg of payload is called a unit, or “U.” Astrobotic is currently developing 2U, 4U, and 6U CubeRover sizes to meet payload market demand.

maxon brushless DC flat motors with planetary gearboxes have been specially modified to provide a high-reliability, extended operational lifetime of the CubeRover. © maxon

CubeRover drivetrains use four maxon BLDC motors and gearheads that have been optimized for use in the harsh environments of space as well as those on the lunar surface. Starting from their industrial catalog equivalents, the space versions of these actuators were originally developed with JPL as part of the Mars2020 Perseverance rover mission. Following the successful qualification of the design for Mars, maxon optimized the design and associated production techniques for more cost sensitive (compared to Mars science missions), commercial space applications.

The goal was to retain all the key design features that made the motors robust against shock, vibration, vacuum, and wide temperature ranges while removing Mars2020 specific design features. As a result, the motors and associated gearheads are the first of a planned catalog of space rated products.

As important as the design, are the production techniques where enhanced quality assurance steps have been implemented. Additionally, an expanded ATP (Acceptance Test Procedure) includes, for example, 100%, load testing of each delivered actuator. As a result, these are mass optimized, high power density, robust motors and gearheads suitable for the environmental conditions and reliability requirements in the application.

Drives from insulin pumps for CubeSats

The technologies incorporated for the design of the CubeRovers are based on the technologies used by JPL for their other missions. This is one of the reasons, maxon’s electric motors and gearheads were included in the design. maxon has worked on many projects for both ESA and NASA, including the present Perseverance Mars rover and Ingenuity helicopter.

maxon has also worked with Astrobotic as the launch customer on a space rated X drive system. Derived from maxon’s highly regulated medical application designs, in this case, commonly used in portable insulin pumps. The target market for these are the growing number of CubeSats and their associated mechanisms.

After working their way through design challenges and resulting design adjustments based on the final goals of the CubeRovers, Astrobotic has created a unique and valuable addition to our space travel technology. By leveraging the designs developed for space science missions, to produce lower cost, but high reliability design, they are opening new commercial markets with confidence. maxon is delighted to be working with Astrobotic as one of the first customers for its new range of commercial space catalog products and is looking forward to a combined success for the first flight in 2022.

aerospace.maxongroup.com

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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The world has gone through 3 industrial revolutions since 1760, and now we are on the verge of the 4th industrial revolution, Industry 4.0, also known as digital manufacturing. Let’s find out what these changes will mean for business and the workforce.

Between 1760 and 1840, the first industrial revolution moved from hand production to using steam and waterpower.

From around 1871 -1914, the second industrial revolution came about due to the prolific building of railroads and factory electrification. It was also the start of telecommunication networks that allowed for faster transfer of idea sharing and led to the first modern production lines.

The third revolution was digital at the end of the 20th century with the invention of computers. Operators could programme them to carry out and run repetitive mechanical tasks, hugely increasing production and reducing labour costs.

We are now at the beginning of the 4th industrial revolution, also called digital manufacturing, the Industrial Industry of Things (IIoT) and Industry 4.0. So, what do the changes hold for business and the workforce?

What are the challenges for Industry 4.0?

As with any revolution, there will be political, economic, organisational and social challenges to overcome. Political: joined-up regulation and legal issues. Economical: high-cost implementation benefiting first world countries. Organisational: reliability, security and safety, protection of IP and training of the workforce and social: Privacy concerns and surveillance mistrust, reluctance from the current workforce due to fear of change and job security.

The latest revolution brings automation for data exchange – advanced human-machine interfaces with communication in real-time. Combine this speed with big data and digital processing platforms for greater operator transparency. The operator will identify and optimise the overall task and allow the system components autonomy by monitoring itself. This ability gives tremendous flexibility where machines predict failure modes and correct or plan maintenance before it even happens. With downtime reduced and overall efficiency going up, and the continued reduction of the labour force, companies will see significant cost savings. However, the workforce will be wary and concerned with the loss of jobs. In every automation project in the history of the industrial revolution, some jobs will become obsolete; however, new jobs created from innovation would require different skillsets, and people would require retraining.

What would this look like?

There are enormous opportunities for all areas but let’s look at what tomorrow’s factory might look like.

Machine Learning

Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMR) would work on different routes on different days and adapt themselves to change their path depending on the demand in warehousing and intralogistics. They have an array of sensors to allow them to navigate around each other and the human workforce. Also, should they need maintenance, the AMR’s will self-diagnose and visit the workshop for preventative or critical upkeep.

Smart factory

Industry 4.0 encompasses the idea of the “smart factory”, which adopts Cyber-Physical Systems. CPS is where a computer-based algorithm controls a mechanism and is linked with the Internet of Things, where equipment embedded with sensor technology has the sole purpose of exchanging data over the internet. Examples of CPS are self-driving cars or drones that are virtually aware of their surroundings. Instead of warehouses and factories unloading deliveries with a flow chain carried out by people, a lorry would supply the precise quantity of raw material, determined by automated data collection. Products are developed and tested digitally. The smart factory will operate from delivery to end product with minimal supervision.

Our customers are often at the forefront of industry transformation, and it is our challenge to design and manufacture products to keep driving innovation.

To offer AGV and AMR designers maximum freedom, the maxon Group has developed an entire range of compact and modular motors. These IDX drive solutions meet the most demanding requirements: offering 20% higher performance than current solutions on the market.

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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The automated guided vehicles (AGV) market is booming. According to a study by Research and Markets, the global market for AGVs is set to grow by 10.8% by 2026, reaching USD 3.64 billion. The fields of application are manifold, but we show you the Top 3 highest growth markets for AGVs.

1. Logistics
An essential component of the goods cycle, logistics brings together a wide range of stakeholders. Transport, warehousing, product design and primary packaging, handling, outer packaging… In an economy that is increasingly centered around the exchange of goods, logistics operations need to be agile and efficient. The efficiency levels of logistics and the supply chain have become decisive factors in companies’ competitiveness. And the use of AGVs and AMRs (autonomous mobile robots) is becoming vital in this context. These autonomous vehicles have the advantage of offering major potential to transform logistics chains. They also represent a strategic interest for efficiency gains.

Moving goods, helping with order preparation and even managing inventories: equipped with powerful sensors and artificial intelligence, AGVs are now able to perform many tasks within warehouses. Their compact size in particular addresses the challenges posed by e-commerce. There is a need for faster order processing in this booming sector. Consumers are demanding: 24-hour delivery is becoming the norm. To achieve this, proximity to large cities is essential. But, the closer a company moves to an urban area, the higher the rents are per square meter. Therefore, most logistics companies tend to opt for high-rack storage solutions. In order to evolve in this confined environment, the manufacturers of AGVs must therefore offer compact and functional robots which are able to move vertically and carry heavy loads.

• See also : The 5 key points when motorizing an AGV

Choosing a compact motorization is therefore essential for meeting the challenges of the sector. With a diameter of just 56 mm, the IDX motor perfectly addresses the challenges relating to performance and compact size – which are crucial factors in the logistics and intralogistics sector.

2. Medical industry
To make the lives of health care staff easier and completely avoid the risk of contamination in the event of an epidemic, AGVs are also deployed in hospitals. Capable of transporting meals, laundry or waste, and even delivering medication to patients, robots are also proving useful for moving heavy loads. During the Covid-19 crisis, many hospitals across the world have called upon their services. In Italy, robots were able to collate information on patients’ state of health, while the Navy Firefighters Battalion in Marseille acquired an AGV featuring a decontamination module.

However, the hospital sector did not wait for this global pandemic before harnessing the potential of AGVs. Since 2012, Nantes University Hospital has been using cobots to deliver fifty or so flexible endoscopes per day in intensive care units and endoscopy departments as well as operating theaters. Capable of taking the elevator and moving autonomously around the corridors, these robots collaborate with humans, traveling around 1,400 km each year and transporting more than 25,000 endoscopes. This was a worthwhile investment for the University Hospital, which also values the high level of security provided by the locked cupboards on these AGVs. The drive systems in these machines must be network-connected to ensure they can undergo remote maintenance while also offering a level of IP protection, since they come into regular contact with disinfectants.

The maxon IDX motor with integrated electronics is ideal for all of these applications. It is compact and offers high performance as well as standard IP65 protection.

3. Transport
Although the automotive and aeronautical industries have suffered as a result of the recent coronavirus crisis, AGVs are still drivers of the transport sectors and are key to boosting productivity in these sectors.

• Automotive

The first automated guided vehicles were developed in the 1950s for the automotive industry. Seventy years later, this historic sector is still a growth area for AGVs. Electric, hybrid and thermal engine cars… In an industry which must increasingly expand its options while adapting to customers’ changing opinions, flexibility is key – now more than ever. It has even become a strategic challenge. Although the assembly line model instituted by Ford proved worthwhile in the past, it does not allow companies to easily adapt to changes in production. So it’s out with Ford’s assembly line and in with a modular assembly system, where AGVs have a pivotal role to play.

This was the choice made by car manufacturer Audi at its factory in Bavaria, where the assembly line has been replaced by assembly stations with two or three operators. Placed on an AGV, the vehicle is transported from one station to the next during the assembly process. The AGV chooses the optimal route based on an algorithm. The entire process is synchronized from a control room where all the production data are analyzed. By deploying the modular assembly system, the Audi Group is expecting to see a double-digit increase in productivity.

Audi is by no means alone. The automotive industry is brimming with push robots, shelving pullers, autonomous lifting carts and other smart mobile shelving systems which are capable of turning over when they are empty to reveal the correct parts to the workers. Now equipped with a multitude of sensors, cameras, radars and laser detectors, AGVs move around car manufacturing plants and make the workers’ lives easier.

With the aim of making huge time and space savings, the PSA Peugeot-Citroën Group has also adopted AGVs in its production chains. Perfectly integrated into the LEAN production system, these autonomous guided vehicles are able to load up in the logistics zones before returning to the assembly line, where the operators take care of assembling a sub-unit, such as the engine build-up.

For the last few years, the automotive industry and the big marketplaces have also seen the development of crawler AGVs, which are able to slide underneath a cart or underneath a rolling cabinet, before grasping it via a hook system and moving it. The crawler AGV effectively addresses the challenges of restricted spaces, as it can move into more confined spaces by optimizing the length of the AVG and that of the cart.

• Aeronautical industry

Modernizing the industrial system, supporting competitiveness, meeting the challenges of production ramp-ups… Similar to the automotive industry, aeronautical companies have incorporated automation in their assembly lines through the use of AGVs. Airbus recently commissioned a highly-automated digital assembly line for the fuselage structures of its A320, A321 and A321R aircraft. In this high added-value sector, autonomous guided vehicles enable the transportation of heavy loads such as fuselage parts, although other, more innovative projects are also being implemented.

In order to speed up processes and avoid unfavorable body positions, which can cause problems for the technicians, the industrial integration network of Vinci Energies, Actemium, has developed a solution for automating the inspection of aircraft engine assembly. Perched on an AGV, this robot is able to compare the digital reference model with the completed assembly.

In terms of maintenance, robots are very useful for detecting the exact origin of a breakdown or a malfunction. Thalès DMS France uses an AGV that is able to move autonomously underneath an aircraft while emitting electromagnetic waves. Using this AGV, a mechanic can check the parameters in the cabin and analyze sensor damage in order to schedule different maintenance operations.

As for design, the BA Systems Group has developed Asimov, a cobot that is able to perform assembly operations inside an aircraft structure. Designed for assembly of the Airbus A380, this AGV knows how to position itself correctly in order to accurately print the form and the reference of the part that is to be assembled by the operator.

From logistics and aeronautical engineering to the medical industry, there are huge development opportunities for AGVs. In order to meet the challenges of these sectors, you must be able to offer vehicles with compact and powerful drive solutions which are also easy to maintain. Bearing in mind these requirements, the teams at maxon have developed IDX, a range of motors which are modular, safe and easy to configure, to satisfy all of your drive needs.

To find out more about the IDX, visit idx.maxongroup.com

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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They move like snakes and reach places that are too narrow or dangerous for humans. The robust robotic arms of the Tokyo-based company HiBot take inspection, maintenance and repair to new levels.

In the past, maintenance was not given much consideration in the construction of industrial plants, buildings or bridges. As a consequence, the maintenance of aged objects is challenging and expensive. However, with the help of modern MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) robots, damage can be detected, inspected or predicted at a reasonable cost. This allows the extended use of essential infrastructure, and prevents outages and accidents. Michele Guarnieri, CEO at HiBot, explains: “Basically, we’re saving lives that are at risk because of maintenance gone wrong.” As his company’s history shows, the safety of the inspection itself also plays a role.

Application in Fukushima

In collaboration with Professor Hirose of the Tokyo Institute of Technology, of which HiBot was originally a spin-out, the company developed a long-reach arm with multiple limbs that was used during the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in 2016. During two weeks, the mobile robot shot videos and collected 3-D data inside the reactor building that was destroyed by a hydrogen explosion after the 2011 tsunami. Thus, the specialists remotely controlled the inspection of the plant by sending high-level commands in real time. The data obtained from the mission impressed with an unprecedented level of detail, and facilitated the planning and control of the subsequent debris removal.

Because of the radioactive contamination, it was not possible to use personnel for this important work. The fact that the drives and electronics also had to be protected from the radiation—and were therefore housed at the base of the manipulator—explains the high radiation levels.

Navigating through debris: The Float Arm was deployed with a crane to inspect several locations in the destroyed reactor building in Fukushima.

Multi-layer inspection

Based on the Fukushima application, HiBot developed its slim and lightweight Float Arm. Unlike conventional, bulky manipulators, it can be assembled easily on different platforms or cranes, and operated in confined spaces. Up to 7.5 meters long, its ingenious design resembles the tendons of a human hand. Moreover, several patents are pending for its unique weight compensation concept.

The basic version is equipped with an inspection camera with a strong optical zoom, an ultrasonic probe, a 3-D sensor and navigation cameras distributed along the body. Depending on the application, these can be replaced by others such as infrared cameras or simple maintenance tools. This means that the Float Arm can also fulfill inspection-related tasks: from the cleaning or coating of fuel tanks to the ultrasonic inspection of pipes in high racks and the visual inspection of pressure vessels, for example.

The data obtained with the help of multiple sensors supports navigation—which is also possible semi-autonomously—and the building of 3-D models of the assets. This makes pre-planned inspection missions safer and faster.

HiBot also designed a specific Float Arm for aircraft inspection.

Up to the amphibian-like robot

Speed in particular is an important criterion in aviation. Michele Guarnieri explains: “We are currently developing a specific Float Arm for aircraft inspection. Whether for moving around in the fuselage, in the fuel tanks of the wings or inside other confined spaces, this inspection arm represents a cost-effective alternative to conventional, time-consuming inspection jigs.”

The demand for efficient and reliable inspection equipment is also high in other industries. The CEO estimates the market for non-destructive testing and inspection to be worth $12.6 billion per year by 2024. For example, HiBot is currently also developing amphibious robots for harsh environments such as flooded pipes or boiler pipes. The team, which now consists of more than 30 employees, is also experimenting with a very slim, crawling inspector. The Squid, for example, was designed for use in 50-millimeter pipes in the chemical industry.

Data analysis with artificial intelligence

Because a modern tool is not enough for today’s MRO requirements, a smart platform combines the field robots with smart services. HiBox allows users to visualize, analyze and process inspected data making use of machine learning to identify defects autonomously. However, the virtual tool goes beyond the software aspect and provides a seamless integration with the hardware. As a result, autonomous navigation, robot health monitoring and other services allow the user to make full use of the robots. HiBox is used both to keep track of what has been inspected and also to compare the data obtained from the various inspection processes. This allows not only the predictive maintenance of infrastructure, but also the condition-based monitoring of the robots.

A single-source turnkey system like that speeds up MRO work, and the creation of reports in the first place optimizes those qualities. Michele Guarnieri adds: “By integrating more and more smart tools, the HiBox model will evolve step by step.” In addition, the Tokyo robotics specialists will soon be launching a business model for Robot-as-a-Service, including real-time support worldwide.

Float Arm – inspection of infrastructures simultaneously with visual and ultrasonic sensors.

Positioning of up to 16 axes

Whilst using sophisticated technologies such as the control of snake-like robots, SLAM or sensor fusion, HiBot relies exclusively on maxon drives. Hiroshi Ito, project engineer at maxon Japan, recalls: “During years of testing, the HiBot team was convinced by the precision, reliability and the wide product range of maxon drives. To guarantee a reasonable reach and mobility, the drives—like the Float Arm itself—have to be light and compact, but deliver a relatively high torque at the same time.” Depending on the distance to be reached, a Float Arm consists of ten to 16 axes, which are positioned by brushless motors of the types EC 9.2 flat, EC 20 flat, EC 32 flat and EC 45 flat.

One of the main challenges was to integrate the electronics into the frame without affecting its mass and balance, so that the Float Arm can work without restriction. Appropriate here, though unintentionally so, is a statement by the Swiss aphorist Walter Fürst: “The feasible begins where your arm ends.” And this, of course, concerns the arm of the human commander.

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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AGVs (automated guided vehicles) are essential tools in the current commercial and industrial transformation. But what challenges do they need to address?

The AGV market: why are we seeing such a boom today?

Back in the 1950s, car manufacturers used guided vehicles in their factories to distribute mechanical parts. Since then, different methods have been developed to move these motorized robots on demand. There are now around half a dozen technologies used in these vehicles today:

• self-guided
• line-guided
• opto-guided (by lines marked on the ground)
• geo-guided
• laser guided
• or even guided by ultrasound.

All of these are now grouped under the AGV umbrella. This market currently represents EUR 550 million, primarily within Europe, and could reach EUR 1.35 billion by 2023. Its rapid growth is due in particular to e-commerce companies, where the technology is developing exponentially. Therefore their priority is to continually optimize their internal logistics processing in order to organize the company and ensure increasingly fast deliveries. Amazon was one of the first to integrate AGV technology by creating its own smart vehicles. Manufacturers are also using this method in their automated warehouses, where AGVs address the issue of compact size in particular.

These intralogistic robots are also being used more and more in the area of goods-to-person logistics, where AGVs transport objects and heavy loads directly to human workers. This way of working is known as cobotics – a collaboration between humans and robots. And AGVs provide an optimized response by taking over strenuous and repetitive tasks.

Why do AGVs provide the perfect answer to challenges in logistics?

With the development of e-commerce, logistics services now need new solutions. AGVs address all the challenges that arise within a distribution chain:

• First and foremost, they increase productivity, speed and quality by allowing the operators to process larger volumes of goods, all while offering reliability. This approach is more than 30% faster compared to humans working alone, and there are fewer errors. Therefore companies are able to consistently fulfill their orders more quickly, and at the same time offer greater safety for people and goods.
• AGVs enable better working conditions with their mechanical assistance, which helps to significantly reduce musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and accidents in the workplace. This is the overall purpose of cobotics (collaborative robotics): the cobots alleviate physical discomfort in human workers without preventing them from performing their activities.
• They also enable space savings in warehouses due to better organization and optimization of space. This offers a huge real estate advantage at a time when every square meter saved represents a financial gain over several years.

In terms of production, the return on investment can be seen over one or two years.

Manufacturers/designers of AGVs: what are the technical constraints and challenges of the sector?

Before being able to address the needs of their customers, in logistics especially, manufacturers have to tackle the technical constraints. AGVs must offer long-term reliability and robustness so they can function without any need for maintenance for at least two years in order to optimize the profitability of warehouses. Bear in mind that any downtimes result in a chain reaction that can lead to huge financial losses.

• See also: The 5 essential points for motorizing an AGV

AGVs must also be compact to allow their owners to occupy smaller warehouses and lower their operating costs. Smaller yet still capable of transporting heavy loads, AGVs must offer substantial power density. The challenge of miniaturization for space savings and drive systems  for efficiency and robustness is therefore fundamental.

maxon – serving AGV manufacturers and designers

Optimizing space

maxon develops compact motors offering high torque and speed density, such as EC Flat and ECi. These compact motors also consume less energy than other products on the market. This is a powerful argument for manufacturers that need to reduce their costs and address the challenges imposed by energy transition.

Operating efficient communication buses

To address maintenance challenges, the motors with integrated electronics installed in the AGVs must be network-connected. The communication buses of motors from the IDX range are able to communicate simultaneously with the EtherCAT and CANopen systems and on IoT networks. Therefore, these robots can be programmed by computer and operated remotely, meaning that a single intervention is required to control the entire fleet of AGVs.

Specific mechatronic developments

Compact size, multi-axis systems, power density, specific protection ratings… Depending on your project, there are multiple requirements and finding adapted mechatronic solutions is not always easy. From defining the specifications to designing the products, maxon’s specialist mechatronics team supports you by providing sound knowledge and expertise in the development of customized projects. Our technicians remain available following implementation to deliver ongoing technical support. Contact our mechatronics experts.

In order to offer AGV designers maximum freedom, the maxon Group has developed an entire range of compact and modular motors. These IDX drive solutions meet the most demanding requirements: offering 20% higher performance compared with the current solutions on the market, the safe, modular and easy-to-configure motors meet all your drive needs.

To find out more about the IDX, visit idx.maxongroup.com

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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driven also looks at an inspiring application for children with walking disabilities, developed by a Canadian company. Additionally, maxon employees tell us about the challenges they faced when the demand for motors in medical devices skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

maxon’s driven magazine features interesting application stories, interviews, and news from the world of drive technology. The current issue is available online and can also be ordered in print, free of charge: magazine.maxongroup.com

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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Outer space is unforgiving. This is why precision drives embarking on a trip to other planets need to meet extremely high quality standards.

Every Mars drive from maxon is based on a catalog product and is modified for the specific mission. That’s because the DC motors, gearheads, and encoders face brutal conditions during liftoff, the long journey through space, and the mission on the Red Planet. In this blog, I will talk about the properties a drive needs to have to qualify for a journey to Mars.

Vibration and shock
The first challenge is to survive the rocket launch. This means that the motor must be resistant to shock and vibration. The vibration is not as strong as people might think: A little more than on a passenger plane, but not much more, and only for a few minutes. Shocks, on the other hand, are something that we need to deal with on a regular basis when working with standard products. These occur mainly during staging, which is when the first stage separates from the rest of the rocket. The resulting forces would destroy normal motors because the rotor would become separated from the stator. That’s why we need to reinforce our drives, for example by encapsulating the rotor and using special welds, special retaining rings, and optimized materials.

Vacuum and radiation
The trip to Mars takes about six months. During this time, the drives need to survive the vacuum and radiation. The most damaging radiation doesn’t come from the Sun, but from high-energy particles from outside the solar system, which can damage the electronics. That’s why we need specially hardened electronics for the Hall sensors on the motors. To be extra safe, we’re installing them in pairs for redundancy. In a vacuum, the durability of components is important. You can’t use a glue that undergoes changes in its chemical properties and loses its adhesiveness after a few days in a vacuum.

Weight reduction
Rockets can carry only a limited mass to other planets. To be as light as possible, we also resort to unusual shapes and use thinner housings, or titanium instead of steel. We also often use the smallest possible drive sizes, because we know that the operating time required is usually shorter than for industrial applications. Higher wear is therefore acceptable.

Atmosphere of Mars
After arriving, the motor must work flawlessly for the entire duration of the mission: Due to the thin atmosphere, the lubricants need to be resistant to outgassing and need to retain their properties. Especially for brushed DC motors, it is also necessary to use the right brush mixture. No patina forms on Mars, which is why we developed special brushes impregnated with a lubricant (silver graphite with 15% MoS2). That’s one of the most important modifications, because regular brushed motors fail after only a few hours in a vacuum.

Quality tests
While drives used on Earth are also tested, there are limits to those tests due to financial considerations. This is different with a Mars mission, where any kind of risk is unacceptable. Here it pays to test every single component. We also test every assembly, and the tests are comprehensively documented. This is how we prove to our customer that the motor is exactly as we promised. The models used on mission must be identical to the units that were qualified, because these were exposed to the same strains in tests as in real life. They were put on a shaker, exposed to temperature cycles, and subjected to durability tests. If the drives pass all these tests, then we can be confident that the design is good. The only remaining step is to build all the other drives in the exact same way—hence all the documentation. The process takes a lot of effort, but it’s worth it: The history of space missions shows that anything that’s overlooked will cause problems—and outer space is unforgiving.

Learn more about maxon’s contribution to the current NASA Perseverance mission: mars.maxonworld.com

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

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Years of collaboration between maxon and the space experts at JPL led to the development of the BLDC motors which handle the valuable soil samples on Mars during the Perseverance mission. Meet maxon’s specialists behind those actuators and find out what drives them.

Was there once life on Mars? To answer this question, NASA has sent its Perseverance rover to take soil samples that will later be brought back to Earth. This mission is the culmination of an incredible amount of preparation, hardwork, and the latest technology.

Inside the rover, 10 maxon drives handle the valuable Mars samples, which will then be placed on the Red Planet, where they will be retrieved and brought back to Earth by a future mission. The drives used are nine EC 32 flat motors and one EC 20 flat, combined with a planetary gearhead GP 22 UP. In addition, six DCX 10 motors are responsible for controlling the swashplates on the Mars helicopter, meaning that they determine the direction of flight.

The Red Planet still continues to fascinate. That is confirmed by the statements of the people at maxon involved in these projects. Here are their stories:

“I have a good feeling about everything functioning well on Mars”

Denise Hüglin, Production Mechanic in Prototyping
“I couldn’t have asked for a better job,» says Denise. This is because her work in prototyping never becomes boring – regardless if it is for an aerospace, medical or robotics project.

But of course space drives are something special. Everything is more extensive: the processes, the tests, and the documentation. Additionally, Denise and her colleagues shoulder a great responsibility. But the team is capable of handling great pressure, have worked on the Mars projects of ESA and NASA for many years, and have grown together to become a small family.

This gives Denise a very good feeling about everything functioning well on Mars. «I am thankful that I have the chance to work on products that fly to foreign worlds. Not many people get that opportunity.”

“Inspiration doesn’t come from a blank sheet of paper”

Robin Phillips, Head of SpaceLab
“I believe that inspiration doesn’t come from a blank sheet of paper. That’s why I have collected a lot of interesting motors and components at my workstation. It was one of these components that gave me the key idea for the brushless drive that is now used in NASA’s Perseverance rover. This vehicle will collect samples on Mars, and our motors will handle those samples. So they are critical for the success of the mission. Yes, it makes me proud to contribute to something that will help humanity learn about the solar system in which we all live. Space missions are the expeditions of discovery of our time, and can only be achieved with the highest technical standards. Our precision drives often carry out important tasks on such missions. Mistakes are not an option, and that’s what makes it exciting. As head of the SpaceLab, I’m always on the lookout for new technologies for our company. I also work to create an environment for people where they can do their work as perfectly as possible. Happily, we at maxon are getting better all the time in that regard. We used to simply deliver the drives with the specified modifications and the customers were responsible for what happened next. We now have expertise in space applications and have established quality assurance processes that meet the expectations of the industry. Customers from other industries where requirements can be just as demanding, like the medical sector, also benefit from this know-how. Space projects require a lot of patience. I’ve been doing my job for more than ten years, but it’s only now that my drives are slowly coming into use. That makes it all the more satisfying when everything works.”

“Mission: perfect gearheads”

Hannah Kleeblatt, Quality Engineer – Projects
“On space projects, quality engineer Hannah has even more to do than for other applications. She writes complex inspection plans, detailed documentation, and grants approvals after conducting extensive inspections of the products and documents. In the case of the drives for Mars missions, an added factor is that the customers scrutinize everything: work steps, materials, and manufacturing methods. This is why Hannah describes such projects as an enormous opportunity for her and for maxon. The potential for learning is huge. And sometimes unconventional solutions have to be embraced. Like the time Hannah and her colleagues inspected internal gear flanges for NASA Mars gearheads – millimeter by millimeter, with an endoscope that they acquired from a nearby medical company.”

“Getting passionate about Mars”

Dominik Frey, Project Manager – Gearhead Development
“Dominik has a strong attraction to Space projects, especially due to their complex requirements. As a project manager, he always has the needs of the customer in mind. At the same time, he coordinates all the departments involved – from design, to purchasing, to quality control and production – to find the optimal solution. Just like a space researcher, he sometimes encounters uncharted territory, pushing to the limits of what is possible and beyond. In such situations, he appreciates the fact that maxon gives him the freedom to get involved in technical matters and make a difference. His design ideas have already been applied in space applications – so it’s understandable that he follows the progress of the Mars missions with passion.”

“For me, projects like the Mars-helicopter are a dream come true”

Florbela Costa. SpaceLab Project Manager
“I can’t wait till the first helicopter from NASA flies on Mars. As a technical project manager in Aerospace, I was responsible for the DC motors used to control the helicopter, in its swashplate to be exact. For me, projects like these are a dream come true. Especially in cases such as this, when we’re able to meet the tight deadlines and our products get positive results in all the qualification tests. It makes me very proud to be part of such an incredible operation. Something like this can only be done by many people working together, of course. In my role, I act as a link between the customer and the various departments at maxon. I make sure we meet requirements—in terms of quality, deadlines, and cost. I like being in contact with all the people involved at maxon, from development through to production. I also like space projects, as the aerospace industry has always fascinated me. They are different from other applications, above all because of their generally higher quality requirements for things like resistance to vibration and temperature. Consequently, everything needs to be analyzed and tested. Parts used in our standard motors are reevaluated to make absolutely certain that they will function in space or on other planets. It’s a lot of work, but it’s worth it.”

“Our drive has to work, otherwise the entire mission could fail”

Dominik Omlin, Production Engineer Aerospace
“When making motors for Mars, nearly everything has to be done by hand. Every move and every assembly step have to be documented and has to be right—we can’t afford to make mistakes. We’re working with materials that you can’t just get from the warehouse. At the back of my mind, I’m aware that on Mars there is no way to fix things. Our drive has to work, otherwise the entire mission could fail. So we talk to each other about everything, discuss the next steps, and work with strict double checking by a second person. Our team in Special Production assembles motors and drive combinations for space applications. But not only that. We also handle orders for the medical sector, robotics, and other industries. Every project is different, so we have broad knowledge of the maxon motor range. As an aerospace production engineer, I have many tasks. These include creating detailed process descriptions, producing the drives, training employees, and working closely together with the engineering department. Sometimes I’ll spend several hours in the cleanroom, where the motors are protected from particles. I can concentrate on my work there. That’s not always easy when you have someone looking over your shoulder—which was the case for the Mars 2020 project. The specialists from JPL, our client, worked closely with us and visited us at our headquarters several times. We discussed the challenges with them and worked together to find solutions. Yes, I am proud to be a small part of these space missions. I can see how very grateful the customers are for what we do. That makes the work even more satisfying.”

“Outside our comfort zones is where we develop”

Kathrin Tschersich, Head of Project Sample Assembly
“Kathrin highly values the fact that, in her work, one day is never like any other. With her project sample assembly team, she makes individual gearheads or systems that consist of motor, gearhead, encoder, and more. There are always challenges, no matter whether it is a project for a space application, medical technology or industrial use. But from a technical and organizational perspective, her team has never learned as much as they did during the Mars rover project of the European Space Agency (ESA), for which maxon is supplying complete drive units. «These space projects show me that you can only grow if you leave your own comfort zone. It fills me with pride to know that products that have passed through my hands will one day be in action on Mars.”

“We push the limits of what’s possible”

Aiko Stenzel, Aerospace Design Engineer
“For the last seven years, I’ve had the privilege of building brushed DC motors for various Mars missions. It all started with the ExoMars project for the ESA, where I was responsible for 13 different drives. These included the innovative wheel drive on the rover, which can lift its wheels on rocky terrain. We developed a new, purely magnetic cogging torque brake for that. The idea is to stop the rover rolling down slopes. However, the most exciting project so far was the Mars helicopter for NASA. I had the opportunity of developing a maxon DCX 10 drive for control of the rotor blades. Six of these small direct current motors were needed. The biggest challenge was the extreme weight requirement. We had to take off every tenth of a gram we could, so that the helicopter can fly in the thin atmosphere on Mars. It’s great that we were able to find a solution with enough power to adjust the rotor blades, despite the weight reduction—and which could handle all the vibration and temperature fluctuations as well. The main difference between space drives and ones on Earth is that we push the limits of what’s possible: in the engineering, the materials, and the processes. For example, we developed a special hardening process for the manufacture of shafts, to make them tougher. On top of that, there is always a lot of documentation required: detailed bills of materials, weight specifications, center of gravity calculations, surface area calculations for plastic parts, etc. It’s good that many other customers can also benefit from our experiences in the space sector. For instance, we developed special welding techniques for the Mars drives which are now being used in our standard commercial production. The maxon catalog will soon also include the magnetic holding brakes that we designed for ExoMars. Pretty cool, right?”

Making sure all gears mesh

Thilo Pfaff, Production Engineer – Drives
“Where precision drives for the aerospace industry are concerned, perfect interaction of clearly and thoroughly documented work processes, systems, operating materials, equipment, and human resources is the key to success. The aim is to keep production as efficient and reliable as possible. This is the world where, as a production engineer, Thilo feels at home. He takes care of all factors that are required for smooth production and ensures that the respective standards are observed. The colleagues in
assembly know how the different work steps look and to what they have to pay special attention – for example with regard to safety or when building the drives. Thilo loves it when he can explain to his colleagues why a standard, the process steps or the precautionary measures are important and what is behind it. The fact that he is contributing to a successful Mars
mission additionally fuels his passion for his work.”

Mars2020

Learn more about maxon’s contribution to the current NASA Perseverance mission: mars.maxonworld.com

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

The post The people behind the Mars drives appeared first on The Robot Report.

Mars once had liquid water and an atmosphere—was there life too? To answer this fundamental question, NASA sends the Perseverance rover, a robot of unparalleled complexity.

Mars missions may seem to be routine now, yet it’s still the case that only a few craft make it to the planet’s surface intact. The European Space Agency (ESA) had a painful demonstration of that in 2016 when their lander Schiaparelli smashed into pieces on the Red Planet. Nevertheless, the US space agency NASA has already successfully brought four robotic vehicles to Mars in the past. And with the fifth rover, Perseverance, which landed on Mars on February 18, 2021, history was made once again.

It will still take a while, however, before people land on Mars. This is why robots need to do the work for now, and Perseverance has quite a lot of it in store. It landed in the Jezero Crater, which was once filled with water, with the task of investigating whether the area was once habitable. At the same time, the rover will search for signs of earlier life, known as biosignatures. It is equipped with a variety of measuring instruments for this purpose.

Its third task is to pave the way for human missions with a technology demonstration: An instrument named MOXIE will extract oxygen from the small amount present in the Martian atmosphere. This technology would be crucial for human missions, as oxygen is not only required for breathing, but can also be used for making fuel.

The secret of life

We now come to the fourth mission, the most spectacular and most technically demanding: Perseverance will take up to 30 soil samples, place them in individual vessels, seal the vessels, and then finally deposit them at a suitable location so a later mission can collect the samples and bring them back to Earth. For scientists, it doesn’t get much better than this: getting clean samples from Mars and being able to investigate them here, with all the latest techniques available. As NASA puts it, these samples have the potential to tell us more about the basis and origin of life in our solar system.

The Perseverance rover is equipped with ten brushless DC motors: nine EC 32 flat and one EC 20 flat in combination with a GP 22 UP planetary gearhead.

Three systems have to work together seamlessly for the sampling to succeed. First, the big robotic arm at the front of the rover drills into the Martian rock and takes a core sample, which is then inserted into a carousel. The carousel takes the sample inside the rover. There, the third system takes over. It is another robotic arm, a much smaller one called SHA. This arm takes the sample from the carousel, moves it to the volume assessment and scanning stations, then to the sealing station, and finally into temporary storage—all autonomously.

This is where maxon comes in. Several BLDC motors are being used to handle the samples. Some of them are installed in the SHA robotic arm, which transports the samples from station to station; others are used when sealing the sample tubes and positioning them.

The key to success is still the same

Just like the more than 100 maxon drives that have previously done work on Mars, the Perseverance motors are based on standard catalog products: specifically, nine brushless DC motors of the EC 32 flat type and one of the EC 20 flat type, in combination with a GP 22 UP planetary gearhead. Naturally, modifications were required so that the drives could meet the high demands of the mission. Nevertheless, the basis of the drives is no different from the models that are used in all kinds of applications on Earth.

maxon’s engineers have modified and repeatedly tested the motors and gearheads for three years, working closely with the specialists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which handles all unmanned missions for NASA. The space experts from Pasadena were frequent visitors at the Swiss headquarters of the electric motor experts. “We’ve learned a lot from this collaboration,” said Robin Phillips, head of the maxon SpaceLab. This can be seen specifically in higher quality standards and new test procedures and processes. “Customers from other industries, like the medical sector, where requirements are often similar, also benefit from this know-how.”

Phillips and his team pay close attention to Perseverance’s activities, as much depends on the functioning of the maxon drives. In his words, “We are involved in absolutely critical applications. If the robotic arm on which our BLDC motors are mounted doesn’t move, or if the gripper doesn’t work, then the entire mission will be a failure.”

The mission

Perseverance will search for signs of earlier life (biosignatures) on Mars, take rock and soil samples, and prepare them for return to Earth. It will also conduct experiments to pave the way for human missions.

The journey
Launch vehicle: Atlas V-401
Launch site: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida (USA)
Landing date: February 18, 2021
Landing site: Jezero Crater

The facts
Planned duration of mission: At least one Martian year (687 Earth days
Weight: 1025 kilograms
Length: 3 meters
Height: 2.2 meters

Read more in the full Driven Magazine.

The post In search of signs of life on Mars appeared first on The Robot Report.