What Can Schunk Grippers Do For You!

+Vantage Corporation is always committed to providing you with the systems and capabilities you need to get the most efficiency from your manufacturing process. Here, we want to highlight one of our most valuable partnerships.

Schunk is the industry leader for toolholding and workholding. With 9 plants and 34 subsidiaries spread across 50 countries, they share the Vantage values of being available wherever their customers are. Schunk produces a wide array of gripping systems, many of which we use, and any of which can be integrated depending on the needs of your bespoke system.

Schunk grippers use pneumatic or mechatronic actuation to provide their gripping force, and come in numerous configurations.Options include parallel, centric, radial and even dry adhesion based technologies for delicate handling.

Schunk products use standardized ISO flanges for easy connection to the FANUC robotic armatures +Vantage uses for our robotic handling systems, allowing for simple installation or change out of grippers as necessary for changing assembly lines. Their electrical connections are likewise handled through an M8 socket, M12 socket, individual wiring or through an integrated KUKA media flange.

Applications

Universal Pick and Place

Schunk grippers come in numerous sizes and varieties. Their EGH series is ideal for those seeking a flexible solution without the need to change out gripper heads every time a new product comes through the line. Schunk’s EGH grippers offer a universal solution, and the flexible fingers on the EGH allow you to easily change the gripper actuation for new components on the fly.

These units also feature LED strips which can be programmed for function-specific colors through the FANUC. Through the use of our 3-axis, 6-axis and rail-mounted 7-axis robotic systems, universal grippers provide a foundation for a flexible, resilient pick and place system.

Automotive

Schunk and Vantage make for a known, trusted team in the world of automotive manufacturing. Vantage is already well experienced in automotive assembly, with bespoke automation cells designed for inspection, transfer, press automation, and even specific equipment designed for powertrain manufacturing automation. For these systems, Schunk’s wide array of parallel and central grippers are up to the task.

The usage of automation increases safety, and the combination of FANUC robots and Schunk products offer unparalleled security when moving engine blocks and other heavy components. Schunk PGN Plus 2 grippers can be used to move an engine block through a single robot, in concert with their built-in collision protection system.

+Vantage has already developed custom automation solutions for connecting rod inspection. Similarly, Schunk has leveraged their gripping technology (see Page 44) to build fixtures to grab and move connecting rods despite their non standard geometry. A PGN Plus Universal Gripper provides the foundation for a solution purpose built to handle connecting rods. Schunk and Vantage follow the same philosophy of purpose-built solutions to meet your needs.

Micromachining

Not all machining is large and heavy, and sometimes a delicate grip solution is required. This is true in biomedical manufacturing of medication and healthcare supplies, or in the semiconductor production environments.In applications where one must contend with delicate components and impossibly small tolerances, we can also leverage products like Schunk’s MPZ Miniature Gripper.

This component is designed for products like needles and microprocessors, with redundancy to ensure the gripper remains closed in case of a loss of pneumatic pressure. The MPZ grippers use H1G food safe lubricants, safe for usage in pharmaceutical and medical production environments.

Contact Us

Do you think a +Vantage automated system built using Schunk gripping technology is the right choice for your process? Contact us today, and our dedicated engineering team will reach out to you. Additionally, read through our infographic on the +Vantage Process and see how building a system with +Vantage ensures a custom designed system built specifically for your needs.