Flexible gripper as a whole product

Typically, the handling grippers are only designed for a specific subassembly. If other subassemblies are to be handled, then it requires tool changing. So, setup time will increase. The robots have fixed location. If unexpected situations occur, then assembly line needs to be stopped to fix the problem. Any delay in the assembly line increases the cost of the operation. The work piece can not be exchanged between two robots directly. The goals of Flexible and Reconfigurable Gripper are To increase flexibility and re configurability of resources To reduce running cost To reduce the investment cost for new product To reduce the setup time for new models To reduce the delivery time from factory to market To reduce the MTBF (Mean Time between failure) and MTTR (Mean Time To Repair) The arms of flexible gripper have been designed as a serial robot together with the joints that can lock it automatically. The flexible gripper can change its configuration in a larger range, and most of the operation is automatically. The gripper changes its configuration through two steps. The reconfiguration flow chat of the flexible gripper is shown.