2023 New Product of the Year Award Winners
At The 2023 ASSEMBLY Show a total of 20 products were nominated across five categories. Check out the incredible 2023 New Product of the Year category winners below!
Assembly Machines & Systems
Self-Adjusting Tooling for Flexible Automated Assembly
This custom automated assembly system for military-grade products has the flexibility to process hundreds of part variants with no manual changeover required. Servo-actuated nests, tools, fixtures and robotic grippers with pressure-sensing feedback allow for immediate and automatic changeover between part variants. The automated flexibility is even more impressive considering the complexity and precision of the processes to assemble the product. A high-speed delta robot picks components from a custom multi-lane feeding system that uses coin-change singulation and automated inspection. Pins measuring just 1 millimeter across are automatically de-reeled and stitched into housings in precise locations. The final product is laser marked and coated with lubricant before final pack-out.
https://msautomation.com
Adhesives, Dispensing & Curing
Adhesive Assembles ADAS Components
Loctite Ablestik NCA 01UV is formulated for assembly of high-resolution cameras and lidar modules for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). This active alignment adhesive is cured in a single step with just 3 seconds of exposure to UV LED light, eliminating the need for oven curing to save time, energy and CO₂ emissions.
With low and consistent dimensional change of 0.4 percent during cure, this adhesive can be used to assemble high-resolution camera modules. No outgassing from volatile compounds ensures high image quality and no fogging of optical components. It is free of CMT, SVHC, or any toxic substances and fully EU REACH-compliant.
www.henkel-adhesives.com
Fastening Tools
Transducerized Cordless Screwdriver
This programmable, transducerized cordless screwdriver delivers precise torque control. Model DFT060TMZ has a torque range of 2 to 6 newton-meters. Model DFT120TMZ has a torque range of 4 to 12 newton-meters. The tool is equipped with an efficient Makita-built brushless motor, with a no-load speed of 400 to 1,300 rpm. Including the battery, the tool weighs just 2.4 pounds. A built-in LED light illuminates the work surface for better visibility in low-light environments.
The tool automatically shuts off when a preset torque is reached, and it provides both visual and audible feedback on each fastening operation. A USB connection allows for six-stage programming of both direction and speed control throughout the fastening process. The tools are certified for a repeatability of ±4 percent of mean torque.
The tool is powered by a 14.4-volt lithium-ion battery for extended run time and a greater number of lifetime charge cycles. The tool is automatically disabled once battery capacity drops below 5 percent. The battery recharges in only 30 minutes.
https://makitaassemblytools.com/
Robotics
AI for Robot Guidance
MIRAI is a new control system that enables robots to handle variance in shape, position, color and light conditions in the work space. Using AI, MIRAI generates robot movements in real time and can respond automatically to movements of the target object. MIRAI takes control of the first and last centimeters of the robot’s path, eliminating the need for rigid fixturing of parts.
MIRAI also simplifies the task of robot programming. Robots equipped with MIRAI are able to learn many tasks through observation, so they can easily be trained and retrained for various process steps. No knowledge of programming or AI is required.
The system consists of a MIRAI controller; a six-axis robot (supplied by FANUC or Universal Robots); a force-torque sensor; an end effector; a camera (supplied by Micropsi Industries); and a ring-light.
MIRAI augments the robot’s native controller, enabling the machine to perceive its work environment. Through AI, MIRAI-enabled robots observe actions performed by a person and then imitate those actions. Observations are recorded by a camera attached to the robot’s wrist or situated at a fixed position proximate to the workspace. To train the robot, a person performs and records repeated demonstrations of a task by manually guiding the robot by the robot’s wrist. The recordings are then transformed into a vision-based, real-time robot control schema.
https://www.micropsi-industries.com/
Factory of the Future
Software Creates Work Instructions from PLM Data
Product lifecycle management (PLM) software is the single source of truth for all product data. PLM underpins the digital thread, informs other core systems such as ERP and MES, and ensures critical business processes are managed and optimized according to the most current data.
Manufacturers now need to make that data truly work for them, by extending the digital thread to the front line workers responsible for production and output. Canvas Envision integrates with Aras Innovator PLM, enabling anyone within an organization to create and consume interactive digital instructional documents that leverage up-to-the minute design data.
Design engineering generates huge volumes of data. PLM does the plumbing; it keeps track of versions, sends data to the right places, and is great at orchestrating workflows. And it lets engineers visualize 3D CAD. But PLM won’t let manufacturers take the 10 or 15 other sources of data it houses and rapidly aggregate them, along with CAD data, into intuitive and easy-to-consume content that meets the unique contextual requirements of all the stakeholders in manufacturing.
Canvas Envision Creator does that. It’s a powerful and easy-to-use desktop graphics application that gives everyone the ability to leverage 3D CAD models to create interactive visual documents. With Envision, manufacturers get easy to use 3D visualization combined with text layout, 2D drawing tools, vector graphics and photo editing, and a host of smart tools and features to help them visually communicate key information about their products.
https://www.canvasgfx.com/
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