Industrial Automation and Motion Control Blog | The Knotts Company

Topics: cost savings, manufacturing, cost effective, industrial automation nj/ny, automation solutions, intelligent actuator

Topics: cost savings, manufacturing, cost effective, automation solutions, robotics

Topics: cost savings, technology, improvement, knotts company, customer service, sales process, sales tools

Topics: cost savings, automation solutions, robotics, improvement, electric cylinder, automation

Editor's Note: This is a post from Justin Sanford, a Strategic Account Manager at The Knotts Company.

Topics: cost savings, aluminum extrusion in nj, steel frame

There are a few things to consider when specifying the correct air cylinder for the right job so you maximize performance and longevity, while giving you lower operating costs for the duration of your application.

Here are a few points to consider in the selection of air cylinders:

1. Weight- What is the weight of the load that you need to move? Select a force factor that is 25% greater than the load to help compensate for friction.
2. Speed- How fast will you be moving the load? When you have higher speeds you will need to increase your force factor to move the load quicker. Depending on speed and weight the force factor could be as much as twice or greater than the load itself.
3. Air Pressure- This is critical for the proper performance and getting the most life out of an air cylinder. Too low of a pressure and your load won’t be moved efficiently or speed requirements not met. Too high of a pressure creates stress on the cylinder and could possibly damage the cylinder as well as the load.
4. Bore Size- Select the correct bore size to determine your force factor at your selected pressure. There are charts available to assist in this selection from the manufacturers or you can consult with your Automation Specialist.
5. Mounts- How a cylinder gets mounted affects the performance and life expectancy. By selecting the correct cylinder mount you will optimize cylinder strength, efficiency and alignment. Selecting the correct Pivot or Rigid mounting style will help you avoid side load problems which are the major cause of cylinder failure.

Interested in a Cylinder?

Topics: cost savings, air cylinder, bimba

Welcome to Automation 101, a weekly "tips and tricks" post where we will discuss technologies and programming of today's top automation products.

Topics: cost savings, manufacturing, industrial automation nj/ny, technology, automation control, electric cylinder, motion control

It is becoming an increasing important question when building automated machines. What is best for my application? Pneumatic or Electric actuator.  Both actuators have their pros and cons.  When it comes down to it, there are a handful of reasons why to use one over another.

While they are different as night and day, the way you size them is very similar.  You just need to know some basic information to start the decision process.

• Load
• Speed or cycle time
• Stroke

Once you know this information you can size your cylinder as needed.  Beyond that information, air and electric start to differ.

Air will never be replaced.  No matter what anyone says, air does have its place and it has some key features that eclectic just can’t match up to.

• Speed
• Power
• Size
• Simplicity

To get an air cylinder to move faster, the air flow needs to be increase.  The size of the unit versus the power it puts out can’t even be matched by an electric cylinder.  If all you need is two points then air is the way to go and simple compared to electric.

Like air, electric cylinders do have their merits.

• Multiple Positions
• Overall Cost
• Acceleration and deceleration
• Accuracy and Repeatability
  

These are just a few aspects that air can’t match electric.  With an electric cylinder, you have complete control over the acceleration and deceleration. An application example for acceleration and deceleration is handling of liquids or fragile materials.  Electric cylinders give you the ability to program and control multiple positions with high accuracy and repeatability.  And last, there is the ‘Green’ factor.  The overall operating cost of electric can be anywhere from 1/3 to 1/10 the cost of air.  

So overall they both have their benefits over each other and it really comes down to if it fits the application.  If they both fit the application, then it really just comes down to what the user prefers as well as the application.  Air or electric?

Topics: cost savings, manufacturing, cost effective, industrial automation nj/ny, technology, electric cylinder, air cylinder, knotts company

On May 23, we started designing a t-slotted aluminum safety enclosure for a specified work envelope. (If you need a quick refresher, head over to Part One)

Now that the overall structure has been designed, we can move to the next step. We will now go through the process of adding the doors and additional hardware that is required.

Designing the Doors.

As stated in the job requirements, we need two doors on opposite sides.  Doors help give maintenance access without requiring disassembly. 

Topics: cost savings, cost effective, aluminum extrusion in nj, aluminum extrusion, t-slotted extrusion, knotts company, machine guard, assembly

The t-slotted profiles of 80/20 aluminum extrusion allow you to insert a large variety of panels.  Panel functionality can range from load bearing applications to overall aesthetics.  Choosing the correct panel for your application may be difficult, so we are going to review various scenarios based on the function of the panel.

Topics: cost savings, cost effective, industrial automation nj/ny, aluminum extrusion in nj, aluminum extrusion, assembly