Industrial Robot Gearbox Lubrication Access Through Sealed Housing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Industrial robots with gearboxes inside the housing face difficulties in oil exchange, requiring disassembly and causing operational downtime, which is time-consuming and complicates maintenance, especially in hygienic environments.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating fluid connections in fluid communication with gearboxes behind a cover, allowing access for lubricant exchange through an opening in the housing, while maintaining a hygienic design and enabling easy lubricant exchange using a service tool.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If gearboxes are positioned inside the housing, then hygienic design is improved, but accessibility for oil exchange deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is segmented into an interior region containing the gearbox and an exterior region for service access. A cover is provided that can be selectively removed to expose fluid connections, separating the hygienic interior from the accessible exterior while maintaining both functions.
Solution Approach 2:
Fluid connections act as intermediaries between the interior gearbox and the exterior service tool. These connections allow lubricant exchange without direct access to the gearbox itself, enabling maintenance while preserving the sealed hygienic environment.
2Volume of moving object
If gearboxes are positioned inside the housing, then compact design is improved, but maintenance time increases
Solution Approach 1:
Fluid connections are pre-positioned and accessible through the opening in the housing, allowing service tools to connect directly to the gearbox lubricant system without requiring disassembly of the robot structure. This preliminary arrangement of access points dramatically reduces maintenance time.
Solution Approach 2:
The lubricant exchange function is extracted from the gearbox assembly and made accessible through separate fluid connections. This allows the lubricant system to be serviced independently without disassembling the gearbox or motor, reducing maintenance time while maintaining compact integration.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If electric motors and gearboxes are located inside the housing, then hygienic environment compliance is improved, but accessibility for maintenance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The robot system is segmented into a sealed interior region containing motors and gearboxes for hygienic compliance, and an exterior region providing maintenance access. The cover and opening create a boundary that maintains hygiene during operation while enabling maintenance access when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
Fluid connections serve as intermediaries that bridge the sealed interior and exterior environments. These connections allow maintenance personnel to service the lubricant system without breaking the hygienic seal of the housing, maintaining compliance while enabling repair.
Data Source
AI summary
An industrial robot having a plurality of joints; a plurality of links arranged to be driven in motion by the joints; a housing including the links, an opening and a cover for selectably closing the opening, the housing defining an interior region and an exterior region of the industrial robot; and for at least one joint, a kinematic device associated with the joint and positioned in the interior region, and at least one fluid connection in fluid communication with the kinematic device, each fluid connection being arranged to supply lubricant to, or to receive lubricant from, the kinematic device and being accessible from the exterior region through the opening when the cover is removed for connecting a service tool to the fluid connection. A system having an industrial robot and a service tool is also provided.