TM Robotics, has announced the highly-competitive strength of the THL SCARA robot arm. The Toshiba Machine robot design team has collaborated closely with an aluminium extrusion supplier to calculate and evaluate the mechanical strength of the arm. The process has validated the extrusion arm strength, to levels comparable with heavier die cast robot arms.

Leveraging high-grade aluminium with defined mechanical strength, the design team at Toshiba Machine Japan used this physical data and factored in the profile dimensions of the extrusion cross section. This data was used to validate the robot arm’s strength, when compared to traditional die cast alternatives. These tests examined flexibility and torsion, to ensure the robot arm can meet performance requirements.

The THL range is part of Toshiba Machine’s extensive SCARA range. Using an aluminium extrusion arm for this model means it is equally as strong as cast aluminium alternatives, but much lighter is weight. This provides the industry with light-weight, low-cost and low-energy SCARA robots, with reduced long-term production costs.

“The use of aluminium for the THL range is a win-win for distributors and customers,” explained Nigel Smith, managing director at TM Robotics. “Some of our distributors have struggled to believe the cheaper THL robots are as strong as the TH series, but the design and testing results speak for themselves. The THL range offers a 55 per cent weight reduction compared with existing models, and up to 70 per cent reduction in power consumption, all without compromising on strength.

“It’s great when we can pass on a cost saving to our customers, not only in terms of initial investment cost, but over the robots entire lifetime.  This makes the THL series is ideal for budget conscious buyers.”