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Lord Corporation

Peter G Goumas

Paul T Wolfe

Michael W Trull

Quentin J Hendricks

An accurate high speed gripper assembly for use in handling articles in an automated manufacturing process. The gripper assembly includes a pair of movable fingers which depend from movable carriages mounted in a housing rotatably mounted on the end of a robot arm. A pair of stepper motors are mounted in the housing and are connected to rotary actuators which displace the fingers in discrete incremental steps toward or away from one another when rotated. Compliant elements provided on each finger cooperate with force/torque sensors for determining the proximity of the fingers to an article to be gripped and the gripping force applied by the fingers. The sensors generate signals which are processed in a controller that regulates operation of the stepper motors so as to achieve desired finger movements and gripper forces.

Apparatus and method for handling articles in automated assembly

The apparatus effects transfer and connection of tools between a tool holder and at least one bracket of a robot hand. A pin upon the tool holder and a pin upon the bracket are received during tool transfer within a bore extending through the tool shank, one of the pins entering the bore from one end thereof and the other pin entering from the other end of the bore. The free ends of the pins abut during transfer of the tool between the tool holder and the bracket. Two tools may be simultaneously transferred in the preferred embodiment of the apparatus. The connection between the bracket and the tool permits limited movement of the former relative to the latter, and a sensor may be provided to detect such movement.

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Cary, NC, United States of America

Peter G Goumas