Yaskawa robots with regenerative braking
ENERGY-EFFICIENT ROBOTS
Yaskawa offers a technical solution for the recovery of robot braking energy into the power grid – as a standard and without additional hardware . All larger Motoman robot series with a payload upwards of approx . 50 kg and the latest YRC1000 robot controls are able to convert kinetic energy from down and sideways movements directly into 400 V AC at 50 Hz and feed it back into the net . Depending on its movement pattern , the robot ’ s energy requirements are therewith significantly reduced .
Prerequisite for this energy recovery is the standard YRC1000 robot controller in conjunction with the larger robots with payloads upwards of approx . 50kg .
In their very diverse tasks – such as handling , palletizing , joining and processing – industrial robots make many down or sideways movements , during which the servomotors dissipate energy and potentially generate electricity . Up until now , in older or other robot models on the market , the resulting energy has been converted to waste heat by control technology through electrical resistance and lost to the environment .
In the Yaskawa solution , the electric energy is fed back into the operator network without additional hardware and reused . The extent of savings in each case depends essentially on the task and the individual robot ’ s movement patterns . Savings in the 8 % to 25 % range can be anticipated . This may well result in annual feed-ins of about 2,800 kWh , with savings of about 1,600 kg CO2 and € 1,200 .
ONLY COMPARABLE SOLUTION ON THE MARKET
With this hitherto unique technical solution , Yaskawa has applied its experience as manufacturer of drive technology – after all , all servo drives and control packages are in-house products , and accordingly optimal tailored to industrial robots .
Motoman robots open up further efficiency potential due to their slim and compact design with low moving masses and fast application of brakes during movement intervals , in order to switch off the active position control when not in use .
Intelligent operating concepts of the operator that , for example , also provide for the automatic shutdown of robots in predictable breaks , contribute additionally to energy saving .
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ENERGY EFFICIENCY AS STRATEGIC CORPORATE GOAL
Like the promotion of environmental management through processes and green products , at Yaskawa energy efficient solutions such as this are an integral part of the worldwide corporate strategy . For example , with its products the company aims to cut 100 times the self-induced global CO2 emissions by 2025 .
The Yaskawa Group orients its activities to the 17 UN sustainability goals and focuses on sustainable projects , e . g . digitization of the value-added chain , assumption of heavy and dirty tasks through automation and efficient food production in smart agriculture for a sustainable , profitable and liveable future .
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