Mitsubishi Electric launches Melfa ESD robots for the manufacturing and testing of electronic circuits

Mitsubishi Electric has launched the latest ESD version of its Melfa robot series, designed to work in environments prone to electrical discharges.

In the electronics industry, incidents related to electrical discharges (ESD) can be very harmful to production and workers. The law of reference in this area is IEC 61340-5-1which governs the essential requirements for the handling of discharge-sensitive products.

Some of the factors that contribute to the production of ESD includes operating in environments with electromagnetic fields greater than 100 V/cm, low relative humidity (<20% RH), and cold temperatures. Even large contact surfaces during handling can generate frictional charges (triboelectric charges).

I Mitsubishi Electric Robot with ESD certification presents some differences compared to conventional designs that allow it protect components from possible sudden discharge which may affect the final product.

The ESD robot version is ideal for all types of applications involving manipulation of printed circuits and electronic boards: PCB and connector assembly, component inspection, board and circuit testing, electronic component installation, electronic board soldering.

These robots also have clean room certification (ISO Class) issued by the Fraunhofer Institute IPA, the certification body for this type of control. This is a highly requested certification in the electronics industry, where testing is often done in a clean room with forced air circulation to prevent small particles from coming into contact with the product and contaminating it.

Built-in functions

In the electrical market there are very demanding requirements in terms of accuracy, performance and communication. To meet those market needs, the option can be combined Melfa Smart Pluscard that enables a function that significantly increases the accuracy of the machine by compensating for the internal temperature of the robot.

Melfa Smart Plus is part of the Maisart brand (Mitsubishi Electric’s AI creates Advanced in technology), a specific brand developed by Mitsubishi Electric with the aim of enabling companies to get the most out of artificial intelligence.

To support operations that require significant control, a force sensor and integrated AI functions which increases space and speed parameters.

Moreover, for increase performanceThe robot is often associated with a rotating table, on which individual components are placed and later collected by the robot as the table rotates.

To optimize the configuration, the Mitsubishi Electric robot controller has a special built-in function that allows you to control up to eight additional axes without using additional equipment.

They are available special examples which have a cable route completely inside the arm – to the wrist of the robot – thus avoiding mechanical interference during operation.

The Melfa FR ESD family robots are also available in integrated version with Melsec iQ-R module PLCwhich thanks to the SECS/GEM communication protocol (the standard protocol in the semiconductor world) allows for better monitoring and sharing of the collected data.

Finally, the CR800’s controller features make it possible robot feedback movement and response times of 3.5ms through the use of interfaces tailored to individual needs.