Oct 15 2019
The pr0t0n™ robot arm is now available from e1ectr0n inc. for small manufacturers such as Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) companies with demanding high-mix/low volume business. The U.S.-made pr0t0n robot arm is manufactured in Hillsboro, Oregon in a co-located building with Axiom Electronics.
The robot is designed to work with skilled assemblers on their workbench. The pr0t0n™ robot arm assists on high precision tasks and works autonomously on repetitive tasks, freeing the skilled worker to manage one or more robots or address more difficult portions of the production process.
With over 2.4 million small manufacturing jobs going unfilled by 2028, according the 2018 skills gap in manufacturing study released by Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute, robot automation will keep small manufacturers in business. The pr0t0n robot arm handles the repetitive tasks and quickly moves from one task setup to the next.
Programming is simplified to reduce the need for specialized programming. Skilled assemblers train the pr0t0n™ robot arm using a familiar game controller, keyboard, and CAD files for precision tasks. Training can be shared among a number of local robots, or transmitted to remote locations, or saved for future use.
Typical uses for the pr0t0n™ robot arm are repeated tasks such as dispensing material, applying peelable mask or conformal coat mask, torque driving screw and bolts, soldering, parts binning, precision pick and place, product packaging, and small product assembly.
The first use and design for the robot was to meet the requirements of Axiom Electronics, an EMS company specializing in low volume manufacturing that uses a high mix of components in each assembly. High volume manufacturers have access to many different production automation machines, but smaller, low volume manufacturers remain constrained by their use of trained assemblers, many of whom are aging out of a workforce where younger assemblers are not available. The pr0t0n™ robot arm is only available through the e1ectr0n at http://www.e1ectr0n.com with delivery scheduled for fall at the time of launch.
e1ectr0n Inc. designs and manufactures the pr0t0n™ robot arm in Hillsboro, Oregon. The company is focuses on developing automated assistants for small business and high-mix/low-volume manufacturing needs.