With the new Smart MechatroniX solution platform, Bosch Rexroth is responding to market trends in factory automation on the way to the Factory of the Future. The resulting solutions can be used in a wide range of areas. Not only do they allow quick commissioning — they also offer full process transparency and ensure a short time-to-market and high productivity.

The new Bosch Rexroth solutions impress with their simplicity and quick implementation — from development to the start of production — as well as their high performance and longevity. They are also modular and designed to be retrofittable. This allows long-term, flexible and efficient use of the durable components.

The Smart Function Kit offers quick and intuitive commissioning and configuration for a range of processes, such as joining, pressing and handling. It works according to the plug and produce principle by combining preselected mechanical and electronic components with software. Bosch Rexroth presented the first smart mechatronic solution at Hannover Messe in 2019: the Smart Function Kit for pressing and joining applications. This modular toolbox consists of an electromechanical cylinder, a force sensor, a motor, a servo drive and a motion controller, plus a software package that enables easy commissioning and operation as well as comprehensive process analysis.

The second solution package — the Smart Function Kit for handling tasks — is currently being prepared. It is a single- or multi-axis system with innovative control technology and preinstalled software. This kit is suitable for a range of handling tasks where components or work pieces must be moved precisely and reliably within a defined space. In this application, plug and produce is also possible thanks to the associated software package.

Other advantages of the Smart Function Kits include easy product selection and dimensioning via Bosch Rexroth’s LinSelect tool as well as quick online configuration and ordering.

Another Smart MechatroniX solution that is currently being developed is a compensation module with an active measuring function in six degrees of freedom. For example, it increases the precision of handling robots and opens up new areas of use for robots and Cartesian systems. The Smart Flex Effector can be used in numerous applications, including joining small tolerances, quality documentation, Tool Center Point detection or compensation of position drifts in the x-, y- and z-direction.

“All these new products and solutions are Bosch Rexroth’s contribution toward the Factory of the Future. Bearing in mind the needs of our customers, we’re using entirely new approaches in order to meet current and future requirements in factory automation,” said Dr. Simon Hertenberger, head of the mechatronics product department within the linear motion technology division, Bosch Rexroth AG.