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Advanced Manufacturing: Automated Lead Screw Straightener
Advanced Manufacturing: Automated Lead Screw Straightener

Advanced Manufacturing: Automated Lead Screw Straightener

As the manufacturing industry continues to evolve, so does the higher level of technology and skillsets in demand. At PBC Linear, we are continuing to build upon previous successes in lean manufacturing by implementing new automation technologies and upscaling our workforce. On the technical side of this twofold approach, automated devices and machines are now doing tasks that were considered monotonous, labor-intensive, and posed a higher risk of injury for personnel. On the human side, we have transferred and elevated the skillsets of our workforce to include more focus on the inspection process and the quality of parts. The result for PBC Linear is a factory that is leaner, smarter, safer, and capable of greater output.

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This article and the video below are part of a longer series that details how PBC Linear is incorporating technological enhancements into its production systems. The following examines the capabilities of our lead screw straightener, and the benefits to our workforce, business, and most importantly our customers.

Straighter for better performance

A straight shaft is critical to the overall performance of linear bearing systems. It is essential where there are high-precision demands for system accuracy and repeatability, as well as a long and productive linear bearing life.

A typical shaft requires both pre- and post-straightening of a ground shaft. Until recently, the traditional method involved labor-intensive manual inspections of the shafting, and relied heavily on operator training and experience. In addition, this traditional process was prone to human error and more often time-consuming. For example, PBC Linear initially set an ambitious straightening tolerance standard at .005 inches/foot for our lead screw product line that resulted in much higher labor hours and subsequent huge costs.

The introduction of the Galdabini Pas 4 STEP lead screw straightener eliminated many errors that were inherent to the manual process. The automated straightening process now yields the highest straightness tolerances available in a lead screw at .001 inches/foot. The Galdabini straightener also offers:

  • Improved process consistency
  • Automated inspection of shafting
  • Automated loading and unloading
  • Greatly increased output

Click here to see The Making of a Lead Screw Assembly infographic.

Redi-Rail Metric Line Extension
Tim, Director of Manufacturing, talks about how great the Galdabini is

Tim L., Director of Manufacturing

Our lead screw product line requires six straightening steps which, in the past, required manual, arbor press straightening by individuals. It was boring, tedious work, and between each operation, that step of discerning the difference between how much to bend a piece of steel to make it straight would need to be repeated.

Lyle talks about how great the Galdabini is

Lyle S., Lead Screw Supervisor

The Galdabini straightener has had tremendous impact! Now instead of taking a lot of man-hours to go through a job, we can set it up to run and, depending on any needed corrections, come back in a couple hours to remove the finished parts and load it up again. It frees up a lot of people and time, creating more efficiency in the shop.

Automated Galdabini for lead screw straightening

Straighter for high-precision applications

The official definition of a lead screw is a threaded rod on which a mechanism travels and can be positioned precisely. The lead screw system is comprised of a core group of elements that includes the lead screw, our patented anti-backlash nut, and a motor.

The high sub-rotational precision of the lead screw design offers benefits to many industries and their applications:

  • 3D Printing: Small desktop to large format industrial 3D printers, especially where layer resolutions are being pushed as low as 10 µm per layer.
  • Medical and Lab Automation: Critical applications for clinical diagnosis, blood analyzers, syringe pumps, and other dispense devices require long lasting precision.
  • Bottling and Food Processing: The self-lubricating polymer nuts operate without external grease and lubrication eliminating the risk of contamination.
  • Scanning, Semiconductor Chips, and Lab-Automation: PTFE coated screws and optimized nuts provide consistent torque characteristics and clean, artifact free output in scanning applications.
  • Automated Retail and Kiosks: The elimination of metal-to-metal moving parts offers quiet operation while maintenance-free self-lubrication features are ideal for retail environments.

Straighter for greater customer impact

The two summaries and links to our application stories below offer a glimpse into the value of high-precision straightening within lead screw products. In each case, both the ML and Mini-Rail Actuators utilize lead screw technology for successful product applications.

Application Story:  A medical equipment engineering team was working to streamline the design of their motion control system for a diagnostic analyzer. The analyzer required precise movement to position the bio-samples in place as well as to sort and store them when not being analyzed. To solve their linear motion challenges, the company needed a driven linear guide system that was compact enough to fit into the pre-designed package and also precise enough to reliably move the samples into place.

To see how our lead screw driven Mini-Rail solved our customer’s challenge, please read our application story Medical Diagnostics Solutions.

Application Story: Assembling printed circuit boards requires repeatable performance, and extremely subtle precision that is often too expensive for educational and small business markets. At Brown University, Professor Harvey Silverman’s team devised a multi-axis circuit board assembly system to automate the process while staying within a suitable cost. To accomplish the task of circuit board assembly, they needed a linear motion solution that could position tiny surface mount devices and accurately place them onto solder paste to adhere to the board ensuring all parts were in the right place.

To see how our lead screw driven ML series mini-actuator solved our customer’s challenge, please read our application story Automating Circuit Board Assembly.