Festo Debuts Compact Gripper Variants for Enhanced Precision Assembly
Festo recently announced the introduction of three new variants of parallel, radial, and angular pneumatic grippers to improve efficiency and precision for complex pick and place operations.
Festo, a global leader in pneumatic and electromechanical components, has recently announced the addition of a new generation of compact grippers to its product lineup. Aiming at enhancing precision in assembly processes, the company’s new parallel gripper DHPC and variant models, the angled gripper DHWC and radial gripper DHRC, are set to offer heightened precision and performance while maintaining a competitive price range.
The new DHPC from Festo can be interchanged with competitive grippers for a higher gripping force and enhanced precision. Image used courtesy of Festo
Key Features of the New Grippers
Designed to provide high gripping force, lengthen service life, and improve precision, the new compact grippers offer repeat accuracy of ≤ 0.2 mm for the DHRC radial gripper and DHWC angle gripper. The precision and accuracy of the DHPC parallel gripper have been enhanced over previous models down to ≤ 0.01 mm.
The new gripper lineup includes a wide assortment of part numbers with three port options for air supply connections, long strokes of up to 15 mm per jaw (opening angles of up to 30° for the angular gripper and up to 180° for the radial gripper), dust cover units, and a variety of different mounting options for two custom user-supplied fingers.
Each of the new products can be used as either a double-acting or single-acting gripper. This reduces the number of air supply connections for some simple applications in which a single shutoff valve can activate the gripper.
Equipped with pin holes for positioning, the grippers can be precisely mounted during replacement and are available in both normally closed and normally open formats, making them support a wide range of applications. The fingers of the grippers are also hardened to lower deformation and reduce wear.
Designed for Modern Machines
The new grippers by Festo provide the end-user and builders with flexibility making them suitable for today’s smaller footprint applications. They are designed with C and T slot options manufactured right on the side of the aluminum housing for attaching position sensors to detect open/close states.
Three new product variants include angular and radial grippers in addition to the standard parallel offering. Image used courtesy of Festo
To make these grippers adapt to different setups, Festo has made sure of compatibility with the inclusion of a range of air supply location options. The company promises quick shipment of the most common sizes of the DHPC parallel gripper, which it intends to keep readily available in stock, a major advantage for design engineers looking for short-lead integration solutions.
Festo’s Ecosystem Advantage
The new grippers from Festo are not just standalone products but form part of an ecosystem set to offer easy connectivity, reduce engineering overhead, and ensure fast time-to-market. This makes the solution efficient in manufacturing processes.
As gripper technology improves, engineers are also seeking to find solutions that offer precision in its use while being compact and cost-effective. Festo’s new DHPC, DHWC, and DHRC grippers aim to be a top choice for those seeking reliable, affordable, efficient, and accurate gripper technology.
