Fanuc Robots

The original Fanuc ethos of research and development being the driving force behind a thriving a profitable business has stood them in good stead and they have supplied over 140,000 robots worldwide as well as many thousands of CNC machines. They have supplied thousands of robots to the likes of GM, Ford and Nissan and are one of the biggest names in industrial robotics. They are well regarded for ease and speed of programming, reliability and excellent connectivity.

Fanuc started as part of Fujitsu Limited and could be considered the brainchild of one man; Dr. Eng. Seiuemon Inaba who headed Fanuc development from 1956, when they developed their first numerically controlled milling machines. Their developments in Electro-Hydraulic pulse motors and integrated circuit controllers were the perfect preparation to move into the anthropomorphic robot field. In 1972 Fujitsu Fanuc was founded and became independent from the parent company. Their first industrial robots were developed and installed in their own factory in 1974. In many ways these were similar to those developed by ABB and Kuka in Europe. During The late ‘70’s and early 80’s Fanuc established bases in the US and throughout Europe.

In 1982 the Fujitsu Fanuc name was simplified to Fanuc Ltd. In the USA Fanuc and General Motors jointly formed GMFanuc. This was a new company set up to design, develop and manufacture robots for GM plants. The main product of this was the S-420 Robot with RG controller. With a 120kg capacity and 2.4m reach the robot was designed primarily with handling and spot welding applications in mind but proved itself as a very versatile  These machines are still regarded as a very reliable and capable robot. Among its design features the S-420 put all the axis 4, 5 and 6 motors at the back of the top arm and drove the axis using drive shafts. This allowed the S-420 to have a very slim wrist compared to its competitors making the arm easier to manoeuvre. Shortly after this UK Fanuc joined forces with the 600 Group PLC.

The RG controlled S-420 proved a very durable design with few updates until the early 1990’s when the RG2 was released then the RH control. The Fanuc RJ series controller that replaced the RH and RG2 was a substantial move forward especially as it was less than half the size of its predecessors. The LR Mate type robot introduced in 1992 was also a major advance. The LR Mate is a human-arm sized mini robot that has now sold over 10,000 units. It is available in several configurations and payloads and is very popular for pick and place work especially in a machine tending role.

The RJ2 controller was introduced in the mid 1990’s and is approximately equivalent to the ABB S4C system. The RJ2 is popularly supplied in a two part configuration with a large part of the electrical control attached to the base of the robot arm itself and the computer unit and pendant on a second cabinet that is small enough to be wall mounted. The RJ2 was in production for several years and has gained a fantastic reputation for stability reliability and most of all speed of programming. Fanuc programmers often suggest that the Fanuc takes 20% less time to program that some other robots. Used RJ2 controlled Fanuc robots are still being refitted in large numbers by major companies who recognise that they are still very capable machines.

Fanuc, like many other robot manufacturers, tend to evolve their products with changes alternately to the arm then the controller. This has lead to a range of reliable robots covering most applications from 3kg pick and place robots up to 200kg six-axis machines. The S-430i robot with RJ3 control was another step forward in Fanuc’s evolutionary process. Introduced in 1999 the 430 was the first large Fanuc to feature a Kuka style, gas charged, and horizontal balance cylinder. The main benefits of this design include a very compact machine with excellent reach and payload and an even more useable work envelope. Simply the robot is better able to reach forward and also able to reach over and behind it. The arm design of the S-430i also goes back to the original S-420’s design of having axis 4, 5 & 6 motors mounted at the back of the arm, allowing a very slim wrist design. The essential S-430 arm design is still in production now as Fanuc’s latest generation R2000iA robot. This uses the RJ3iB controller which is very similar to the RJ3 and the RJ2 before it. The R2000iA is a very capable machine indeed and is winning favour in the highly competitive automotive market.

Fanuc continue to keep research and development at the fore. Their wide range of five and six axis robots continues to prove very popular with companies big and small around the world.  Dr S Inaba was given the title of honorary Chairman of Fanuc and remained its figurehead until the end of 2003 when Dr Y Inaba, by then the CEO, took over. It is also interesting that Fanuc practise what they preach by using robots extensively in their own production facilities. This means that Fanuc robots are themselves made by robots. They often introduce new units in their own plants first for full production testing before they are released on the market.

At Global robots we buy and sell many kinds of Fanuc robots from RG2 controller on. We especially like the RJ2 controller as it is simple in design, easy to use and very capable. It is also very popular with our
customers!