Apicoo Robotics FITGRIP30 User manual

FITGRIP30 User Manual

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Notes before purchasing
1. A gripping solution built from FitGrip30 can ONLY work with objects that have similar size in
a task. FitGrip30 is suitable for repetitive tasks where the object’s sizes are similar. This modular
gripper FitGrip30 is not recommended for applications where sizes of objects are varied.
2. External gripping solution is not possible with FitGrip30.
3. FitGrip30 will be at OPEN state when POWER is OFF
FitGrip30 is different from traditional grippers that are popular in market, read the manual carefully
before purchasing the product.

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Contents
I. Product description..............................................................................................................................................4
1. Recommended working area...........................................................................................................................5
2. Specification.....................................................................................................................................................7
3. Dimensions.......................................................................................................................................................8
II. How-to Use ..........................................................................................................................................................9
1. Mechanical interface .......................................................................................................................................9
2. Examples of building gripping solutions ........................................................................................................11
3. Electrical setup and control ...........................................................................................................................18
III. Fingertips .......................................................................................................................................................19
1. Basic fingertips...............................................................................................................................................19
2. Form-fit fingertip............................................................................................................................................21

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
I. Product description
Figure 1: FitGrip30 at OPEN and CLOSE states
FitGrip30 is a modular finger that can be used to build various customized gripping solutions. A
gripping solution can be composed of two or multiple FitGrip30s depending on size and shape of the
object that the users want to grasp. Examples showing different gripping solutions built from
FitGrip30 can be found in Chapter II.
NOTE: Always control the temperature of the gripper if required gripping force is higher than 25N
(equivalent to 8.6V applied voltage). Heat is the most serious problem with FitGrip30. At 8.6V supply
voltage, FitGrip30 can work with 100% duty cycle. When the force/applied voltage is higher, working
duty cycle is reduced.
Duty cycle is determined by: ON time/(ON time + OFF time). For example: gripper is actuated for
2 seconds, then off for 8 seconds. 2 sec ON / (2 Sec ON + 8 sec OFF) = 2/10 = 0.2 or 20% duty cycle

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
1. Recommended working area
Force is varied inside working area of the finger. The gripper starts with a very low gripping force
at beginning of stroke. The force is slightly increased when the stroke increases and is significantly
increased at the end of the stroke. Make sure that the fingertip contacts with the object inside the
recommended area which is at very end of the stroke. See Fig. 3 for relation between stroke and
gripping force of FitGrip30. Note that force will be reduced when temperature is increased.
Figure 2: Recommended working area of FitGrip30

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Figure 3: Stroke-force curve
Warning- Do the risk assessment carefully before performing a real task. Make sure that the
object is at center of the jaw of the fingers. Make sure that the gripping is performed at the end of
the stroke and the object is firmly gripped.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Force (N)
Stroke(mm)
Stroke-Force Curve
8.6V(100% duty cycle)
10V(80% duty cycle)
15V(20% duty cycle)

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
2. Specification
SPECIFICATION
VALUE
Gripping force
15-40 N
25 N at 100% duty cycle
30 N at 80% duty cycle
35 N at 20% duty cycle
Closing speed
<30ms
Form-fit Grip Payload
for 2-finger
configuration
5 kg
Frictional Grip payload
for 2-finger
configuration
2 kg
Weight
240 gr
Voltage
24 V DC
Size
129x47x25 mm

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
3. Dimensions
Figure 4: FitGrip30 at OPEN state

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
II. How-to Use
1. Mechanical interface
The mechanical interface is composed of 4x M3 thread holes and 2xΦ3 dowel holes as shown in
below figure. It is available in Font, Back and Up sides of the finger allowing users to build their own
customized gripping solution in many ways.
Figure 5: Mechanical interfaces are available in Font, Back, and Up sides of FitGrip30

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Figure 6: Dimensions of mechanical interfaces

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
2. Examples of building gripping solutions
FitGrip30 is a modular finger. Users can combine multiple FitGrip30 in many ways to have a
suitable gripping solution for their tasks. Here are some examples of using FitGrip30 in different
ways to grasp an item.
In following examples, FitGrip30 is attached to a jig (named as Standard Jig) where the
position of FitGrip30 with respect to the position of the jig is adjustable as shown in Fig. 7.
FitGrip30 is attached to the Standard Jig by 4xM3 bolts. Users can use any jig which is suitable for
users’ purposes.
Figure 7: FitGrip30 with Standard Jig
Using the jig, several gripping solutions can be built as shown in following examples.

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
a. Vertical 2-finger gripper
In this example, the set FitGrip30 and Standard Jig is attached to a flange as shown in Fig.8 and
9. Then, users adjust position of the two FitGrip30 with respect to the Standard Jig to have a fit grip
between object and grippers. When the positions are properly adjusted (to have a fit grip with the
object that users want to grasp), a vertical 2-finger gripping solution is created. Users can connect
the combination to the end-effector of a robot as shown in Fig. 10 to start working.
Figure 8: A flange used to connect robot's end-effector to grippers
Figure 9: FitGrip30s are attached to the flange

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Figure 10: Vertical 2-finger configuration with robot’s last joint
b. Dual grippers with vertical and horizontal 2-finger setup
Beside the abovementioned vertical setup, users also can have horizontal setup with FitGrip30.
Both sides of FitGrip30 provide mechanical interface and users can connect FitGrip30s to a jig
horizontally as shown in Fig. 11. Then, user can combine both horizontal and vertical setup into a
system to build a dual-gripper configuration as shown in Fig. 12.

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Figure 11: Horizontal setup of FitGrip30
Figure 12: Dual grippers with vertical and horizontal 2-finger configurations

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
c. Multi-point contact gripping solutions
Similarly, users can build several other configurations to grasp any object in a repetitive
task. Followings are some typical configurations. Fig. 13 shows a circular 3-point contact
gripper that is used to grasp object with circular shape. Fig. 14 shows a gripper that can
grasp cylindrical objects. In Fig. 15, a gripper for rectangle-shape objects is shown. Next,
Fig. 16 shows a gripper for grasping multiple object in a time.
Figure 13: Circular 3-point contact configuration

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Figure 14: Pipe-shape 3-point contact configuration
Figure 15: Box-shape 4-finger configuration

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Figure 16: A multi-finger configuration

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
3. Electrical setup and control
FitGrip30 is supplied by 24V DC power (power port is noted as PWR). It supports 2 5V DC control
input signals (noted as CS1, CS2) where each control signal controls OPEN/CLOSE of 2 fingers (noted
as OUT1, OUT2). Output force is preset and adjustable by changing value of a rotary switch knob.
Gripping force can be adjusted from 10-40N, equivalent to 6-18V at output ports. A status LED
shows board power status. Two LEDs OUT1, OUT2 show ON/OFF status of output ports. When a
control port is at 5V DC, the FitGrip30 connected to the related output port will be at CLOSE state.
Figure 17: Control board

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
III. Fingertips
Two types of fingertip are provided for FitGrip30. First one is a simple frictional fingertip
providing high friction between the fingertip and metal objects. Second one is more suitable with
glass material objects. It does not only support normal frictional grip but also provides form-fit
grip. Both fingertips can be attached to the finger by an M4x10 bolt and 2 Φ3 dowel holes. The
mechanical interface between finger and fingertip is shown in Fig. 16.
Figure 18: Mechanical interface for fingertip
1. Basic fingertips
Basic fingertip contains two rubber pads that provide high friction with metal parts. It can be
assemble in vertical or horizontal ways as shown in Fig. 17.

APICOO ROBOTICS –FitGrip30 User Manual
Figure 19: Basic fingertip with high friction with metal parts
Figure 20: FitGrip30 with basic fingertip