Magic Valley Produce, based in Paul, ID has been a leading supplier of potatoes since 1964. Challenged by a shortage of available labor in their palletizing area, the company began investigating the possibility of automation. With very limited floorspace, there wasn’t enough room to use traditional industrial robots that would typically require safety fencing. In addition, Magic Valley felt that cobots would not have the lifting power to handle their 52.5-pound boxes of potatoes. Perhaps the biggest challenge was how the robot could lift the two-piece boxes. Since the lid was not secured, it would be impossible to use a standard vacuum gripper.
Magic Valley turned to WeAssistBots, a FANUC Authorized System Integrator, to help them design a palletizing system to fit their needs.
WeAssistBots immediately took an innovative approach and selected a FANUC CR-35iB cobot. The CR-35iB can lift up to 35 kg and offers a long 1831 mm reach. The combination of a small installation footprint and large work envelope is a perfect solution. The application stacks two pallets from floor to ceiling on either side of the cobot, taking less space than having workers in the area.
The cobot is equipped with two OnRobot 2FGP20 electric finger grippers. Each gripper is capable of handling 20kg, so using two ensures more than enough power to handle the boxes of potatoes. In addition, the grippers have metal plates with curved fingers on one side, allowing the cobot to tuck the grippers’ fingers under the bottom of each box before lifting it.
Today, the palletizing system is meeting Magic Valley’s throughput requirements and have reduced the need to hire additional people for palletizing.