Victrex® Peek(TM) Polymer Selected for Robot Speed Reducers
WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, USA - When SBB Co., Ltd., a Korea-based ball bearing manufacturer, wanted to reduce production costs and weight in their robot speed reducer, they selected VICTREX® PEEK(TM) polymer.
"A typical reducer includes an internal gear, external gear and the output unit. The external gear is required to be especially strong and elastic to prevent damage from long hours of rotation. When the reducer was made of stainless steel, we got an even tooth profile, but the elasticity degraded with use," said Lee Bu-Rak, President of SBB Co. Ltd. "The speed reducer made of VICTREX PEEK polymer provides an excellent interface between the internal and the external gear thanks to its superior performance and a higher level of elasticity. We found the lightweight cost-effective speed reducers made of VICTREX PEEK polymer were an excellent fit for speed reducers."
SBB has been working closely with Victrex to continue to refine the design, processing and performance of the components. "It is not easy to create a delicate tooth profile since a thin and narrow tooth profile can be crushed or make it hard for tooth profiles to mate correctly," said Brian Kim, Technology Support Manager, Victrex Korea. "It is critical to make a tooth profile very dense while maintaining the strength and dimensional stability."
As the robot industry has grown, interest in motors and speed reducers has increased. In the past, speed reducers were used in traditional industries such as automotive, construction and heavy equipment. Boosted by the development of plastic speed reducer, SBB has plans to promote the speed reducers into toy robots. "We see an opportunity for high-end toys with high precision control reduction technology," Lee said. "We will continue to expand the range of plastic speed reducers, applying VICTREX PEEK polymer speed reducers for toys as well as household robots."
For more information, please call (800) VICTREX or visit the Victrex website at www.victrex.com.
Contact:
Kris Jommersbach
Gemini Communications
PH: + (1) 610-935-1633
krisj@geminiinc.com
