We were recently contacted by a manufacturer of high temperature insulation who was looking for a way to pickup 12″ squares and small strips of porous material. Their proposed system was to have the parts traveling on a conveyor where a frame would come down lift the parts approximately 12″ vertical, rotate them 90° and then lower to drop them onto the exit conveyor. They were interested in using our E-Vac Vacuum Generator but were unsure which model might work best. I recommended they order a unit to test under our Unconditional 30 Day Guarantee but since this was a new process, they weren’t set up to run any testing. I then offered to perform the test here at EXAIR and the customer agreed and was able to send some samples pieces for testing.
In our first test with the larger 12″ squares, we tested our Model # 800003 Porous E-Vac with a bellows cup attached. The E-Vac Vacuum Generator is a fast responding, highly efficient, compressed air vacuum pump. Using the E-Vac we were able to lift the parts off of the table but when we went to rotate the pieces, the vacuum cup would lose suction and the part would drop. Even though this is a light part, there was not enough vacuum flow to overcome the rotating movement and the part fell off. In short, the E-Vac wasn’t able to pull enough free air (vacuum flow) through the piece to maintain the vacuum when trying to rotate 90°. This told me we needed to increase the amount of SCFM pulling through the sample so we looked at our Model # 120022 2″ Super Air Amplifier. The 2″ Super Air Amplifier provides a great deal of vacuum flow, at low vacuum levels and is well suited for very porous, light materials. With this additional vacuum airflow, we were able to pick up the 12″ squares, rotate them 90°, lower and turn off the compressed air supply to release them.
With the smaller pieces, due to their physical size and lighter weight, we went back to testing the Model # 800003 E-Vac and the results were much more favorable. In this case, the E-Vac did create enough vacuum flow that we were able to quickly pick up the part, rotate the desired 90° and release the part.
As you can see, sometimes what seems like the perfect solution for the application turns out to be a totally different product altogether. Luckily, EXAIR has you covered with our extensive offering of compressed air products to fit a wide variety of industrial applications. To see how we can help you with your specific need, give us a call.
Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinnicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN