Advanced Cleanroom Robots: Precision & Sterility for Modern Manufacturing

There are a lot of hoops that a robot has to jump through before it can be classified as a cleanroom robot. These robots have to be able to run in a “clean” manner, as well as not kick up any static electricity that could negatively affect the product being manufactured.

Cleanroom robots are used in labs, but they are also becoming common in the electronics field. As technology gets smaller and smaller, so do the parts. And as these parts become more delicate, it makes more sense for manufacturers to switch to the gentle gripper of a cleanroom robot, as opposed to the hand of a manual application.

But, what does it take to be a cleanroom robot in the electronics industry? Well, the first thing is that you have to run clean. For a cleanroom robotic system to run clean, it first has to be designed with dust-free robotic parts, belts, etc. that do not emit a lot of dust and other particles during operation. And it must have internal vacuums that whisk away all the particles that are still emitted by the machine.

When manufacturing these sensitive microelectronics, manufacturers cannot be too careful. Even the coating on the cleanroom robot has to be specialized to not attract contaminants. Any contamination of the product could cost the company money and downtime as production shuts down to investigate the contamination source.

Another issue that cleanroom robotic systems must face is the possibility of electrostatic discharge. The robots must be specially sealed and grounded to prevent the buildup of static electricity during operation. The robots also have to be made with special materials that are nonconductive to an electrostatic charge. These charges can ruin computer parts, cellphone parts and other electronics.

If your company is in the market to update your cleanroom with the latest in cleanroom robotic innovations, you should consider RobotWorx. Our company provides solutions from Fanuc, Motoman, ABB, Universal Robots, and KUKA cleanroom robotics. The staff at RobotWorx will help customers design the perfect system specialized for their cleanroom specifications.