Schaeffler, which is a motion technology company, is looking to expand its product offering in humanoid robotics and bring Formed Strain Wave Gearboxes to the market.
Notably, the strain wave gearboxes are an important part of the actuators that make up about 50% of the total cost of building a humanoid. Strain wave gearboxes are capable of transmitting movements accurately and with high torque in very small spaces, with a high gear reduction ratio, high precision, and high rigidity. Therefore, they cover the main requirements of joints for humanoid robots. It is worth noting that the established manufacturing method in the market when it comes to strain wave gearboxes is precision machining. But it is time-consuming and also cost-intensive and could become a huge obstacle in the scaling of humanoid robots over the next few years.
Schaeffler has developed a manufacturing process for the strain wave gearbox with an innovative forming technology that takes efficiency to an entirely new level. Production procedures for key components are completed in seconds and not minutes. This creates opportunities for high-volume production of humanoid robot components. It also cuts manufacturing expenditure by over 25% and material consumption by over 75%.
Apparently, Schaeffler has successfully gone on to complete the extensive validation testing of the formed strain wave gearboxes and therefore established the basis for the beginning of mass production in 2027. Production will begin in Germany and then be introduced in other regions as well.
For years, Schaeffler has been gaining expertise in the manufacture of strain wave gearboxes for the automotive sector by way of using forming. In the last decade, the company has already delivered over 2 million formed strain wave gearboxes to all major marketplaces in the world within this sector. Schaeffler has now handed over this manufacturing expertise effectively to the global growth market of humanoid robotics.
According to the president of humanoid robotics at Schaeffler, David Kehr, “Schaeffler will take a leading role in the market for humanoid robots. We deploy humanoids along our entire global value chain and therefore have first-hand knowledge of the requirements of this technology and can develop key components based on our know-how. Using this knowledge in combination with our decades of manufacturing experience and our automotive DNA, we can create solutions geared toward quality, economy, and scalability. The formed strain wave gearbox is another example of how we are readying key robot components for industrial high-volume mass manufacturing.”
Innovative forming technology when it comes to strain wave gearboxes
Schaeffler has developed a new forming process for humanoid robot strain wave gearboxes with its innovative manufacturing technologies. Compared to traditional machining, where high-precision gear geometries can be obtained by removing material, this forming process attains the desired geometrical shape of the component in just a matter of seconds by means of high pressing forces. Strain wave gearboxes, which are developed, show comparable torques and efficiencies as traditionally manufactured components. The method provides high precision in terms of measurement, reduces the material consumption, and enhances the process stability all at once. In this way, Schaeffler has developed a manufacturing concept that combines accuracy, productivity, and the potential for industrialization and offers the technological foundation for the production of these key components with an excellent level of quality and a significantly superior manufacturing efficiency.