Maintenance according to the traffic light principle: smart drylin linear guide from igus

drylin linear guide systems must withstand extreme conditions in continuous operation or even in abrasive environments. In order for the linear guides to glide without lubricants, igus relies on linear bearings made of high-performance plastics. But when do I have to replace the bearing? This is where the new smart linear slide from igus helps. Entirely in accordance with the traffic light principle “stay red, go green”, the maintenance engineer receives information about the maintenance requirement at the push of a button.

Continuous operation, glass dust and wood fibers are extreme challenges for the sliding elements in drylin linear guides. In order to detect wear in the tribo-polymer bearings at an early stage, igus has developed a smart drylin linear system. The principle: A sensor, applied directly on the glide foil, measures the wear of the dirt and dust insensitive bearing and gives the user a signal in good time when the wear limit is reached. The signal can then be transmitted from the icom communication module to an intelligent system via Bluetooth, LoRa or LTE and evaluated. “On the part of our customers, however, there was also feedback that there is still no uniform, higher-level and economical system for processing the signals. That’s why we have now additionally developed a solution that fulfills the function completely without a network connection,” says Stefan Niermann, head of drylin drive technology at igus GmbH. Entirely in accordance with the traffic light principle, the maintenance engineer now finds out via a red/green LED display on the carriage whether the sliding foil is in good condition or has already reached the wear limit of 0.5 mm. All he has to do is press a button on the slide. Maintenance can thus be planned in good time.

Bearings changed in seconds
igus has developed a clever replacement technology for quick bearing replacement. This allows the sliding foil to be replaced directly on the rail. The linear axis or the multi-axis portal with toothed belt drive no longer needs to be laboriously disassembled. A free tool from igus helps with the disassembly of the old bearing and the assembly of the new one. Downtimes and maintenance costs are thus reduced to a minimum. The system can be put back into operation within a few minutes and in many cases does not even have to be referenced again.

For more information, please visit: https://www.igus.com/