Handling and lifting with vacuum

The principle of handling and lifting is similar. A product like a bag, a wooden plate, a plastic sheet, or an injection-molded part is pressed into a sucker connected to a vacuum unit. The part is firmly fixed at the sucker due to the differential pressure. In this way, the product can be fixed for machining or moved from one point to another.

Handling and lifting are typical vacuum applications in automatized processes. For example, at robots, production machines, for injection molding and palletizing. A suction cup, vacuum plate or vacuum table is used to apply suction. And thus, hold an object firmly.

Vacuum handling and lifting technologies are flexible regarding the shape and surface of the products. The use of vacuum suckers avoids mechanical damage to the product. Vacuum handling and lifting installations are also much more compact than mechanical installations.

Due to the varied tasks performed by handling and lifting equipment, the range of vacuum pumps for these applications is comprehensive. It goes from dry-running and oil-lubricated rotary vane pumps though to side channel blowers.

Busch vacuum technology is used in automated materials handling in production processes, stacking of packed units on pallets, as well as loading and unloading of ships, vehicles, and other means of transport. It is also employed for the clamping of items to woodwork machinery, packaging of a wide variety of articles and for the transport of paper for printing and processing machines. Furthermore, Busch vacuum technology plays a role in pick and place for many industries, including electronics, food, and parts packaging.

The most important factors to think about when buying a vacuum handling or lifting system are the material and the weight of the workpiece, the diameter and number of suction cups as well as the acceleration of the robot arm.

Venturi ejectors, also called vacuum ejectors, use compressed air or steam to generate vacuum.

A high-pressure stream, also called motive, is forced through a nozzle and converts pressure into velocity. A low-pressure area is created around the tip of the nozzle, called the suction chamber, which draws in a second gas from a process vessel. The two gases mix, forming a double gas stream. As it travels through the discharge side, the double gas stream slows down and regains pressure before it is discharged through a silencer. This process is known as the Venturi effect, named after the Italian scientist Giovanni Battista Venturi (1746-1822).

Vacuum pumps are more effective than venturi ejectors in every way. They consume significantly less energy, do not use compressed air, and, most importantly, achieve much higher vacuum levels. Venturi ejectors are actually only suitable for processes in which an excess of compressed air is available.