Problem Solved-Alcoa Vacuum-Bot

Alcoa operates mines in several countries. They mine bauxite ore and then refine the ore to produce alumina powder. The powder is then transported up conveyor belts for temporary storage before being shipped out for smelting. Some of the fine powder spills off the conveyor belts and accumulates below.

I received a call from an engineer at an Alcoa mine in Perth, Australia.  He needed a powerful robotic platform onto which he could mount a vacuum cleaner… The idea was to suck up the spilled Alumina powder from underneath the fast-moving conveyor belts while they were running!

While he was designing the industrial vacuum attachment, I was preparing a Super Mega Bot according to his specs. I shipped the SMB with two sets of wheels including smaller wheels to meet the overhead clearance requirements. I also added a low battery alarm plus dust and water seals to keep the corrosive powder out of this industrial robot.

The mine would normally have to shut down production while a technician crawled under the conveyor belts - manually sucking up the dust. This, of course, was a safety concern - not to mention losing money for the mine. The new “Vacuum Bot” is much safer than the old technique: it keeps the operator out of harm’s way and keeps the production line running - thereby making more money for my customer.