Using FluxGrip FG40 with Cobot Arms – Best Practices

Support
1

Hi Zubax Team,
We’re planning to use the FluxGrip FG40 magnetic gripper on a RealMan collaborative arm through the end-effector interface . The Interface (page 59) provides:

End flange power: 5V / 12V / 24V (up to ~1.5 A)
Two digital I/O channels
RS485 (Modbus RTU)

Has anyone integrated FG40 with similar cobots before?
What’s the recommended approach here; analog voltage control, RC PWM, or Cyphal/CAN? Any wiring tips or best practices to ensure reliable switching and feedback?
Thanks for any guidance or examples!

RealMan Robot User Manual V1.5.pdf (17.7 MB)

2

There’s no “recommended” approach, it will depend on the level of effort you’d like to put in.

You basically have 2 options:

  1. Use the analog interface

I asked ChatGPT about what kind of digital output this arm supports:

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Given that we need something between 2.5 and 3.8 V for turning on the magnet:

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Your best best will be to use a simple voltage divider circuit (resistors in series) to achieve the correct voltage for the control signal.

Regarding the power, this seems to be provided already:

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(Sidenote: power requirements for FluxGrip can be found here)

The downside is that you won’t get any feedback from the method using this method.

  1. Use the Cyphal/CAN interface

This method will provide you with more control/feedback, however the only way this will work if you make an additional converter piece of hardware that would go between the RS485 and CAN interface. If you want we can help with that for a fee.