In 2023, Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH was awarded the Best of Industry Award in the Robotics category. The company received the award for its solution for the automated disassembly of battery packs from electric vehicles.
Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH is taking the plunge into artificial intelligence (AI) with its latest version of LHRobotics.Vision bin picking software. Filtering out irrelevant image data enables faster and more accurate detection of unsorted workpieces when removing them from containers.
In electric vehicles, the meshing of the gears can cause disruptive gearbox noise excitations. It is therefore becoming increasingly important for automotive manufacturers and suppliers of electric motors to identify and eliminate the causes of unwanted noise at an early stage. With the LHProcessMonitoring software, Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH has developed a tool that detects deviations during gear production. This saves costs and reduces rejects – and is therefore also of interest to manufacturers of conventional gearboxes.
Pongi Gear Experts Co., Ltd. has represented Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH in Taiwan for many years. In 2022, it incorporated the Kempten company‘s bin picking software into its portfolio and set up its own demonstration and training facility for intelligent automation. Potential customers can evaluate the smart and intuitive system on a fully equipped cell with a camera, robot and simulation tool.
Sustainability goals and increasing raw material prices are making the recycling of batteries from electric vehicles an increasingly pressing issue for the automotive industry. To recover the valuable raw materials and components from the battery packs, they must be disassembled and sorted at the end of their service life. Automated processes provide a basis for economic dismantling while minimizing the hazards to employees from high-voltage equipment. Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH uses its tried and tested automation technology for this and is working with research and industry to develop scalable, flexible solutions for the automotive and recycling sectors.
Two Liebherr trainees on assignment abroad in China
Julia Stachel and Laura Scheiber completed their training as industrial mechanics at Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH at the beginning of 2024. During their training period, they spent four weeks at the Liebherr plant in Yongchuan, China in August 2023. Here they explain what made them choose China, their experience there and what it is like to suddenly have lots of people wanting to take a photo with you!
The revised Liebherr gear shaping machine with new features
Gear shaping is a robust and universal process for manufacturing gears – due to the geometries of some gears, no other machining methods are capable of producing the teeth. In order to offer even more versatility in this area, Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH has fundamentally revised and developed its LS 500 E gear shaping machine. A shaping head featuring an electronic helical guide and an interface for an optional chamfering device are now included as standard.
PHS 1500 Allround increases productivity at Linde Hydraulics by 30%
For the manufacturing of valves and valve kits, Linde Hydraulics GmbH & Co. KG invested in a production plant at the Ballenstedt site with five 5-axis machining centers from Grob, which are interlinked via the PHS 1500 Allround pallet handling system from Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH. This enabled the company to increase the output of this manufacturing line by 30%. The planning was quite a challenge: due to the high demand, not only did additional machines have to be integrated, but an alternative location for the plant in the historic production halls also had to be found during the project.
High-precision measuring machines for small and large gears
The Liebherr WGT series of gear measuring machines are used in gear manufacturing for a wide range of industries: from the smallest aerospace applications to large gearbox components for wind turbines, tower cranes or commercial vehicles, where some of the gears weigh tons. With the optimized WGT 1200, Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH provides high-precision measurement even for huge workpieces up to a diameter of 1400 mm and a weight of 5 tons.
Helping out the Slovenian automotive supplier KLS after the flood disaster
Following the flood disaster in Slovenia in August 2023, Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH provided active assistance for the automotive supplier KLS d.o.o. With commitment, expertise and minimal bureaucracy, the team of engineers performed what seemed an impossible task in just 1,200 work-hours: all of the Slovenian company‘s gear cutting machines – initially thought to be damaged beyond repair – were back up and running before Christmas.
Machine and tool concepts for contract manufacturing at SPN
The Swabian manufacturer of transmission and drivesolutionsSPN Schwaben Präzision Fritz Hopf GmbH manufactures gearboxes, gears, and drive systems according to individualcustomer requirements. The company uses various machinesLiebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH and can therefore rely on innovativemachine and tool technology as well as reliable contacts.
Successful conversion of production at Halewood
E-mobility is taking hold around the world – and the automotive industry is changing. Many manufacturers are shifting from internal combustion engines to electric powertrains. The Ford Motor Company – a long-term partner of Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH – will be making most of the electric drive units for its European production at its UK transmission plant at Halewood near Liverpool. As before, Ford will be using Liebherr gantry technology, but for electric drive units rather than transmissions for internal combustion engines.
Avoid unplanned downtime and reduce maintenance costs
Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH now provides its customers with the most important drive and actuator data from a machine – its "digital fingerprint” – as a service to simplify and accelerate machine diagnostics. This makes condition monitoring easier and reduces maintenance costs.
