We are using (and abusing) the gripper for all sorts of work. We are working after the: can you handle this, then you probably can handle this as well, philosophy.
Guess what happened? The gripper stopped working just as we were having the most exciting moment in the job. Well, we recovered, opened the gripper and quickly saw that the trapeze threaded bar had came loose from the drive shaft of the spur gear. We quickly fixed that, but the set screw is really tiny. Not long after resuming the same task it happened again.
I have now dismantled it and modified the setup. The set screw is holding the threaded bar in place by friction. I used a Dremel tool and “machined” a small groove, about 1,5mm deep, where the set-screw will enter. Now friction is no longer the holding force (no weak link in the system either for that matter) The plastic yaws are now the weak link, or whatever breaks the first.
Below I small sketch if you want to consider doing the same.
