Magnetic planar conveyors - stage 1 - environmental testing

This project aimed to investigate the current robustness of magnetic conveying solutions when operating in an Australian red meat boning room environment, and identify further R&D required to enable the solution to be used in this setting. While the technology has been developed and used outside the meat industry, the efficiency benefits it could bring to processing facilities are promising.

Across six months in late 2023 and early 2024, a washdown version of Intelligent Robotics’ planar motor system was installed and used, with its performance monitored to ensure it was working correctly and effectively. During this time, the system performed well, and no major issues were identified, demonstrating that the technology has the potential to work well in the red meat industry.

As it stands, the system is very expensive to use, but as the cost drops, there are many applications which will be able to be explored. For example, the technology will possibly be able to be used to fully automate the boning of primal cuts. The next opportunity for the technology to be adopted will be when a specific task can be identified that can generate the value required to offset the cost of the equipment.