FANUC

FANUC ( or ; often styled Fanuc) is a Japanese group of companies that provide automation products and services such as robotics and computer numerical control (NC) systems.[7] FANUC is the world's largest maker of industrial robots.

FANUC had its beginnings as part of Fujitsu, developing NC and servo systems. FANUC is an acronym for Fuji Automatic Numerical Control.[8]

FANUC is organized into 3 business units: FA (Factory Automation), ROBOT, and ROBOMACHINE. These three units are unified with SERVICE as "one FANUC".[9]

History

In 1955, Fujitsu Ltd. approached Seiuemon Inaba (ja:稲葉清右衛門), who was then a young engineer, to lead a new subsidiary purposed to make the field of numerical control. This nascent form of automation involved sending instructions encoded into punched cards or magnetic tape to motors that controlled the movement of tools, effectively creating programmable versions of the lathes, presses, and milling machines. Within three years after spending heavily in R&D, he and his team of 500 employees shipped Fujitsu's first numerical-control machine to Makino Milling Machine Co.[10] In 1972, the Computing Control Division became independent and FANUC Ltd. was established.[11] The next phase of expansion would be computer numerical control, which relied on G-code, a standard programming language. At the time, the 10 largest CNC companies in the world were based in the U.S., however by 1982, FANUC had captured half of the world CNC market.[12]

FANUC is listed on the first section of Tokyo Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the TOPIX 100[13] and Nikkei 225[14] stock market indices. It is headquartered in Yamanashi Prefecture.

In 1982, FANUC entered into a joint venture with General Motors Corporation (GM), called GMFanuc Robotics Corporation, to produce and market robots in the United States. The new company was 50 percent owned by each partner and was based in Detroit, with GM providing most of the management and FANUC the products.

In 1986, GE Fanuc Automation Corporation was jointly established in the US by FANUC and General Electric (GE). Under the joint venture company, three operating companies, GE Fanuc Automation North America, Inc., in the U.S., GE Fanuc Automation Europe S.A. in Luxembourg, and Fanuc GE Automation Asia Ltd. in Japan were established (the Asian company was established in 1987). GE stopped making its own CNC equipment and turned its Charlottesville, Virginia, plant over to the new company which produces FANUC CNC devices. FANUC adopted the German engineering slogan Weniger Teile, which means "fewer parts;" machines with fewer parts are cheaper to produce and easier for automatons to assemble, resulting in higher reliability and lower manufacturing costs.

The company's clients include numerous U.S. and Japanese automobile and electronics manufacturers. Use of industrial robots has allowed companies like Panasonic in Amagasaki to run factories which produce 2 million television sets a month (mostly high-end plasma LCD screens) with just 25 people.[15]

FANUC has over 240 joint ventures subsidiaries, and offices in over 46 countries.[16] It is the largest maker of CNC controls by market share with 65% of the global market[17] and is the leading manufacturer of factory automation systems.[18]

Business units

FANUC is organized into three business units: FA, ROBOT, ROBOMACHINE.

Subsidiaries and joint ventures

FANUC Europe Corporation S.A., a sister company, is headquartered in Luxembourg, with customers in Europe, and which provides sales, service and support in Europe and abroad.

FANUC America Corporation is responsible for FANUC operations in North and South America. The current incarnation, organized in 2013, unifies FANUC activities in the Americas, including the former FANUC Robotics America Corporation (1992-2013) and FANUC CNC America (2010-2013), which succeeded an earlier incarnation of FANUC America Corporation.

FANUC Robotics America Corporation (1992-2013) supplied robotic automation in North and South America, with over 240,000 robots installed. It also produced software, controls, and vision products that aid in the development of robotic systems. Headquartered in Rochester Hills, Michigan, the company had 10 regional locations in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Brazil. The company provided these systems for applications including automotive and fabricated metals to medical devices and plastics. It was founded in 1982 as a joint venture between FANUC Ltd and General Motors Corporation, named GMFanuc Robotics Corporation. A staff of 70 began work at the GM Technical Center in Warren, Michigan. In 1992, the company became a wholly owned subsidiary of FANUC Ltd of Oshino-mura, Japan. The company was a member of the Robotics Industries Association (RIA) and of the International Federation of Robotics (IFR).

FANUC NC controller

Robotics

FANUC produces the largest range of industrial robots in the world, with payloads ranging from 1 to 2,300 kg capacity. Most models are of the 6-axis articulated arm style common in industrial environments but specialty models are also produced with varying axis configurations and application focuses. Some specialty models have fewer or more axes or special characteristics that help them perform in certain environments (such as in clean rooms or in wet/dirty wash down areas).

See also

• Industrial robot
• Numerical control

External links

• FANUC Corporation
• FANUC America Corporation
• FANUC Robotics Corporation
• FANUC Europe Corporation
• FANUC UK Ltd
• Hoover's Profile: FANUC CORPORATION
• FANUC's thumbnail overview of the history of FANUC CNC
• FANUC Introduces R-30iB Plus Robot Controller