A teach pendant is one of the main components of any industrial robot. Teach pendants are the handheld devices from the Yaskawa Motoman controller and play a critical role in the programming of robotic applications. These devices are the primary programming method of Yaskawa Motoman robots. Users enter programming commands through the input mechanism of the pendant, either a keypad or a touchscreen. Through a teach pendant the Yaskawa MA1440 can be programmed for robotic arc welding applications. In addition to programming, Yaskawa Motoman teach pendants can be used for troubleshooting, adjusting applications, tracking the past application history of the robot, and stopping the robot during emergencies.
Yaskawa Motoman teach pendants are divided into two types, the standard pendant and the Smart pendant. Yaskawa Motoman’s standard pendant features a display screen for viewing menu options, programming instructions, and program functions. It also features a keypad for inputting commands and selecting various functions of the pendant. It contains an E-stop or emergency stop button to prevent robot collisions with peripheral objects or people. Yaskawa Motoman’s standard pendant is compatible with all Yaskawa Motoman robots from its respective controller and can be used to program any application. There are various models of the standard pendant and they are identified by specific part numbers. Robot compatibility with teach pendants is determined by the controller model. ERC, MRC, XRC, NX100, DX100, DX200 and FS100 controllers all use standard model teach pendants. The Motoman EA1400 is compatible with the XRC model pendant as it requires XRC controls. The Yaskawa MH24 is one of Yaskawa Motoman’s newer robots and is compatible with the DX200 model pendant. Yaskawa Motoman’s newer pendants, mainly those for their NX, DX, and FS100 controlled robots feature enhanced functionality such as the ability to control more six axis robots with a single pendant and faster processing speeds.