The Selective Compliance Assembly Robot Arm is one of the most used robots in today's industry. Manufacturers
are producing series of SCARA configurations. In the figure to the right
is presented a SCARA robot model A-520i, produced by
Fanuc Robotics Corp.
Motoman
A SCARA robot has a linear vertical axis, two rotary axes that move the two arm linkages in the horizontal plane, and usually one additional axis for the wrist rotation. With a dedicated vertical axis, the vertical motions are smoother and quicker than in a coordinated axis motion. Furthermore, the rigidity of the robot frame is also very high in the vertical axis and the combination of the rotation motions assures a high compliance in the horizontal plane, facts very important in an assembly task.
Fanuc Motoman
A
SCARA robot has a high repeatability (<0.025mm), and has also the highest speed of any other robot configuration (2000-5000mm/s). The robot structure is compact, such that the working envelopes are
limited (ranges<1000mm). The range of payloads that can be supported by this robot is 10-100 kg.
Due to its characteristics this robot was first used for precision, high-speed, light assembly. Common applications
are inserting components on printed circuit boards, assembling small electromechanical devices and assembling computer disk drives.
In recent years, the Scara robot has become more frequently used on a
larger scale for palletizing applications.
Scara robots are well suited for stacking a single pallet where space is limited. A major "arm" is mounted such that the whole mechanism can move vertically. This arm is also capable of rotational movement. Mounted on the major "arm" is a minor "arm", also capable of rotational movement. At the end of the minor arm is a "wrist", which attaches to the robot gripping mechanism. The wrist moves in a rotational manner as well, in order to rotate bags or cases for placement. Scara robots are fast and use little space. They may not be suited for applications that require multiple loading positions or pickup positions. Pictured are two examples of Scara robots.
Manufacturers
are producing series of 
A
SCARA robot has a high repeatability (<0.025mm), and has also the highest speed of any other robot configuration (2000-5000mm/s). The robot structure is compact, such that the working envelopes are
limited (ranges<1000mm). The range of payloads that can be supported by this robot is 10-100 kg.
Scara robots are well suited for stacking a single pallet where space is limited. A major "arm" is mounted such that the whole mechanism can move vertically. This arm is also capable of rotational movement. Mounted on the major "arm" is a minor "arm", also capable of rotational movement. At the end of the minor arm is a "wrist", which attaches to the robot gripping mechanism. The wrist moves in a rotational manner as well, in order to rotate bags or cases for placement. Scara robots are fast and use little space. They may not be suited for applications that require multiple loading positions or pickup positions. Pictured are two examples of Scara robots.