20 years ago, little Marvin stands curiously in front of his father and asks "Dad, how do earthworms actually reproduce?" Martin Langhoff does not hesitate for long and uses the internet to answer the question. This is the starting signal for an unusual family business: The Langhoff family runs a worm farm called "Superwurm" and is fully dedicated to breeding the giant redworm. The family relies on automation. Self-designed machines with Igus components take over work steps that were previously very time-consuming. There are also plans to sell the machines themselves soon.

Energy chains and linear guides without maintenance or cleaning for ten years

Martin Langhoff came across Igus products when he was looking for components for his first self-built machine. The worms' feeding and watering process was to be partially automated. Therefore, the components had to function reliably and permanently under difficult operating conditions with dirt, soil and moisture, as the machine was designed for 24-hour continuous operation. In addition, they should not require lubrication so that worms and soil remain undamaged. In the meantime, the drylin-R quattro slides with all-plastic bearings, which slide on two parallel shafts, and the E4 e-chains have been in continuous use for ten years and the machine runs flawlessly - without maintenance or cleaning.

Superwurm's warehouse is stacked full of Euro containers containing soil and worms. Each of these containers has to be watered once a week and feed is spread on the soil. Until now, the containers have been moved from the warehouse to Langhoff's first feeding and watering machine using a pallet truck. The machine picks up two containers at a time with a compressed air gripper and places them in the next station, where they are sprayed with water and sprinkled with feed. Drylin Quattro slides serve as bearing points for the moving gripper elements.

With this machine in particular, soil and moisture reach the bearing points. As the sliding elements of the linear guides are made of plastic with incorporated solid lubricants and therefore require no additional lubrication, no lubricant gets into the soil. Another advantage of the self-lubricating sliding elements is that dirt cannot adhere to grease or oil.

The e-chains are also unaffected by the harsh operating conditions. Despite dirt, moisture and constant loads, they guide the cables reliably and quietly. Unsupported lengths are no obstacle.

Robots and an AGV take over feeding and watering

Langhoff developed completely new machines to fully automate the feeding and watering process. These include two robots, a conveyor belt and an automated guided vehicle (AGV). The monotonous work steps involved in feeding and watering no longer have to be carried out by one person full-time, allowing them to concentrate on more demanding tasks. "With the new system, feeding and watering can be carried out around the clock, even when staff are absent. In addition, errors are reduced to an absolute minimum," says Martin Langhoff, owner of Superwurm.

The AGV collects the Euro containers in stacks from the warehouse to the new feeding and irrigation system. For this purpose, two parallel synchronously driven drylin ZLW toothed belt axes including portal center drive are installed in the AGV, which pull the stacks of containers on a trolley into the transport vehicle. This required toothed belt axles with stepper motors that can pull containers weighing 120 kg. This complete system is particularly light, requires only low power for operation and is insensitive to impact and dirt. To move the toothed belt axles, the cables are guided using an E6 e-chain. This increases their service life and protects them from external influences. Once the containers have been fully retracted into the AGV, a stepper motor closes a barrier to provide additional safety during transportation. This enables CE marking and approval for use in operation.

Once it arrives at the new feeding and watering system, the AGV moves the containers to the first robot, which places them one after the other from the trolley stack onto a conveyor belt. It works with an intelligent gripper that recognizes and corrects the position of the containers and only lifts them when a secure grip is guaranteed. "We needed cost-effective, compact and lightweight components for this," says Langhoff. Shafts are therefore mounted in Igubal ESTM pillow block bearings to open and close the gripper. Thanks to special tribopolymers, they can withstand high radial loads, are self-lubricating and therefore maintenance-free. Their vibration-damping material and low weight are also beneficial for the movement of the robot. An E4 series energy chain is used to guide the cables safely during the fast movements of the robot and to ensure long-lasting cables. In addition, Igus stepper motors with gears are used so that the gripper can move the containers onto the conveyor belt.