New Product: Bernoulli Gripper from Festo enables ‘contactless handling’

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email

Product Briefing Outline: Festo has introduced a Bernoulli Gripper for transporting delicate work pieces such as solar cells and wafers. The most particular benefit of the gripper is the minimized air consumption which reduces the energy costs. Other essential aspects are little swinging power, high grip force, low-pressure applications and a constant area load.

Problem: During the production of solar cells the wafers have to be transported frequently and with high speed. Due to the fact that wafers are very thin and delicate the gripping is a critical point. Vacuum grippers due to their material use to leave shadows on the wafers which reduce the output of the solar cell. Meanwhile the suction has to be secure to resist forces of speed without breaking the delicate wafer.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

Solution: The Festo Bernoulli offers a contactless suction force meanwhile a minimum contact of the wafer with the gripper insert provides the friction needed to guarantee high speed transport without losing the wafer. The gripper offers a variable fine-tuning of the air consumption and suction force so that the wafer does not suffer stress during transport. The gripper does not leave residuals on the surface which could influence the output of the solar cell. The gripper offers high suction forces (>30N on request) and produces at the same time low noise. The design can be easily customized on request to individual requirements and so optimized for each application. The optimized air consumption of the gripper increases the energy efficiency by reducing the energy costs.

Applications: Solar cell and wafer transport.

Platform: Festo offers complete solutions for wafer gripping and transport. The portfolio includes all the components needed from clean air preparation units and valves to handling solutions such as the high-speed H-Portal – customized to the application. 

Availability: Currently available.

Read Next

October 10, 2025
Australia's renewable energy sector recorded its slowest month of the year for additions in September, with 5.8GW of new projects added to development pipelines, according to data from Rystad Energy.
October 9, 2025
The Australian government has announced the results of the fourth Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) tender, with 6.6GW of renewables awarded long-term contracts.
October 9, 2025
Solar PV is the world’s cheapest technology to generate electricity, according to a study from the University of Surrey, in the UK.
October 9, 2025
Entergy Arkansas has announced plans to build a 600MW solar-plus-storage project to support a new data centre to be built by Google.
October 9, 2025
Singapore-based Sembcorp Industries has agreed to acquire ReNew’s 300MW solar power unit in India for around US$246 million.
October 9, 2025
Avaada has inked an MoU with the Gujarat government to develop solar, wind, and BESS worth INR360 billion (US$4.05 billion). 

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK