How We Design a Dual-Rail Tool Change Slide of A Modular XY Gantry Stage

Modular XY Gantry Stage:  Dual-Rail Tool Change Slide 3D Design Sent to UK Client for Approval

Author: ShanGong, Director of Engineering Department | Published: September 22, 2026 | Category: News / Projects

Shenzhen, September 22, 2026 — TallMan Robotics has sent the 3D design of a dual-rail linear slide for a robotic tool changing station to a machine builder in Northern Ireland, UK. The design was completed twelve days after the first enquiry and is now with the client for drawing approval.

Project Background of Modular XY Gantry Stage

The client is building an automated cell in which a robot travels along a floor track. Its tools are stored in a rack beside the track, and the robot needs that rack brought within reach each time it changes tools. The client asked for a slide that would move a 1,200 × 560 × 500 mm tool box 900 mm toward the robot and back again, at around 300 mm/s.

The client’s original concept used a pneumatic slide. After TallMan’s sales team explained that its linear actuators are electric, the client accepted an electric drive and set one priority above all others: keep the system as simple as possible.

From Enquiry to Design for this Dual-Rail Tool Change Linear Slide

The enquiry arrived by WhatsApp on 10 September. Over the next four days, both teams worked through a selection sheet and a set of marked-up sketches to agree which rails carried the load and which directions were driven. The first layout was shared on 15 September, and the full 3D model followed on 22 September.

The resulting design uses two parallel belt linear modules to carry the 30 kg tool box, driven by a single servo motor through a mechanical cross shaft, with two auxiliary axes above them that carry no drive at all. One motor and one control axis answer the client’s request for simplicity directly.

The dual-rail tool change slide design sent to the client for approval.

Next Steps for this Modular XY Gantry Stage

Once the client confirms the 3D model and the 2D drawings, the slide will move into production, followed by factory inspection and testing before export packing. One detail remains open before release: the servo communication interface, which the client is confirming.

A full engineering account of the project, including why a single motor and cross shaft were chosen over two synchronised servos, is published on this page.

About TallMan Robotics

TallMan Robotics is a Shenzhen-based manufacturer of precision motion components, supplying linear modules, rack and pinion modules, electric cylinders, linear motors and rotary products to machine builders in the industries of semiconductor, food and beverage, medical device, automotive, new energy and packaging industries. Visit www.tallman-robotics.com.