Stable Part Handling & Transferring System
Part/Component Handling & Transferring system, often introduced with integral system consists of various of loading, transferring, and delivering system such as
parts hopper, feeder, orientator and selector and transferring system. Parts handling & transferring system performs as combined system to deliver and center parts
automatically by flexible means.
Functions of part handling and feeding system consists of exact quantity of work piece, exact position (coordinating position and direction) and exact time.
Part handling & transferring system consists of below:
Part Hopper: To performs as a buffer store for parts/components;
Part Feeder: To load and feed partial of parts from part hopper and deliver them to certain position;
Orientating & Selecting system: To orientate, select, sequence parts into certain position with certain direction;
Transferring system: To transfer part from one station to another;
Following rules can be standard to determine delivering capacity for feeding system;
Part: Level of part orientating, and motion characteristics etc;
Space: Traversability of assembly station;
Motion: Quantity & direction of assembly station;
Operation: Contact Surface and operation force for assembly;
Quantity: Feeding Quantity & Takt;
The common parts handling and transferring systems consist of:
Vibration feeder bowl+full-custom track driven by linear vibrating drive:
Hopper feeder+belt-driven conveyor+vibratory feeder bowl;
Belt-driven transferring system & chain driven transferring system;
Stepper feeder +belt-driven conveyor +full custom track;
Reliable Part Placement & Escapement System
Escapement and Place systems include mechanisms with various designs to suit the needs of the workstation in question: they include: horizontal and vertical
placement devices; work-carrier actuated escapement devices; and pick and place mechanisms.
Placement system
Horizontal placement system:
system used on dial-type assembly machines: parts move via horizontal delivery into vacant nests on the dial, as they appear, from feed track; meanwhile that the
nests are revolved away from the feed track, enable next component in the feed track to move into next vacant nest, and so on.
Vertical placement system:
system used on dial type assembly machines; here, the parts feeder is arranged vertically above the dial table, so that when table turns, to reveal an empty nest,
component can fall by gravity from feed track into empty nest. Successive parts fall by gravity to take up their position at the mouth of feed track in turn.
Pick-and-Place System:
Horizontal Pick-and-Place system:
this mechanism uses a pick-and-place unit with a horizontal arm that may be extended and retracted as necessary, so that parts may be removed from feed back
and placed into work carriers.
Rotary Pick-and-Place system: This mechanism uses a pick-and-place unit with a revolving arm, so that may be removed from feed track, and placed into work
carriers.
Escapement System:
This escapement system is actuated by the top of the carrier contacting the lower surface of the rivet-shaped part, causing its upper surface to press against the
spring blade, which releases the parts so that it falls into the work carrier nest. The work carriers are moved horizontally to cause the release of part move off, to
be replaced by the next work carrier and so on.
Applicable Work Station Configuration
Single-Station Assembly Machine
In single-station assembly machine, the assembly operations are performed at a single location (stationary base part system). The typical operation involves the
placement of the base part at the workstation where various components are added to the base. The components are delivered to the station by feeding
mechanism, and one or more workheads perform the various assembly and fastening operations.
Dial-Type Assembly Machine
Dial-Type assembly machine, the base part are indexed around a circular table or dial. The workstations are stationary and usually located around the outside
periphery of the dial. The parts ride on the rotating table and arc registered or positioned, in turn, at each station a new component is added to base part.
In-Line Assembly Machine
In-line configuration assembly system consists of a sequence of workstations in a more-or-less straight-line arrangement. In-line assembly machine consists of a
series of automatic workstations located along an in-line transfer system. Continuous, synchronous, or asynchronous transfer systems can be used with the in-line
layout.
Segmented In-line Type configuration consists of two more straight-line arrangement which are usually perpendicular to each other with L-Shaped or U-Shaped or
Rectangular Shaped. The flow of work can take a few 90 degree turns, either for work pieces reorientation, factory layout limitations, or other reasons and still
qualify as straight-line configuration.
Carousel Assembly Machine
Carousel assembly machine represents a hybrid between the circular flow of work provided by the dial assembly machine and straight work flow of the in-line.
Capable Assembly Process Integration
Assembly Workstations function as the fundamental unit for assembly machine, and is often designed to complete one single assembly or process task. The
common assembly or process operations include aligning, riveting, screwing, pressing, inserting, gluing, soldering, welding, printing, assembling, cutting, marking,
labeling, checking, inspecting, testing, sorting, unloading, packing and so forth.
Automated assembly workstation, generally, is taken as one single step for an integral assembly system, with control program set in advance with high efficiency.
Takt time plays an important role in automated assembly system with its effective factors listed below;
Picking/Placing: picking travel and method determine picking and holding time;
Gripper changeover: changeover and tightening method determine time spend.
Assembly: Determined by assembly motion and fit tolerance;
Motion: time, distance, speed, allowable tolerance for parts/component delivered from one station to anther station;
Feedback Time: sensor and detector response time;
Checking and control time:
Wait-On Time: wait for base parts/component arrive at position.
Flexible Assembly Automation Levels
Due to that there is no possible to automate production line for all products fully, it requires we select and confirm a proper and reasonable automation level.
Factors as below play an very important role in selection of automation level for production line:
Variants of products quantity (components variants);
Possible to modify and change product as well as assembly flow;
Available volume for buffering zone or buffering hopper;
Foot-print for assembly machine and design for maintenance and availability;
Necessary time spending for modification and modifiable;
Transferable performance of assembling components;
Internal relationship and assembling for whole system;
Approaches for Checking, Inspection and controlling;
