23046 - Automation of the casting line
A robotic cell used in the aluminium casting process.
Description of operation:
The cell is set up next to the injection moulding machine
The first robot is responsible for preparing the sprues. It retrieves the sprues from the feed hopper using a 3D vision system with bin-picking functionality, and then places them precisely into the slots on the transfer table.
The next robot – serving the injection moulding machine – retrieves a set of eight sprues from the table and places them onto the mould of the injection moulding machine. After injection, the robot removes the casting and transfers it to a hydraulic press for trimming.
A third robot retrieves the trimmed components from the press and transfers them to a station where component inspection and code marking take place. The components are then conveyed to the finished goods conveyor.
Cell layout:
Insert preparation station:
The insert preparation station consists of a mobile module with two hoppers, into which two types of inserts are fed. The operator replenishes the level of inserts by adding them via chutes located outside the cell.
A 3D vision system scans the bin, identifies the correct ingot to be retrieved, and transmits the coordinates to the robot.
The robot retrieves the components from the bin and places them sequentially on the intermediate table.
Intermediate table:
It consists of eight stations equipped with workpiece presence detection and mechanical poka-yoke systems to prevent the placement of the wrong type of component.
Robot serving the casting machine
The robot is equipped with a complex gripper: on one side there are eight sprue grippers mounted on two-axis compensation mechanisms; on the other side, a large three-jaw gripper is used to retrieve the casting from the die-casting machine. A series of sensors on the gripper monitors the status of all jaws and the presence of parts.
Marking station
The marking station consists of two weighing systems and two micro-impact marking machines.
The weighing systems assess the correctness of the casting, after which the code is marked.
Marking robot
A robot equipped with vacuum suction cups. It handles parts between the press and the marking station, then checks the correctness of the marked code and places the parts onto the finished product conveyor or the non-conforming product conveyor.
Benefits for the customer/user
- By automating the process of retrieving castings from the basket, the tedious and monotonous task of arranging the ingots has been eliminated, which has helped to eliminate human error
- Improved safety, as the operator has no contact with heavy, hot castings which also have sharp edges
- Achievement of the target cycle time
- Precise measurement using strain gauge sensors guarantees product quality
