“Traditional manual welding has many problems, mainly weld inconsistencies and quality problems. However, in robotic welding, the shape of the weld is constant and the width of the weld is stable due to the excellent repeatability and motion control of the robot. In addition, automatic welding reduces the visibility of porosity and makes more aesthetically pleasing weld,” said Rikard Ousthuisen, Operations Manager of Robotic Innovations.
“Automation in the automotive industry has led to significant investment in traditional robots that perform many repetitive tasks in the production and assembly of vehicles and are an important part of improving the competitiveness of automotive factories. They improve quality and reduce warranty costs, increase productivity and eliminate bottlenecks, while “This protects workers from repetitive, complex and dangerous work. Auto assembly plants primarily use robots for subassembly handling, spot welding and painting, but there are many other options throughout the supply chain. Use a robot.”
Once thought of as just a machine maintenance solution, cobots have evolved into shop floor jobs such as assembly, inspection, welding, and palletizing. Cobots with higher payloads can handle heavier items, while some new cobot models are mounted on mobile carts so users can quickly move them to other machines as needed.
“However, if programmed in this way, nothing prevents a normal robot from moving from point A to point B, so protection is required. An obstruction can lead to serious injury or even death,” Oosthuizen explains.
What Makes Cobots Different? Cobots are not. Hit the cobot and the cobot won’t move any further. He will stop. This allows the operator and other people to stand next to the robot during the operation. In this sense, operators can “collaborate” on a project by adjusting the movements of the robot in real time.”
“This has various implications for basic assembly and machine control applications, where cobots have received a lot of media attention. But it also has some important implications for other tasks in manufacturing, including welding.”
“Cobots have been in vogue ever since they were introduced to the market and we have seen cobots being used in very smart ways. Let’s first define what a cobot is. A cobot or cobot is a robot that is used in general space Direct human interaction and a robot inside or in close proximity to humans and robots.”
“Despite the ease of definition, there are several major factors that allow robots and humans to operate safely in the same area without any traditional security fences or area access security partitions. Although there are many more, the main ones can be summarized as follows “Cobots move slowly, cobots have sensitive payload/collision settings, cobots can reload after a collision and continue their program, but most importantly, cobots have certifications that allow them to be classified as cobots.”
Collaborative Robotic Welding Package “To stay ahead of the competition, Robotic Innovations (RI) has partnered with our longtime partner and supplier Fanuc to develop and build a compact, mobile, end-to-end collaborative robotic welding system. , many manufacturers and fabricators need flexible automation solutions for simple and repetitive welding projects to free up their skilled welders for jobs that require more experience or in many other cases labor costs and lack of jobs to justify hiring welders full-time, they don’t have a welding shop, and this cobot is perfect for them.”
Cobots are also ideal for welding processes that require a high level of technical skill, complex movements, or extreme dexterity, as they can accurately place uniform welds and move anywhere on the weld.
“Easy to use, fast and flexible to implement, collaborative robots are a great option for many companies to unlock new potential in the efficiency and quality of their welding operations. In addition, they do not need to outsource or find experienced contract welders.”
“The RI Cobot Welding Kit consists of a trolley on which all the components contained in a robotic welding system are mounted for ease of movement. It includes the Fanuc CRX Cobot, iQuip’s Demmeler 3D Modular Welding Station to ensure accurate placement of traditional fixtures or fixtures used in the welding process, as well as the patented and award-winning Demmeler 3D clamping system as an option.”
“The idea is to allow the system to move around the manufacturing facility and, through ease and speed of programming, allow more employees to use the system for single or high-volume production runs.”
By hiring a welding robot instead of leaving the job to a robot, you still have the ability to do the welding for you,” said Willem van der Merwe, Sales and Applications Manager for Fanuc South Africa.
“One of the real benefits of this system is that you can bring the welding robot into the welding position instead of handing over the work to the robot, which is a cumbersome and time-consuming process. No matter where you push the cart, you can get the welding done.” “.
“Companies are already facing a number of huge challenges. Huge cost pressures coupled with the challenge of being as flexible as possible in production, rapidly increasing competitive pressures from globalization and industrial automation, coupled with a severe shortage of skilled labor will only intensify in the future. Traditional industrial robots are often impractical due to high capital investment, complex and time-consuming programming procedures, and because these robots typically take up a lot of space.”
“In contrast, RI Cobot’s innovative welding suite, which includes our Fanuc CRX-10iA/L collaborative robot and Fanuc FH350iP pulse welder, is a very convenient and cost-effective system that most companies can use.”
The new “easy to program” Fanuc CRX-10iA/L robot can be programmed using a tablet interface, a traditional Fanuc learning harness, or simply by manually dragging the robot arm to the desired location. and discarding command icons in the order of desired events.”
“Ease of use – even for those who have never used a robot or welded – our advanced co-welding robot technology is easy to learn and beginners can be up and running in less than two hours.”
In March, Fanuc introduced the new CRX-5iA, CRX-20iA/L and CRX-25iA cobots, the latest additions to its popular CRX series, including the CRX-10iA and CRX-10iA/L cobots.
“Our arc welding cobots, including the new Fanuc CRX, are equipped with Fanuc’s proven and easy-to-use arc welding software, designed to increase your bottom line by reducing programming time. The easy-to-program interface supports a simple application program, but also allows you to take advantage of Fanuc’s advanced features such as Weaving, iRVision, Seam Tracking, TAST and Multi-pass.”
Introducing the new Fanuc CRX-5iA, CRX-20iA/L and CRX-25iA cobots “In March, Fanuc launched the new CRX-5iA, CRX-20iA/L and CRX-25iA cobots, the latest members of the highly anticipated CRX family. include CRX-10iA and CRX-10iA/L cobots. The latest CRX cobots complement the existing range of Fanuc CR and CRX cobots, which now has 11 cobot models that can handle between 4 and 35 kg of product.”
“Introduction of new cobots CRX-5iA, CRX-20iA/L and CRX-25iA with a payload of 5 kg, 20 kg and 25 kg and a maximum reach of 994 mm, 1418 mm and 1889 mm respectively, following the cobot models CRX-10iA and CRX-10iA/L. They both have a payload of 10 kg and a range of 1249 mm and 1418 mm respectively.”
“The five CRX models, combined with the Fanuc CR series of green cobots, expand the company’s capabilities by helping more companies looking to automate their work with cobots. CRX cobots are safe, easy to use, reliable and versatile solutions for a variety of applications, inspection, machine loading/unloading, packaging, palletizing, grinding, welding, etc. All 5 CRX models come standard with IP67 protection from dust and water, which allows customers to use them.”
“They can detect outside forces in the work area, stopping safely on contact with people or objects. This technology allows the CRX to work safely with people without the need for expensive protective equipment.”
“Most cobots are lightweight and compact in design, but the CRX cobots offer much more, including their high suitability for industrial environments and maintenance-free up to eight years. The CRX can be used with standard 100V/240V power supplies as well as energy saving devices with a power consumption of around 400 W (with a payload of 25 kg),” explains van der Merwe.
Constant change “Robotic Innovations is not the first company to offer such a collaborative robotic welding solution, but we believe we have one of the most advanced and easy to use systems in the constantly changing environment of machining, fabrication, production. , and production. One or an assembly shop,” Oosthuizen explains.
“The system’s flexibility makes it useful for both one-off builds and high-volume jobs. Because the solution is so easy to learn and operate, you can assign a junior or new employee to do ancillary welding and repetitive jobs, and let a wealthy welder do complex work and assembly for which he was actually hired.”
“You’re also not tied to one type of show or who owns all the information.”
“We have heard about examples of welding operations that typically take two hours, and using the Fanuc CRX collaborative robot has reduced it to 17 minutes. In another example, a company that used to assemble 12 parts a week now assembles 20 pieces. will significantly increase productivity and competitiveness in a short implementation time, and even better, the initial cost is very reasonable,” concludes Wu Xiuchen.
For more information please contact Robotic Innovations on 012 345 4373 or visit www.roboticinnovations.co.za or visit Fanuc South Africa on 011 392 3610 or visit www.fanuc.co.za
Post time: Sep-08-2022
