ROBOTS AND AUTOMATION | TECHNOLOGY
One processor that began using cobots from Universal Robots is Dynamic Group, a contract manufacturer based in Minnesota, US, which sought to automate repetitive manual tasks when finding employees to fill injection moulding jobs proved challenging. The cobots are used in three different applica-
automation cell, that consists of robots, hot runner controllers, dryers, conveyors, mould temperature controllers; more are in development.” Andy Stirn, Director, New Product Development,
Applications and Product Management, adds: “Milacron is working towards smarter automation, which would utilize the existing capabilities of a machine’s controller. When a new mould is loaded into a machine, the mould’s teach pendant would allow the necessary parameters to be automatically set up for the entire work cell. This process reduces any potential errors that may be experienced with an operator programming each component manually; but also saves time in reconfiguring each automation component every time the mould is removed and replaced for a new part.” Collaborative robot specialist Universal Robots says the use of cobot automation, which enables robots and people to work side-by-side, is “explod- ing” in the injection moulding market. It says that while cobots deliver most of the benefits of regular six-axis robots, they also deliver other significant advantages. When properly applied, for example, cobots often do not require the heavy, expensive and space-intensive safety fencing and access doors associated with traditional automation. The company highlights the portability of
cobots. “Lightweight and easy to set up and program, cobots are often treated as a manufactur- ing tool, moved from machine to machine as the production mix and schedule demand,” says Joe Campbell, the senior manager of applications development for Universal Robots North America. “Cobots have been successfully mounted on rolling bases or carts and wheeled into position for a short part run. Other installations have utilised magnetic bases, or a high-precision collet mounting to enable cobots to be moved machine to machine.”
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tions. The first robot tends a complete machine cycle; it picks and places “book frames” that hold pieces to be moulded into the injection moulding machine, transports the units to a trimming fixture, places the part in front of an operator for further handling, and finally pushes a button to activate the cycle again. Dynamic Group CEO Joe McGillivray says: “Universal Robots’ UR10 robot arm gave us a perfectly consistent cycle. We went from having three operators on a single shift to being able to run three shifts per day with just one operator per shift. So we essentially quadrupled our production capacity and our scrap went from significantly high to near zero.” The second application uses a traditional
cartesian robot that drops a moulded piece down a slide where the UR robot picks it up and places it in a degating fixture, then palletizes the part on a table in front of the operator for inspection. Previously, the parts would fall onto a conveyor, which often damaged parts, and the operator had to catch them before they unloaded. The third robot is deployed in a kitting applica-
tion. The UR10 picks up and places sterile wipes and saline solution into a box, which it then pushes onto a conveyor. Dynamic Group previously used six to seven employees at once for this high-speed, very high volume application. “Now we’re able to run it
Left: Cobots can easily be moved from press to press, as seen here at Dynamic Group
Above: A UR5 from Universal Robots works in tandem with a cartesian robot at Dynamic Group. When the cartesian robot drops the moulded part down the slide, a proximity sensor alerts and activates the UR cobot, which picks up the part, places it in a degating fixture and then on a table, where an operator does a final quality check
April 2020 | INJECTION WORLD 43
IMAGE: UNIVERSAL ROBOTS
IMAGE: UNIVERSAL ROBOTS
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