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Starting point / Task definition |
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| Among other products, the Pappenheim, Germany plant of Dynamit Nobel Kunststoff GmbH manufactures the front end for the Ford Focus, a structural component designed systematically for the use of hybrid technology. Hybrid designs, because they combine cost-effective deep drawing with injection molding, make it possible to produce complex, ready-to-install components in just a few steps.
Brackets have to be attached to the front end with screws. The linear unit which Dynamit Nobel used previously for this task was very susceptible to malfunctions due to its long conventional screw feeding system. Moreover, it could not carry out motions of sufficient complexity. | |
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Implementation / Solution |
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 | | Automatic insertion of screws in plastic vehicle members |
Today the brackets are screwed onto the front end by a KUKA KR 15 robot. The hybrid parts are secured by an operator in a fixture on the revolving table used to supply the robot with material. First the operator loads the eight brackets, and then the front end. The robot then attaches the brackets to the front end using one screw for each. The screws are fed to the KR 15 automatically at a fixed position.
The screws must project by a defined distance. The robot screws them in until the controller stops the power wrench when the specified value is reached. Then the KR 15 unscrews them again up to a specified distance. This makes it easy for the Ford workers to install and fasten the hybrid part later on the Focus body.
Defective screws which cannot be used even when the robot tries them for a second time, are dropped into a shell. If the KR 15 cannot reach the end position with the next screw either, it attaches the remaining brackets and signals an error. In such cases the screw concerned must be screwed in manually by the operator. | |
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System components / Scope of supply |
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- KUKA KR 15 robot
- PC-based KUKA robot controller, including control panel with Windows interface
- Power wrench
- Power wrench controller
- Revolving table with positioning fixture and proximity sensors to monitor whether the front end in question is complete.
- Robot programming
- Safety facilities
- Commissioning
Supplied by the KUKA systems partner DAT Automatisierungstechnik GmbH, Pappenheim, Germany. | |
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Results / Success |
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- Cost-effectiveness
There has been a lasting increase in economic efficiency – as a result of this restructuring Dynamit Nobel has had higher output with greater precision, and thus also more consistent quality. In any event, there were no cost-effective alternatives to the KR 15. A purely manual solution, which would have been too expensive in any case because of the personnel costs, would in addition have reduced manufacturing output by nearly a half. | |
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| Further information |
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| Video |
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