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30.01.2015 - Fachartikel - Maschinenbau
Flexible and universally applicable machining cell
Toolcraft presents the RoboBox robot cell – a talent made to measure
(Initiative Mittelstand)Component machining with robots instead of CNC machine tools are gaining importance. There are reasons for this: the robot is highly flexible and can be universally adjusted to different tasks – with minimal, often acceptable limitations to precision. Above all, this results in a very cost-effective solution for industrial machining. toolcraft is premièring the RoboBox in installation size H1,800xW1,800xD1,800 mm. The special charm of this solution is the offline programming in the same programming language as for CNC machine tools. What can we expect from such a made to measure ‘all-round talent’?
The new RoboBox machining cell from toolcraft is completely new. It combines a 6-axis articulated arm robot by Stäubli in a closed production module with a 7.5 kW strong, water-cooled milling spindle. A slotted table ensures the precise fixing of the components. A zero-point clamping system or a round table can also be used.
A real all-in-one machine tool
Milling is the standard task for the RoboBox. But other finishes and post-processing options are also possible – when switching tasks, the robot in the RoboBox fetches another tool from the tool magazine. The RoboBox is a universal solution for many tasks and various materials. In post-processing injection moulding processes, such as deburring, in model construction or woodworking, for example. New possibilities include unrestricted access to the component without having to turn it over, as well as expanding the robot's working area through the use of external linear or rotary axes, which can be used simultaneously or indexed. All this saves the user a lot of time through the fast turnaround times to the finished component.
Flexibly prepared for all kinds of tasks
The closed machining room is fitted with manual chipping extraction. Extraction can be automated if desired. Eight tool positions are available as standard for different machining tasks, from which the system can automatically take the desired tools without re-clamping. The tool changer can of course be expanded if the task requires it. The operator selects one of two modes: a) the component is supplied to the process (remote TCP applications) or b) clamped and processed by the robot.
A key feature of the RoboBox: offline programming
The RoboBox machining cell robot does not have to be conventionally ‘taught’. All kinematic movements are programmed using the Mastercam Robotmaster software before starting work. All the robot's movements are visually recorded as kinematics through simulation and optimised, and then loaded onto the machining cell's hard disk before work begins. Unlike teaching a conventional robot, no original or reference model is required here. The robot find all paths independently from the first part and processes the components from batch size 1 to batch size N. The RoboBox does of course have anti-collision protection for reliable machining. This approach is not only a reliable process – it also increases the system availability. The RoboBox is a customised all-round solution: from the product concept through the design, the construction to the final inspection and QA with CE labelling.
Machine Tool 2.0 – highly flexible in use
As a machining cell, robot and machining room form a unit that can be used wherever needed as a module of a universal machine tool in production. Depending on the equipment, the RoboBox can perform classic metal machining such as turning, milling, polishing and grinding sequentially. This means the component can be made and refined on the spot. The robot does not just perform the loading and unloading of the workpieces. As part of a continuous process chain, upstream and downstream tasks are performed on the workpiece – in the same programming language as that of the machine tools. This results in metal components from various areas of application for engine parts, from functional elements to inserts in tool making.
RoboBox – a machining cell made to measure
Depending on the component's size or range of tasks, toolcraft systems are custom-sized. This means large bodywork parts or components requiring high impact from the robot are processed with larger robots whilst other tasks are better suited to a medium-sized or small robot with their enormous access options in the room. The machining room size results from the tasks specified by the user.
http://www.toolcraft.de/en/case-studies/robot-cell.html
