Waterworks Product Manufacturer Improves Coating Process with FANUC Robots and iRVision Technology
Customer Problem
The customer had a coating process that was limiting throughput, they were seeking automation and iRVision technologies to increase production.
The current process utilized a coating technician, manual powder coat booth, and a continuously moving overhead monorail. The product consisted of a variety of iron castings (100+) to be coated. This is a high-mix process with a minimum order size of one.
The castings were presented to the technician via the monorail. The technician needed to be familiar with the coating process for the various castings. The technician also needed to manipulate the powder coat gun around each moving part. Subsequently, it was difficult to staff the position due to the complexity of the coating procedure.
Adaptec Painting Robot Solution
We integrated industrial robotics with a robotic vision process from FANUC’s wide range of industrial automation products. Robotic vision systems were an effective technology to use in the application for part processing.
We used dual camera iRVision process that identifies the casting and adjusts for hook height and part-conveying speed. The casting is coated using two FANUC P-40iA painting robots. One robot coats the front of the part and the second robot coats the back.
FANUC iRVision technology is able to identify parts on-the-fly, eliminating part selection by the operator. The upstream operator loads castings on the monorail and waits for the coated castings to be returned.
The robots are flexible enough to handle new castings with minimal amount of vision and robot programming.
The system benefits from this integration service and support include labor savings, consistent part coating, and increased uptime. New Nordson powder coat equipment was installed at the same time providing additional savings on energy and powder.
Products used
- FANUC P-40iA industrial painting robot (2)
- FANUC iRVision
- Custom vision lighting
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