Micromech Systems - Machine Build Page 3

MACHINE BUIILD

Application Example 3

4 lane inspection machine for checking camshaft bearing cap dimensions

Following successful completion of two pick and place machines with special purpose gripper heads for loading/unloading production line machining camshaft bearing caps, Micromech Systems was asked to produce an inspection machine for measuring six dimensions on each bearing cap prior to machining.

In order to satisfy the cycle time of one cap every 1.5 seconds, the machine had to be capable of measuring four caps simultaneously & was therefore fitted with four measuring heads each fitted with twelve probes to give the required six measurements. The heads were fed by four separate conveyors all driven by one AC motor.

As this machine could only be fed by two conveyors coming from a bowl feeder, two actuators fitted with special purpose gripper heads were used to load the caps onto the machines four conveyors.

In the event of a cap being out of tolerance, the unload grippers place it on a reject chute. If a pre-programmed number of caps are rejected consecutively, the machine will automatically check & recalibrate its self if necessary.

The machine uses Danaher actuators, motors and stepper drives, a Mitsubishi PLC with LCD display operator interface panel, and RDP probes and amplifiers.

Application Example 4

7 Axis Pick and Place Machine for copper plates

Micromech were called upon to design and build a pick and place machine that could place copper parts to a high tolerance, onto an adhesive web of material.

An 8 Axis controller was chosen for the heart of the machine, and 7 stepper drives cards powered the motors.
To achieve the specified cycle time, the software made extensive use of multitasking on the controller. This actually eased development, as some axes could be separated into almost separate machines.

The machine was built to handle 3 parts at once, using a 3-way pickup head. In order to place 50 parts per minute, parts were picked via a vacuum, and the presence of parts detected with 3 vacuum sensors.

To handle variance in product tolerances, an MMI (Man Machine Interface) was used to allow users the option to storing up to 100 different products, each with its own X & Y position.
The MMI also gave the operator basic diagnostic checks on sensors and the ability to manually jog each axis.

The machine uses Parker actuators, drives, controller, operator interface panel & Danaher stepper motors.

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