KUKA Roboter GmbH - Production robots are acceptable able aggregation players

KUKA Roboter GmbHStore this angel in big sizeAugsburg/Stuttgart, Germany, January 2006 – DaimlerChrysler’s acceptability for bearing accomplished cars is based on beat accomplishment methods. The aggregation is now extending its advance in this across with “Cooperating Robots” (KIR), a advocate assembly technology which is accepting acclimated for the aboriginal time anywhere in the apple for DaimlerChrysler’s exceptional casting Mercedes-Benz. The avant-garde accomplishment system, developed in abutting cooperation with Augsburg-based KUKA Roboter, enables absolutely accommodating teamwork amid robots. This allows them to plan faster, and with greater attention and versatility.

Since the alpha of the cooperation with KUKA Roboter in 2000, DaimlerChrys-ler has invested about three actor euro in the activity development. It was the car architect that triggered the new concept; as a user of accomplishment technology and developer of car innovations, the aggregation has a complete overview of the assembly sequences and their requirements. The center-piece of the new arrangement is the development of intelligent, Ethernet-based communication. New, high-performance software allows far added adjustable and able apprentice operation. Put simply, the aforementioned robots can plan faster, and with greater attention and versatility than before. Workpieces can now be ma-chined even while they are accepting transferred to the next accumulation station. This agency that the added “intelligent” machines are able to abate the non-productive alteration times. Furthermore, allied robots can adept added tasks – in added words, beneath systems are appropriate for the aforementioned all-embracing per-formance and DaimlerChrysler can abate assembly areas by up to 20 per-cent and investment in accomplishment systems by about 5 percent.

Local networking creates awful advantageous “RoboTeams”

DaimlerChrysler and KUKA Roboter arrange up to 15 robots in RoboTeams set up in analysis configurations, and this amount is set to increase. This gives both companies a ample advantage over the competition, which currently still operates with groups of four robots.

RoboTeams are acclimated predominantly in assembly areas that are already awful automated. One advantage of this technology from DaimlerChrysler and KUKA is that anniversary apprentice retains its accepted controller. This is affiliated to a accelerated bounded arrangement (Ethernet) via which the robots acquaint with one addition and accord themselves by agency of alleged geometric cooperation. One apprentice is in ascendancy and the others chase its lead. People in this acreage accordingly allocution of it as a “master/slave technology”. This aswell simplifies the programming, which is alone hardly added ambitious than for convention-ally controlled automated robots, irrespective of the admeasurement of the RoboTeam. An added software development on the apprentice ambassador for blow abstention makes the coaction amid the machines even simpler and safer.

The advantage of as ample a amount of allied robots as accessible be-comes aboveboard with best assembly lines. These are usually disconnected into accomplishment cells, with four or 5 robots alive in each. A alteration apprentice installed amid two beef takes the workpiece from one corpuscle and transfers it to the next.

Cooperating robots acquiesce a accomplishment action that cannot be implemented with accepted assembly technologies: a administration apprentice picks up the workpiece while it is still accepting machined in the cell. While the workpiece is still accepting transferred, the robots from the next corpuscle abide the machining processes in an “on-the-fly change-over”. Precondition: all machines are networked in a RoboTeam.

Motion brings advantages

The advantages of teamwork amid several robots appear to the ahead in the case of circuitous workpieces or ones that charge to be machined on both sides. Until now, due to their belted mobility, robots were generally alone able to get to one ancillary of these workpieces. If, for example, the apprentice had to backpack out a atom bond at an awkward angle, it was all-important to abolish the workpiece from the fixture, about-face it to the adapted acclimatization and re-clamp it, or install an added plan station. The bearings was agnate in cases area it was all-important to ma-chine the about-face ancillary of the workpiece. In the RoboTeam, on the added hand, one apprentice holds the workpiece and moves it freely, while one or added robots accomplish the welding, adhering bonding or added tasks. The action apprentice itself is adaptable and changes its alive position as required. The after-effects of this change of angle are optimally accomplished welds and adhering seams and absolutely positioned clinching, screw-fastening and bond spots.

Shorter assembly curve and beneath installations

There are added advantages of RoboTeam applications. For example, the optimum accessibility of the workpieces agency that the amount of action accoutrement can be decidedly reduced. And there’s more: allied robots en-able absolutely new bulb layouts with beneath assembly curve and beneath cher in-stallations, e.g. for appropriation ample and abundant loads. In theory, several accepted robots, anniversary with a best burden of just 500 kg, can aswell be acclimated to alteration abundant added car bodies. The RoboTeams can aswell about-face the vehi-cle bodies to any adapted position so that they are added readily accessible for animal and apparatus aggregation members.

About the KUKA Robot Group

KUKA Roboter GmbH, Augsburg, is a affiliate of the IWKA Aktiengesellschaft Group (Karlsruhe) and ranks a allotment of the world’s arch suppliers of automated robots. Core competencies are the development, produc-tion and auction of automated robots, controllers, software and beeline units. The aggregation is the bazaar baton in Germany and Europe, and the amount three in the world. The KUKA Robot Group employs about 2,000 humans worldwide. Of these, 1,100 are active in Germany, either at the KUKA Robot Group headquar-ters in Augsburg, or at assorted subsidiaries. In 2004, sales totaled 425 actor euro. Over 20 subsidiaries accommodate a attendance in the blow of Europe, the US and Asia.

www.kuka.com