Join Gary Kowalski, Senior District Manager at FANUC AMERICA, and Dan Allford, President of ARC Specialties, as they reminisce on some of their past projects. They will go over some of their failure, successes, and proudest achievements in the robotics industry.
Because they deal primarily with physical products, anyone in manufacturing knows that the industry as a whole has taken a hit from the effects of the pandemic.
Right now is a great time to consider starting a robotics company with the market offering a range of resources such as open-source code, a competent workforce, and more affordable components than ever before.
On Wednesday, October 16th at 7:00 pm, Dan Allford lead a session at AWS Welding Houston.
Collaborative robots or cobots are designed to be safe to work near people.
This unique feature opens up new applications for robots. One of these areas is welding and plasma cutting. Using case studies, Dan discusses where cobots might be applied and where they should not.
From FANUC America:
FANUC America Authorized System Integrator ARC Specialties designs and builds custom manufacturing machinery and automated systems including systems for metal welding and cutting, material handling, pick and place, test equipment and other custom applications. In this robotic system, ARC Specialties utilizes a FANUC M-710iC/20L robot to perform plasma cutting for 40-foot long sections of metal pipe.
First, a full-length pipe moves from a notched workplate to an automated infeed conveyor system. The automated in-feed conveyor indexes the pipe into the headstock cutting area, where the pipe is automatically positioned into place by chuck jaws. The system has five sets of chuck jaws that can be manually changed to accommodate pipes of varying diameter – from 0.75” to 24” in outer diameter. The six axis FANUC M-710iC/20L robot, equipped with a quick tool changer, picks up either an OAC or PAC torch from the quick tool change station. The robot uses touch sensing, as well as laser sensing to locate the nozzle parts and the pipe.
Once the pipe has been located the FANUC robot proceeds to first make a bevel cut. The headstock contains a robotic aux axis motor package and pop-up turning rolls that rotate the pipe in coordinated motion with the robot as it makes the cuts. After the bevel cut, the robot proceeds to plasma cut small and large holes into the pipe. The robot uses FANUC Constant Path, which allows it to maintain the same path regardless of static or dynamic speed override changes.
The system features simple setup – An operator simply inputs the desired cut dimensions into the HMI, presses the Go button, and the robot executes the cut. ARC Specialties’ cutting software generates robot code to execute the desired cuts based on the operator’s input, and the HMI is able to save and store these part programs. Once the FANUC robot is finished cutting, the pipe parts roll onto a gravity-fed pipe rack where they are removed from a notched work plate and finished pipe rack manually.
FANUC America Authorized System Integrator ARC Specialties transform manufacturing processes into high-quality, high-production and high profit operations. To learn more, please visithttp://www.arcspecialties.com.
A Robotic System, complete with machine vision, is currently in progress at ARC Specialties. A photo of the robotic arm and attached camera for vision is below.
The robotics team at ARC Specialties have designed, fabricated and programmed two separate robotic demonstration cells for Fabtech 2016 in Las Vegas. The RoboCell 1T will be located in the ARC Specialties booth, North Hall #5002, and the RoboCell 2P will be located in the KUKA Robotics booth, North Hall #5520.
The RoboCell 1T in the ARC Specialties booth will have a joystick that allows show attendees to try live Robotic TIG Welding on a business card holder to take home.
This Robotic Hardbanding System is an automatic welding machine that is used for applying tungsten carbide to tool joints and pipe. The project was completed in Summer 2016, and is available for purchase from ARC Specialties in Houston, Texas.
Features
Robotic cells built by ARC Specialties may be customized with other robotic applications like TIG or MIG welding, plasma cutting, plasma transfer arc welding, and other manufacturing processes.
With the high increase in productivity levels in the manufacturing industries, collaborative robots are becoming a sure way of increasing productivity.
Collaborative robots are a type of robot intended to work alongside humans by sharing a standard workplace.
Contrary to earlier fears where humans thought that robots were designed to take over their jobs entirely, the opposite is actually becoming a reality with humans working side by side with the robots.
Through the advancement in robotic technology and computing power, small industrial robots are becoming more and more popular among the small and medium-sized businesses as compared to the previous cohort of industrial robots.
Easy to Setup
Initially, it took weeks before a traditional industrial robot became operational. However, with collaborative robots, it just takes a few hours to set it up.
Easier Programming
Collaborative robots need no expertise when it comes to setting them up or even to operate them. These types of robots are virtually programmed by either adjusting the robot arm or through a tablet.
Flexibility
Collaborative robots are generally mobile and flexible. They usually do not require big floor spaces and can easily be deployed to support various new applications.
This however, has not always been the case with the traditional robots. This is because; traditional robots are often secured to the ground and can only be deployed for specific applications.
Safety
Unlike the traditional industrial robots, which have to be secured behind a cage because of their swift motions and cumbersomeness, collaborative robots are safe to work with.
This is because; collaborative robots are designed in such a way that they can sense obstacles. They are also designed to easily adjust their speed of movement or even reverse so as to avoid crashing into humans and other obstacles.
It is evident that with the latest incarnations, robots are being integrated into various applications at an increasing rate.
It has been estimated that the market for collaborative robots will reach a total of $3.3 billion in the year 2020.
Below are some of the benefits contributing to the high rise of cobots in the automation process.
Due to its flexibility, assigning new tasks to a robot is relatively easy. It is easy for a robot to perform the same task repetitively over a long time and still perform other different tasks every day.
This flexibility makes the robot a better option when it comes to hiring a temporary employee. You will agree with me that it is more sensible to employ a robot during production peak hours other than hiring a human operative. This is because of various reasons, such as payments.
Process optimization is the primary goal of robotization. Process optimization means being able to achieve maximum results while acquiring minimal costs. By using robots, errors are greatly minimized.
Human workers also get time to perform other tasks hence having increased productivity resulting in better operations.
Since collaborative robots are designed to work alongside individuals (not to replace them), employees tend to enjoy their work more as a result of the support they receive from these robots in performing their tasks.
Tedious, dangerous, dirty, repetitive, and monotonous tasks are assigned to robots giving human workers a chance to work and concentrate on other tasks. Human employees are also given an opportunity to take on creative and higher-level functions.
As a result of their programmed nature, robots are usually quick when executing particular jobs at a precise speed.
A survey revealed that robots still run strong even after being exposed to tedious errands year after year. This makes them suitable to work in almost all significant roles, such as routine tasks and labor-intensive jobs.
Robots greatly enhance the human experience, and they will be cheaper to purchase and install in a few years to come.
Productivity is also about to increase significantly by the incorporation of collaborative robots as compared to traditional robots.
This month, members of the ARC Specialties Technical Services Division programmed a robotic arm with a plasma torch on the end for a timelapse photography project.
