Case Study - Robotic Automation
Case Study – Robotic Automation
Morgan Advanced Materials consulted with RG Luma Automation to automate the handling of small ceramic components — specifically focusing on the loading and unloading processes between machines, as well as transferring finished parts into baskets. The objective was to streamline a highly manual and repetitive workflow that had become a bottleneck in production efficiency and quality consistency.
Challenges:
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- Minimise downtime caused by manual intervention and variability.
- Reduce overall cycle time to increase throughput.
- Improve quality and consistency by ensuring precise, repeatable part handling.
- Small parts with subtle symmetrical feature differences to be oriented and placed correctly.
The Solution:
Due to the number of positions, reach and footprint, robotic arms were selected for their speed and versatility in reaching multiple positions, as well as dexterity to manoeuvre around in confined spaces. Bowl feeders were ideal for sorting the small parts, orienting and feeding them consistently into the cell. Small Scara robots pick the parts in pairs and places them in specific patterns to maximise the utilisation of space. Parts are then carefully transferred by the robot arms to the lapping machine, maintaining the positions to fit within the lapping rings and prevent overlapping. After lapping is complete, the robots retrieves the processed parts and loads them onto an outfeed conveyor which dispenses the parts out of the cell and into submerged baskets.
Results:
Due to the number of positions, reach and footprint, robotic arms were selected for their speed and versatility in reaching multiple positions, as well as dexterity to manoeuvre around in confined spaces. Bowl feeders were ideal for sorting the small parts, orienting and feeding them consistently into the cell. Small Scara robots pick the parts in pairs and places them in specific patterns to maximise the utilisation of space. Parts are then carefully transferred by the robot arms to the lapping machine, maintaining the positions to fit within the lapping rings and prevent overlapping. After lapping is complete, the robots retrieves the processed parts and loads them onto an outfeed conveyor which dispenses the parts out of the cell and into submerged baskets.
