Ferrobotics
75% faster thanks to cobot loops
The company Marlan Solid Surface relies on Ferrobotics for the automated sanding of its bathtubs. While force/torque tools need five to six hours for this work step, the cobot can do it in just 80 minutes - a 75% time saving.
The 'ACF-K' from Ferrobotics reduces the previously automated processing time from five to six hours to 1.5 hours and produces the desired, perfect finish on the Marlan surface.
© FerroboticsShower trays, washbasins and bathtubs used to be sanded by skilled craftsmen in laborious, time-consuming manual work. When Rik Heerema, CEO of the Dutch family business Marlan, began to rely on automation for this process, he expected the bathtub surfaces to be sanded quickly and cleanly. However, around a year and a half of using force/torque sensor technology never achieved the desired time and quality targets. The so-called 'force/torque' lost speed, had problems when touching down and the contact pressure was always too low or irregular.
The solution for Marlan is an end effector from Ferrobotics with 'Active Compliant Technology' (ACT). "The new, now possible, faster robot speed of 250 mm/second and the constant contact pressure of the FerRobotics ACF-K grinding tool were essential for our success. The cobot no longer stops, but sands the complex surface of the bathtub in a single pass and easily maintains contact with the surface thanks to the fast-reacting ACT and its 35 mm stroke," reports Heerema. Thanks to Active Compliant Technology, the contact pressure remains constant even at high speeds.
Thanks to the automatic gravitational compensation of the end effector's 'Active Compliant Technology', the contact pressure is always constant in every position.
© Ferrobotics"The FerRobotics ACF-K automatically regulates the constant contact pressure even with changing orientation in the room. With Marlan surfaces in particular, it is crucial to use the force of the end effector in a controlled manner so as not to tilt or sand too deeply," explains Heerema. The symbiosis of Cobot and ACF-K produces no unsightly sanding marks and sands as thoroughly as necessary without reworking.
It was important to Heerema that he works with a system that runs error-free and around the clock and can be easily duplicated, as he is planning another system with an industrial robot with a sensitive end effector.
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