7 Palletizing Cell Format Concerns That Have an effect on Cycle Time

There are a number of elements to think about when you find yourself designing a palletizing cell. Even small choices that you simply make through the design section of deployment can considerably have an effect on the efficiency of the robotic, together with the all-important cycle time.

Palletizing cell format has a really clear affect on cycle time. Putting the elements of your cell in even a barely totally different place can add or subtract seconds off the time to finish one palletizing cycle.

With the suitable palletizing cell format, you possibly can enhance area utilization in your cell, obtain quicker cycle occasions, and improve your cell throughput.

Here is how one can optimize your cell format rapidly and simply.

How palletizing cell format impacts cycle time

Palletizing cell format is the association of components inside a robotic palletizing cell. This contains elements like placement of the robots, conveyor place and orientation, pallet measurement, and varied different elements.

The format can considerably have an effect on the cycle time and, thus, the efficiency of your complete palletizing course of. For instance, a robotic that’s positioned farther from the conveyor would possibly take 2 seconds longer to choose up a field than one that’s nearer. These 2 wasted seconds rapidly add up over the course of a piece shift – for a throughput of 12 pallets per hour, it may quantity to over 2 wasted hours per 24 hours.

When designing your cell, you additionally need to make different choices. For instance, do you need to use centralized or decentralized palletizing? Centralized palletizing entails utilizing a single robotic cell to deal with all of your palletizing duties. Decentralized palletizing entails utilizing a special robotic for every manufacturing line. Your selection will even have an effect on cycle occasions.

There are numerous steps to design a robotic cell for palletizing. Optimizing the actions of your collaborative robotic is a robust approach to get outstanding beneficial properties from seemingly minor modifications.

7 issues when designing a palletizing cell format

Designing a palletizing cell could be very simple, particularly in case you use a instrument like our Palletizing Configurator, which does a number of the exhausting give you the results you want.

Listed below are 7 elements that can have an effect on cycle time in your palletizing cell format:

1. Positions of robotic and conveyor

The place of the robotic and conveyors might be an important consideration in any cell format.

You need to place the conveyor in order that it could ship the packing containers as near the robotic as attainable. Usually, this implies orienting the conveyor so it reaches the pallet end-on and never horizontally.

2. Security gear or fencing

It is advisable separate human employees from palletizing robots, even when utilizing collaborative robots.

Be sure that you permit sufficient area inside your security fencing or sensor zone in order that all the things can match, together with leaving area for folks to enter to deal with the pallets.

3. Distances between cell components

The distances between cell components have a direct affect on the cycle time. Each pointless millimeter that the robotic strikes will add unproductive time to the duty.

Attempt to scale back distances as a lot as attainable. Nevertheless, ensure to go away sufficient free area that you do not improve the possibility of collisions.

4. Peak of conveyor

The peak of the conveyor, relative to the robotic and pallet, can have an enormous impact on the cycle time.

By inserting the conveyor near the midpoint between the highest and backside of the loaded pallet, you can also make the velocity of every field placement extra constant. Containers within the heart of the pallet might be positioned quicker and people on the high and backside might be barely slower.

5. X-Y distances

In addition to the peak, the horizontal (or X-Y) distances may also add or take away pointless cycle time.

Say that you simply add an additional labeling step to the palletizing job. It’d really feel pure to put the labeling machine additional away from the conveyor to keep away from collisions. Nevertheless, this might add further time to every field placement. As a substitute, it’s higher to reduce this distance.

6. Place of interlayer dispenser

If you’re utilizing interlayers between layers in your pallet, you will need to take into account the location of the interlayer dispenser.

Usually, the perfect place for the dispenser is true behind the decide location on the conveyor.

7. Robotic resolution used

Lastly, the precise robotic resolution that you simply use will strongly have an effect on the efficiency of the cell.

One issue to think about is how simple it’s so that you can edit the robotic packages. With an answer just like the Robotiq Palletizing Resolution, you possibly can simply tweak this system in case you discover an inefficiency within the cell format. This lets you proceed to enhance this system and cycle time over time.

The important thing to an optimum format: decrease actions

As you possibly can see from the listing above, most of the issues that have an effect on the cycle time of your palletizing robotic come down to 1 issue: distance.

By decreasing the distances between elements in your cell, you scale back pointless actions that the robotic has to take between palletizing steps. You need to attempt to decrease actions whereas avoiding collisions between the weather of the cell.

The only rule is to have the decide level as shut as attainable to the drop level.

By planning forward and utilizing instruments like our Palletizing Configurator, you possibly can make sure that the robotic strikes in probably the most environment friendly means.

The place to get extra knowledgeable recommendation on organising your robotic

Do you want extra info on easy methods to arrange your robotic palletizing system?

You may get a number of detailed recommendation in our free eLearning programs. The course on Lean Robotics for Palletizing is a superb place to begin. In addition to educating you the fundamentals of robotic palletizing, it introduces you to typical layouts and lots of helpful recommendations on easy methods to enhance effectivity in your palletizing course of.

What points of your palletizing cell do you assume are least environment friendly? Inform us within the feedback beneath or be a part of the dialogue on LinkedIn, Twitter, Fb, or the DoF skilled robotics group.