Servo-Controlled Assembly Line
A modular assembly line concept for sheet-metal sub-assemblies, positioned by servo axes and fed by robots. Beyond the new stations, the scope also covers a drive and control retrofit of the existing ones.
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Problem
Because the existing line relied on pneumatic stops and fixed mechanical settings, every product change required manual adjustment. Transfers between stations were poorly synchronised, and the control hardware of some stations was so old that spare parts could no longer be found.
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Engineering Approach
We built a structure that handles dimensional differences across the product family with servo position tables instead of mechanical adjustment. Each station was designed as an independent module with standardised mechanical, electrical and communication interfaces.
On the stations within the retrofit scope, the sound mechanical frames were kept while the drive, sensor and control layers were renewed — bringing new and retrofitted stations together under one control architecture.
Project images
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Applied System
The system was structured so that its mechanical, electrical and automation layers were designed by one team. Main components:
System components
- Servo-driven linear transfer axis with shared transport pallets
- Servo positioning stations driven by product recipes
- Robotic loading / unloading with vacuum and pneumatic grippers
- Central PLC with station-level remote I/O and fieldbus communication
- Recipe, fault and maintenance screens on the HMI
- Zone-based safety and safe stop via a safety PLC
