RoboMill – Upholstery Edition
Breaking the stereotype that upholstery production cannot be robotised
At Industrial Robotics Company, we love a good challenge. After hearing countless remarks in upholstery factories about the difficulty to automate upholstery production, we set out to change this notion. Our solution? Adapting our versatile robotic carpenter RoboMill to produce specifically upholstery frame parts. We developed the RoboMill – Upholstery Edition to handle various upholstery frame parts and perform essential operations such as sawing, milling, and drilling. To further enhance its functionality, we have incorporated two T-Nut (M6, M8) riveting machines, automating the manual process of hammering T-Nuts into the parts. This comprehensive setup, with RoboMill positioned in the middle and tool stations surrounding it, significantly reduces logistics time within the factory. It tackles the challenges of product variety and complexity head-on, offering a reliable and efficient solution for the manufacturing of upholstery frame parts.
Advantages of the RoboMill – Upholstery Edition
- Efficient production: All operations are centralised, saving valuable logistics time within the factory.
- User-friendly operation: No robotics or programming expertise required. Our software, including CAD/CAM system SprutCAM and intuitive interface (SCADA), enables the easy setup and operation of the robotic solution.
- T-Nut riveting capability: Integrated T-Nut riveting machines accommodate different dimensions, such as M6 and M8.
- Error elimination: Automated T-Nut riveting eliminates human error by always hammering the T-Nuts in the correct place.
- Consistent quality: Delivering exceptional and consistent quality of production.
- Flexible gripper options: Automatic gripper changing station for efficient handling of parts of different types and dimensions.
- Small-batch production capability: RoboMill excels at producing frame parts in small-batch production.
- Autonomous workflow: Once orders are created, a worker can fill the racks with blanks, which allows the robot to work autonomously until all orders are completed.
- Continuous production: The rack feeding system ensures uninterrupted material supply to the robot.
- Material efficiency: Milling parts from square blanks minimises material waste compared to CNC nesting methods.
A unique way of producing upholstery parts
The workstations surrounding the robot enable all operations to be conducted in a centralised location. To provide materials to the robotic cell, the operator simply pulls out the adjustable racks, fills them with blanks, and pushes them back in. These racks are designed to accommodate parts of different types and sizes, making the system ideal for small-batch production. Once supplied with the materials, the robot selects a part from the bottom of the rack and proceeds to perform sawing, milling, drilling, and automatic T-Nut riveting operations. After processing the part, the robot places it back on top of the rack and continues the cycle until all blanks are completed. The system can then move on to the second rack, which may contain different types of parts. If necessary, the robot can switch to a different gripper to handle specific parts. Meanwhile, the operator can remove the first rack, refill it with blanks, letting the robot seamlessly continue its operation.
