Comau + SISCODATA (case011)
HOW DOES IT WORK?
The plant is divided into 3 macro areas: the display building area, the pick & place/filling area and the stacking area.
Our approach
The display building area
The display building system is able to build two types of display units: box pallets and tray displays. For both types, a Comau NJ40 robot shapes the display by automatically taking its parts from a silo. The robot closes the bottom using a hot melt method, by breaking and bending the middle part and gluing the display onto wooden pallets, or, if necessary, it inserts a sheet of cardboard inside the display and completes it. During the building of the tray, the side flaps are left open in order to allow the insertion of products during the pick & place phase.
Pick & Place/Filling area
The pick & place area automatically places the products in the displays with the support of four Comau NS12 robots. The system is able to handle very different products, such as boxes of cookies, flow packs, multipacks of glass jars and more, and can fill box pallets from 1/4 pallet (600x400mm) and tray displays from 1/4 pallet (600x400mm).
Finally, the empty box pallets and trays from the display building area are automatically positioned in the filling area. After the pick & place task and the hot melt closing, they are automatically gathered and then stacked by the two robot arms that work in a coordinated manner.
Stacking area
The final stage involves the stacking of the packages that have just been filled. In the case of box pallets, they are accompanied by mini pallets or by a cardboard frame with which they are equipped when they are built; consequently, they do not need further processing inside the stacking area.
ADVANTAGES
This line is able to build 40 displays per hour, a level of productivity and efficiency formerly unattainable with hand-wrapping or with other methods of automated packaging.
In terms of the tray displays, they are gathered at the end of the pick & place area after the filling. The system then closes the top of the tray by gluing the side flaps, and the trays are subsequently stacked and placed on a wooden mini pallet that comes from the display building area.
About SISCODATA
The company was established in 1974 and started its activity as terminal and equipment producer for Siemens and Philips, and manufacturer of sets for nuclear physics and aeronautical electronic systems. From 1978 onwards, it has developed systems for the textile field, growing at first in the domestic market and afterwards in the international arena, with plants sold and installed all over the world. The company, which is located in the north of Italy about 50 kilometers from Milan, produces customized systems for many automation requirements and is organized in the following divisions: Research and Development, Software and Electronics, Mechanics, Engineering, and Consulting.