At JUNG, a premium supplier of modern building technology based in Lünen in Westphalia, Germany, a cobot from Universal Robots takes over the loading of a laser marking cell. It is equipped with a gripper for small components from SCHUNK, which ensures high throughput with great precision. Together, they are a prime example of how easy it is to get started with automation.
Until a few years ago, JUNG installed building technology components such as switches, design covers or smart radios manually. Then in 2014 the turning point came: The Manuserv joint project, which was funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, helped JUNG to automate a previously manual production process using robotics in a way that made sense from a technological and economic point of view.
For example, the UR5 lightweight arm from Universal Robots entered the production halls in Lünen as a new worker — equipped with the electric gripper for small components EGP 40 from SCHUNK. “It made getting started with robotics very simple,” says Carsten Meise, Team Leader for Production Equipment Engineering at JUNG. “Automating loading of the laser marking cell at our smart radio station and equipping this workstation with a cobot just made sense. We were able to install everything without a hitch and get started right away.”
Automated loading of the laser cell
With the SCHUNK automation concept Plug & Work, a large number of automation scenarios can be realized in a short time. In the meantime, we have an extensive full range of standardized components for gripping, changing and measuring forces and torques for various cobots and lightweight robots ─ from Universal Robots, among others.
„We clearly benefit from SCHUNK’s application expertise.“
Carsten Meise, Team Leader Equipment Construction at JUNG
At the laser cell station at JUNG the lightweight robot and the employee work together harmoniously, smoothly and safely. It works like this: The employee places a fully assembled housing including power supply unit in one of two workpiece holders and starts the UR5. The SCHUNK EGP 40 picks up the component and places it in a Rofin laser cell, where first one side of the housing is marked. The gripper then picks up the component again, the robot arm rotates the gripper together with the workpiece 180 degrees around the longitudinal axis, and the second housing side is labeled.
Finally, the EGP 40 places the component in a second holder, from which the employee removes it again for packaging. During automatic laser cell loading, the employee can perform other tasks. She prepares shipping boxes, cleans assembled parts with a cloth, places them in the boxes, assembles a new power supply and places it in front of the robot in one of the two workpiece holders.
Save time with the Cobot
“This cooperative pick-and-place application helped to design an efficient smart radio station,” stresses André Hengstebeck, Senior Project Manager Operations at JUNG. The SCHUNK EGP mechatronic 24-volt small parts gripper plays a major role in this. It scores with power density, high speed and high gripping force. Brushless, maintenance-free servomotors as well as a powerful junction roller guide ensure a high level of efficiency, and transforms it into the ideal handling component for dynamic, demanding pick & place applications.
The user remains flexible in terms of plant design, as the EGP can be flush or surface-mounted on the ground or sides. “We at JUNG clearly benefit from SCHUNK’s application expertise with this Cobot application,” confirms Carsten Meise. “Because we always assemble our production lines and operating equipment ourselves and it was very simple for us. We are now preparing more suitable workstations for automated processes.”