Equipped by SCHUNKOn the road with the mobile future plat­form

In a robot-based research facility at the Univer­sity of Stuttgart, flex­ible and robust SWS‑L robotic quick-change systems are helping to support digi­tal­izing manu­fac­turing processes in the construc­tion industry, thereby increasing effi­ciency and produc­tivity. The mobile concept of the plant will sustain­ably trans­form trades and construc­tion busi­nesses.

The archi­tec­ture and construc­tion indus­tries are respon­sible for constructing all living spaces. In Germany alone, 400,000 new resi­den­tial units and asso­ci­ated commer­cial and public build­ings are expected to be built each year, but only half of this demand can currently be met. Mean­while, the construc­tion sector itself is facing serious chal­lenges: produc­tivity has been stag­nating for years, the consump­tion of resources and energy in construc­tion is consid­er­able, the volume of waste is substan­tial, and the cost of mate­rials and raw mate­rials is rising rapidly. Automa­tion can provide solu­tions here. SCHUNK is actively shaping this process – among other things, with robot quick-change systems.

The project team (from left to right): Benjamin Kaiser, Univer­sity of Stuttgart, Matthias Buck, Managing Director BEC, Dr. Felix Amts­berg, Univer­sity of Stuttgart, Jürgen Kolbus, Key Account Manage­ment, SCHUNK and Gunther Kopp, Key Account Manage­ment Grip­ping Systems, SCHUNK.

Digital fabri­ca­tion media become design para­me­ters in civil engi­neering

In 2019, the Univer­sity of Stuttgart estab­lished the new Cluster of Excel­lence “Inte­gra­tive Compu­ta­tional Design and Construc­tion for Archi­tec­ture” (IntCDC), which aims to harness the poten­tial of digital tech­nolo­gies for design, manu­fac­turing and construc­tion in the building industry. “Our approach is to share digital fabri­ca­tion media, such as CNC machines and robotics, as creative design tools. We incor­po­rate them as para­me­ters for archi­tec­tural design right from the start,” says Dr. Felix Amts­berg, coor­di­nator of the wood plat­form at IntCDC at the Univer­sity of Stuttgart. As a trained carpenter and studied archi­tect, he combines aspects of prac­tical crafts­man­ship with the constraints of design, tech­nology and research.

“SCHUNK‘s exper­tise in automa­tion, robotics and handling is very impor­tant for us.”

Matthias Buck, Managing Director BEC

Flex­ible manu­fac­turing solu­tions in construc­tion with SCHUNK compo­nents

Together with the system inte­grator BEC, a mobile, robot-based produc­tion plat­form was recently devel­oped that handles, processes and assem­bles wooden compo­nents as required. “We get to turn ideas from science into actual systems,” explains BEC Managing Director Matthias Buck. “To do this, we use suit­able tech­nical compo­nents and modules that meet all require­ments in all direc­tions – they must be reli­able, flex­ible and future-proof.” The core of the research package was a robotic system that is sent in full as a mobile factory to a timber construc­tion company, a work­shop or a construc­tion site. “Once there, the system can support the work as needed – for example, chip­ping, assem­bling, glue-binding, gluing or nailing larger wooden parts on site,” says Matthias Buck. “The heart of the system is the SCHUNK quick-change system SWS‑L that enables the robot to auto­mat­i­cally pick up and put down any end effec­tors, for example grip­pers, saws or milling heads. We relied on these SCHUNK compo­nents because we wanted to take advan­tage of the bus tech­nology used in the inter­change­able system to keep wiring to a minimum,” Buck said.

In focus: perfor­mance, flex­i­bility and future viability

The plant is designed to keep all options open for maximum future viability. “We initially want to use the system to solidly and reli­ably imple­ment the current project and also realize new projects in the future.” The robot, a Kuka KR420/R3330 with a payload of 420 kilo­grams, travels on a BEC linear axis, the seventh robot axis, which is perma­nently inte­grated into the container plat­form. The change system SWS‑L from SCHUNK, which can hold up to 1,300 kilo­grams, is the robust inter­face to the tool. The SWS‑L perfor­mance is partic­u­larly impor­tant for milling work where large forces are involved. “Specif­i­cally, the change system has a milling spindle and several large-area grip­pers with a vacuum system that can handle and feed larger wooden compo­nents,” says Dr. Felix Amts­berg. “However, other work processes can also be inte­grated, because the tools can be exchanged as required via the adapter.” And it doesn‘t have to be wood – the system can also be used in other trades.

In the future, the plant will be used as a mobile factory in construc­tion loca­tions where it is needed.

The complete range of SCHUNK quick-change systems consists of 20 sizes for payloads from one to 1,350 kilo­grams and covers a wide range of appli­ca­tions.

The exper­tise of automa­tion expert SCHUNK is in demand

The cluster‘s method­olog­ical and inter­dis­ci­pli­nary find­ings should lead to wider use of digital tech­nolo­gies and help over­come chal­lenges in the skilled trades and construc­tion industry. For example, it is possible to visu­alize the readi­ness of compo­nents during the plan­ning phase. Mate­rial-specific robotic construc­tion processes can signif­i­cantly influ­ence new forms of human-machine collab­o­ra­tion. “SCHUNK‘s exper­tise in automa­tion, robotics and handling is very impor­tant for us,” Matthias Buck confirms. And he continues: “Thanks to their flex­i­bility, we use quick-change systems and other compo­nents from SCHUNK in various projects. The tech­no­log­ical connec­tion between the Univer­sity of Stuttgart, BEC and SCHUNK had existed for quite a while. We are very satis­fied with it.

Quick-change systems SWS and SWS‑L

The SCHUNK quick-change system SWS‑L is the heart of the system that enables the robot to auto­mat­i­cally pick up and put down any end effec­tors, for example grip­pers, saws or milling heads. The quick-change system (SWS) consists of a quick-change master (SWK) and a quick-change adapter (SWA). The SWK mounted on the robot couples the SWA mounted on the tool. A pneu­mat­i­cally driven locking piston with its patented design, ensures a secure connec­tion.

Quick-change adapter SWA.

The change system SWS‑L can hold up to 1,300 kilo­grams.

Product infor­ma­tion:
schunk.com/sws


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