As today, the productive chain in a glass factory has drastically reduced the quantity down to single unit. The necessity to optimize the glass flow through the shop floor requires nesting multiple orders to optimize the cutting procedure.
This in turns generates the first delay in the completion of an order. As consequence, a certain number of dollies are requested at the break out table, to accommodate the various customers’ orders. This requires space.
Each one of the different pieces has a different destination, so someone has to push the dolly in front of the next process, where someone else has to load and unload the process.
This requires manpower.
The manual glass handling has many chances to introduce scratches and chips. This reduces the quality.
The KEY concept has the capacity to solve these problems:
improves the production expanding the flexibility, reduces the space requirement, shorten the delivery time, improves the quality and makes free workers to operate in other tasks.
This process has to interface with the Forvet equipments, as the technological level requested need the unique flexibility of the Forvet machines range.
The line can score, snap, grind or polish and can drill, countersink and mill on square and out of square glass with straight edges.
KEY COMPONENTS
B) Loading robot moving on lateral linear guides
C) Positioning conveyor
D) Scoring and snapping bridge
E) Air-float table for glass movements
F) Manipulating robot for glass positioning
G) CHIARA in-feed conveyor
All FORVET solutions are configurable and customizable
Photos
Shuttle rack system
This rack system is provided to hold the various glass dimensions / thicknesses on 9 different positions.
The system has the capability to open and to close the space between positions in order to increase the number of positions within the smallest space.
Loading robot
This robot is moving sideways to align itself to the desired rack position so to load the requested glass sheet. The smooth movement of the pneumatic frame grants glass pick up or lay back, with the safest cycle. To grant the single sheet pick up, the frame has the capacity to weight the lifted sheet.
Positioning conveyor
The purpose of this conveyor is to receive the glass from the loading robot, to provide the side alignment and the indexing toward the scoring bridge with a controlled positioning.
It has also the function to return the unused glass sheet to the position for the robot to load back to rack. The conveyor has also a frame movement that generate a gap where all the trims and left over are falling on the beneath cullet bin.
All glass movements are made on hi-precision belts.
Scoring and snapping bridge
By means of two carriages sliding on linear guides driven by brushless motors, the glass is scored with cutting pressure controlled by a proportional valve set for the specific thickness and snapped with a contrast wheel. To minimize the glass surface scratching possibility made by the scoring chips, the scoring wheel is positioned below the glass surface.
The control of the system provides to move the carriages on the correct starting and ending points of the glass.
In order to provide a necessary supporting surface below the glass to grant quality break out operations, the glass supporting structure moves by opening or closing the distances between scoring line and side supports.
Air-float table for glass movements
On this table the glass is moving controlled by the manipulating robot (pos. F). The glass is sliding on air float cushion to minimize the torque requested to the robot arm to position the glass so to have quicker movements.
A set of hi-precision photocells are installed for glass referencing and alignment.
Manipulating robot for glass positioning
The glass positioned by pos. C) will be hold by the suction cup frame of the manipulating robot. Once the glass will be X scored and snapped the suction cup will provide to rotate the traverse of 90° to score and snap the Y dimension of the piece.
If this is generating the final rectangular shape of the piece will be moved onto the Chiara loading conveyor. If the final shape will require additional scores (like Z or W or out of square cuts) the manipulating robot will automatically orienting the piece for each of the requested cuts.
The loading made by the robot, eliminate all the possible problems related to the glass orientation also for little differences in size or squareness.
Technical specification
Storage Max glass weight
4/6 T. based on position
Maximum glass weight
270 Kg
Maximum glass size
<=3660x2750 mm
Minimum glass size
400x500 mm
Glass thickness range
4 – 15 mm
Minimum trimming cut & snap
5 times the thickness
Video
