Electronics and fragile components

Objective: Improve the manipulation and assembly of fragile and transparent objects from semiconductors and medical field of application. The use case is based on a system composed by a cobot, a conveyor belt for feeding and sorting boxes for the collection of different type of objects. The different components are prepared and partially assembled into the trays for loading and the trays will then follow the line for the automatic assembly of the finite product. The robotic station function is the identification and sorting/collection of components, with the integration of human-robot interaction for specific steps. The components are polymer based (soft and rigid), lightweight, transparent and with a dimension compatible with hand. The aim of the demonstrator is to integrate the usage of a collaborative robot for a smart conversion of manufacturing products.

Current situation and problem description: A dedicated system is currently used for the automatic assembly of semiconductors components.  The actual system handles different shape of components through the change of the gripping unit of the robot, it means stopping and/or slowing the flow of the process. The gripper changing is not compatible with the automation line and the manual preparation of the loading blister to be positioned on the tray is time consuming. There is a need for co-working for the preparation of loading tray (human-robot) and for the assembly of parallel production flow (COVID related). There is a need for interaction for the correct positioning and predisposition of objects on the feeding system and human-robot pre-assembly of part of the product.

How the use case (demonstration scenario) will work: The demonstrator is formed by a system in which a collaborative robot acts together with at least one operator. A loading and unloading conveyor are positioned close to the operator position and a blister supported loading station is positioned on the machine base.  The demonstrator consists in a robotic station for the assembly and sorting, with a conveyor belt for feeding and unloading (motion synchronism to be tested). A vision system for the identification of objects is integrated in the system and support the identification and quality inspection actions.

Expected outcome (Envisaged pilot execution or potential solution): An autonomous machine that can perform several critical steps in production line with the added value of the human-robot interaction to allow the real time correction, prevention or modification of critical issues for the positive outcome of the process. Furthermore, a possibility to easily switch between the production of two completely different products.

Expected impact: Improvement of the current concept of robotic assembly applied to electronics and COVID related production, thus ensuring the maximum effectiveness of the process with a smaller number of discarded pieces (less waste and resource consumption). The integration of new technologies and technical solutions will strengthen the competitiveness of OSAI in the European/global market through the optimisation of the process efficiency and, consequently, reducing time, waste and costs and increasing the quality. Furthermore the integration of human-robot collaboration into a standard system will strengthen the applicability of OSAI solution to the market.