13. July 2017 | News
Stäubli honours XENON as preferred partner
Bayreuth, July 13, 2017. The number of robots used in assembly machines is increasing for the international automation specialists at XENON in Dresden. Meanwhile, more than 100 robots are used for a variety of tasks in new machines. For XENON, that means primarily the use of moving six-axis robots or fast and highly accurate SCARA robots.
A performance that has been honoured by the Stäubli group and secured XENON the title “preferred partner”.
In July 2017, within the context of the 125th anniversary of the Stäubli group, an award of selected system integrators in Bayreuth took place. Criteria were not primarily the number of purchased Stäubli robots, but especially the various innovative applications in different industries. After more than 10 years of successful collaboration, XENON was honoured with the title “preferred partner”.
Loading and unloading system for injection moulding machines with multifunctional gripper.
The automation tasks to be solved by XENON are varied. In a system with a large range of customer parts for automotive products, a fast, flexible part handling is important. Here, camera-based flex-feeding systems in combination with SCARA robots provide the right feeding parts. The robot automatically changes its gripper when the part changes. With the help of laser beam barriers, the robot can automatically verify and readjust even these numerous storage positions.
In another machine for the production of innovative sensors for electric and hybrid vehicles, a two-meter-high robot loads an injection moulding machine. When all parts are placed, they are inspected again prior to the moulding process. So, a high level of quality of the production process can be guaranteed. In a long production line for diesel injectors, SCARA robots transport sensitive actuators gently from one process step to the next.
While most applications currently still come from the automotive sector, XENON is increasingly using robots in/for other industries. The robots used in a machine carry a camera on the forearm for the precision manufacturing of inductive proximity switches. In every part, the position and orientation are checked before picking and after placing. If they are outside the permitted limits, it will be corrected.
In the field of medical technology, for example, under clean room conditions glass capillaries will be glued in valves and this process is verified by an intelligent camera application. For a company of audio technology, another machine for headphone parts is being designed. The combination of faster robotics and intelligent camera technology ensures the high reliability of the desired part production.
Finally, clean-room capable robot technology is used for handling of solar wafers or smart glass.
The redundant use of multiple robots at a workstation ensures the desired process safety here. For various automation tasks in the manufacture of mechatronics, the robotic solution is the best choice today. Combining with advanced camera systems – the eyes of the robot – and the future economic use of collaborative robots will further inspire the boom of this industry. XENON is well equipped with the experience of more than 50 delivered automation machines and a young, well-trained and highly motivated team of specialists. This is one reason for the success of the growing company with 240 employees in Dresden and locations in China and Mexico.