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Industrial paint robots have been used for decades in automotive paint applications.
Early paint robots were hydraulic versions, which are still in use today but are of inferior quality and safety to the latest electronic offerings. [1] [2] [3] The newest robots are accurate and deliver results with uniform film builds and exact thicknesses.
Originally, industrial paint robots were large and expensive, but robot prices have come down to the point that general industry can now afford the same level of automation used by the large automotive manufacturers.
The selection of modern paint robot varies much more in size and payload to allow many configurations for painting items of all sizes.
Painting robots generally have five or six axis motion, three for the base motions and up to three for applicator orientation. These robots can be used in any explosion hazard Class 1 Division 1 environment.
Industrial paint robots are designed to help standardize the distance and path the automatic sprayer takes, thus eliminating the risk of human error caused by manual spraying. Paint robots are often paired with other automatic painting equipment to maximize the efficiency and consistency of the paint finish. Rotational Bell atomizers, other automatic electrostatic or automatic conventional sprayers are mounted on the robot to provide the highest quality finish. Automatic mixing equipment will usually supply the sprayers with paint. This equipment is designed to regulate pressure and flow, which are extremely important in providing consistent paint finish. Varying levels of automatic mixing equipment can also provide features that cut down on paint waste, and energy costs.
Painting robots have been around since at least 1985. [4] They were first introduced in the automative industry, including at General Motors' plant in Michigan. [5]
Industrial robots, including painting ones, were created to keep people out of "dangerous" jobs as well as increase productivity. [6] Since their creation, robots have been working side by side with people in manufacturing companies. [7]
In recent years, the painting robot has evolved past industrial use. Many inventors have taken on the idea of creating robots that can create works of art, rather than paint in just a solid color. [8] Besides making them more creative, others have looked for ways to make the robots affordable and accessible for commercial use in places such as interior wall painting. [9]
Painting robots are used by vehicle manufacturers to do detailing work on their cars in a consistent and systematic way. Some of these robots are designed with a robotic arm that moves vertically and horizontally, to apply paint on all parts of the car. [4] A patent granted in 1985 to the Mazda Motor Corporation also includes a door handler (a small mechanical hand) that can open and close doors on a vehicle and paint the interior. [4]
Companies like FANUC continue to mass-produce industrial painting robots that are then sold to manufacturers for use. [10] According to FANUC's website, these robots are useful in limiting safety hazard such as the toxicity of paint, reducing wasted materials through consistent application, and increasing productivity. [10]
Robots are used to paint all different sized automotive parts because they can help provide consistent finish from one part to another. They are used for large exterior parts like doors, hoods, wheels, or bumpers, and also used on small interior components like knobs, consoles and glove boxes.
Finish is also extremely important in the aerospace and defense industry. These parts require very precise specifications for safety and performance reasons. Coatings can provide erosion resistance, anti-static dissipation, and even radar evading stealth. For this reason, consistent finish on all parts is vital to ensure continuity throughout.
Aluminum extrusion can be found in building panels, metal door and window frames, and structural extrusions that are used in the commercial building industry for protecting buildings and increase aesthetic appeal. Many panel and extrusion manufacturers are faced with slim margins. With that, comes pressure to improve quality, continue to reduce costs, produce faster and provide more customization for their consumers. Because of this, many manufacturers in aluminum extrusions and panels are using paint robots and automatic applicators to apply coatings for protection and aesthetics.
Agricultural and construction equipment finish is important because these types of machines face heavy operation in abuse from harsh environments. Coatings help to protect the machines form rust and extend their life cycle. In this industry, product branding plays a big role for many companies trying to differentiate themselves, so high quality finish is a strong factor for many manufacturers.
In order to provide a durable paint coating with strong aesthetic appeal is not an easy task and can involve several layers of different component materials. In an agricultural or construction equipment manufacturer, there are usually multiple pump configurations feeding a plural component proportioning unit that mixes the multiple components of the paint. The proportioner feeds an automatic applicator hooked up to a robot. With several passes with different coatings, consistency is also very important because it minimizes rework and downtime if it is finished right the first time.
Cookware technology continues to evolve using different high performance coatings in order to meet the needs of chefs or people cooking at home. Different types of cookware have unique performance requirements. They need to be able to evenly conduct heat, resist abrasion and impact from repeated utensil use, provide non-stick coatings, provide maximum cleaning ability, and have strong aesthetic appeal. The same pan may need to be coated multiple times with different materials to meet all of its performance requirements.
Paint line robots are very useful paired with an automatic applicator in this environment because each part requires multiple passes with different coatings. The performance of the cookware in each of its specific requirements will hinge solely on the quality of finish of each material. Paint robots provide the same spray pattern and paint path on every pass, minimizing rework for badly finished parts.
There are many different types of containers used in the cosmetic industry. Manufacturers in this industry are concerned with perfect packaging appearance, many using mirror finishes. Any surface imperfections will cause the piece to be rejected or scrapped. The problem is mirror finishes can actually amplify finish imperfections.
In order to reduce rework costs, the base coat needs to be applied to a very consistent and smooth manner with zero variation. This is accomplished by controlling flow rate from the proportioning unit, having fine atomization from the applicator and a very consistent spray pattern provided from a painting robot.
There are multiple ideas people have come up with to increase the presence of painting robots in various industries. One such idea comes from technology professors; an interior wall painting robot. The design aims to make the robots “roller-based” so that it can move freely along walls and apply paint to them. [9] The hope is to get people out of the toxicity of interior painting and decrease the amount of time it takes to finish walls. [9] According to the designers, the robot can be made inexpensively as to make it more commercially available.
CloudPainter is a company that designs robots, who's take on the painting robot shifts from simple filling of color to a robot that has “computational creativity,” and can paint more detailed and original designs. [12] The robot has a 3-D printed paint-head with multiple robotic arms and is programmed with artificial intelligence and deep learning. [12]
A painting robot designed by Shunsuke Kudoh is equipped with fingered hands and stereo vision. It is capable of looking (with a digital camera eye) at an object, then, using its fingers, pick up a paintbrush and copy the object onto a canvas. [8] The robot is relatively small and can paint small things, such as an apple. [8]
Ai-Da, a humanoid robot created by Aidan Meller, is prompted by AI algorithms to create paintings using her robotic arm, a paintbrush, and palette. [13] [14]
Clockwork, a manicurist robot, uses two 3D cameras to paint a fingernail in about 30 seconds. [15] [16]
Paint is any pigmented liquid, liquefiable, or solid mastic composition that, after application to a substrate in a thin layer, converts to a solid film. It is most commonly used to protect, color, or provide texture. Paint can be made in many colors—and in many different types. Paint is typically stored, sold, and applied as a liquid, but most types dry into a solid. Most paints are either oil-based or water-based and each has distinct characteristics. For one, it is illegal in most municipalities to discard oil-based paint down household drains or sewers. Clean-up solvents are also different for water-based paint than they are for oil-based paint. Water-based paints and oil-based paints will cure differently based on the outside ambient temperature of the object being painted. Usually, the object being painted must be over 10 °C (50 °F), although some manufacturers of external paints/primers claim they can be applied when temperatures are as low as 2 °C (35 °F).
An industrial robot is a robot system used for manufacturing. Industrial robots are automated, programmable and capable of movement on three or more axes.
Spray painting is a painting technique in which a device sprays coating material through the air onto a surface. The most common types employ compressed gas—usually air—to atomize and direct the paint particles.
FANUC is a Japanese group of companies that provide automation products and services such as robotics and computer numerical control wireless systems. These companies are principally FANUC Corporation of Japan, Fanuc America Corporation of Rochester Hills, Michigan, USA, and FANUC Europe Corporation S.A. of Luxembourg.
A car wash, carwash, or auto wash is a facility used to clean the exterior, and in some cases the interior, of cars. Car washes can be self-service, full-service, or fully automated. Car washes may also be events where people pay to have their cars washed by volunteers, often using less specialized equipment, as a fundraiser.
Robot welding is the use of mechanized programmable tools (robots), which completely automate a welding process by both performing the weld and handling the part. Processes such as gas metal arc welding, while often automated, are not necessarily equivalent to robot welding, since a human operator sometimes prepares the materials to be welded. Robot welding is commonly used for resistance spot welding and arc welding in high production applications, such as the automotive industry.
Powder coating is a type of coating that is applied as a free-flowing, dry powder. Unlike conventional liquid paint which is delivered via an evaporating solvent, powder coating is typically applied electrostatically and then cured under heat or with ultraviolet light. The powder may be a thermoplastic or a thermoset polymer. It is usually used to create a hard finish that is tougher than conventional paint. Powder coating is mainly used for coating of metals, such as household appliances, aluminium extrusions, drum hardware, automobiles, and bicycle frames. Advancements in powder coating technology like UV curable powder coatings allow for other materials such as plastics, composites, carbon fiber, and MDF to be powder coated due to the minimum heat and oven dwell time required to process these components.
A rotary atomizer is an automatic electrostatic paint applicator used in high volume, automatic production painting environments. Also called a 'paint bell', "rotary bell atomizer" or 'bell applicator', it is preferred for high volume paint application for its superior transfer efficiency, spray pattern consistency, and low compressed air consumption, when compared to a paint spray gun. It can be mounted in a fixed position, reciprocating arm, or an industrial robot.
A label printer applicator is a basic robot that can automatically print and apply pressure-sensitive labels to various products. Some types of labeling include shipping labeling, content labeling, graphic images, and labeling to comply with specific standards such as those of GS1 and Universal Product Code U.P.C. A pressure-sensitive label consists of a label substrate and adhesive.
A spray nozzle or atomizer is a device that facilitates the dispersion of a liquid by the formation of a spray. The production of a spray requires the fragmentation of liquid structures, such as liquid sheets or ligaments, into droplets, often by using kinetic energy to overcome the cost of creating additional surface area. A wide variety of spray nozzles exist, that make use of one or multiple liquid breakup mechanisms, which can be divided into three categories: liquid sheet breakup, jets and capillary waves. Spray nozzles are of great importance for many applications, where the spray nozzle is designed to have the right spray characteristics.
Sheen is a measure of the reflected light (glossiness) from a paint finish. Glossy and flat are typical extreme levels of glossiness of a finish. Gloss paint is shiny and reflects most light in the specular (mirror-like) direction, while on flat paints most of the light diffuses in a range of angles. The gloss level of paint can also affect its apparent colour.
Automotive paint is paint used on automobiles for both protective and decorative purposes. Water-based acrylic polyurethane enamel paint is currently the most widely used paint for reasons including reducing paint's environmental impact.
Graco is an American industrial company specializing in the development and manufacturing of fluid-handling systems and products. The company is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota and markets its products to customers worldwide.
Vibratory bowl feeders, also known as a bowl feeders, are common devices used to orient and feed individual component parts for assembly on industrial production lines. They are used when a randomly sorted bulk package of small components must be fed into another machine one-by-one, oriented in a particular direction.
Xylan is a fluoropolymer-based industrial coating, most commonly used in non-stick cookware. Generally, it is applied in a thin film to the target material to improve its durability and non-stick properties.
A film applicator is a device used to evenly spread a substance, such as paint, ink, or cosmetics, over a substrate such as a drawdown card.
Packaging machinery is used throughout all packaging operations, involving primary packages to distribution packs. This includes many packaging processes: fabrication, cleaning, filling, sealing, combining, labeling, overwrapping, palletizing.
A composite bearing is a bearing made from a combination of materials such as a resin reinforced with fibre and this may also include friction reducing lubricants and ingredients.
Rotary atomizers use a high speed rotating disk, cup or wheel to discharge liquid at high speed to the perimeter, forming a hollow cone spray. The rotational speed controls the drop size. Spray drying and spray painting are the most important and common uses of this technology.
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