The FlexPicker system is composed of two feeding belts and a glue application gun. The robot`s job is to pick the lid up from a cleated chain conveyor using a vacuum cup system, apply a continuous flow of glue, and place the lid on the target package with a precision of three mm. With the PickMaster system lids of various shapes and sizes can be used with a minimum usage of glue and very fast changeover time (five to 10 minutes), according to Daniel Gravini, customer support engineer for PFM. Gravini notes that the system is extremely user friendly and allows clients to set up and run new products without any problems or special knowledge. Davide Rossi, robotics technician for ABB Process Solutions & Services (a branch of the Automation Technologies division of the ABB Group), adds that the modular system and the suction grip adapt to various lids and packs, in contrast to traditional systems, and are safer for the operator and more hygienic for the final consumer.
Plenty of Benefits
The advantages for PFM`s popular solution for handling the lids of baby wipe packages include:
- Lower cost
- Simplicity for the operator
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Occupies less space than traditional gluing solutions because the ABB FlexPicker robot is placed over the work area and not next to it
- More hygienic because there is less handling
- Reliability
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``If the client wants, we test every machine with the specified film and product right here before it is shipped out,`` says PFM customer support engineer Daniel Gravini. ``Modifications done here are practically free.``
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