New Tracking Technology Enables Robots to Carry Out New Tasks on Composite Parts and its Molds

摘要

Composites are becoming a common material for aero structures; that means new manufacturing processes with new problems and new challenges have to be solved. Our engineering team (EiNA) has recently developed and patented a new end effector for Robots that is able to track any kind of surface (even if the surface is moving, swinging, bending….which usually happens when working with big composite parts.) and carry out the required task. This new feature has enabled robots to automate manual tasks that hadn't been automated jet like sanding, cleaning, polishing, applying solvents, applying release and cleaning agents not only on aero structures but also on its molds. The solution is based on a set of sensors, a postprocessor which runs a software and a mechanical compensation gadget. As a result, we can keep all the parameters of a process fully under control even if the part we are working on is not stable and it moves swings and bends.