STIHL opens up new avenues with FANUC's Collaborative Robot
Read the full story
The Task
The well known chain saw manufacturer STIHL, based in Waiblingen, near Stuttgart, also manufactures a range of petrol cut-off saws.
This is where the CR-35iA Colalborative Robot has been put into operation. A cut-off saw weighs around 10 kg, and without the assistance of the CR-35iA, the operator has to handle it himself. Upt to now, this has proven to be a considerable burden for the oparator.
The Solution
Using the robot should lessen the burden on the employees on the cut-off saw packaging line. On the new packaging line, the task of the robot is to remove the cutting grinder from a suspended conveyor, carry out the shake test, and keep it suspended until a final visual inspection is positively completed.
Subsequently, the robot then places the cut-off saw in a shipping box.
The Result
The robot relieves the burden on packaging line employees, while moving at a speed of 250 mm/s. And it takes over the lifting of heavy loads from the workers.
As a single cut-off saw weight around 10 kg, the total conveyed load over a single shiftper employee is around 8 tonnes. FANUC "Line Tracking" software and the "Collision Guard" option, which were already very familiar to STIHL, simplify the process. STIHL has been working with FANUC robots in its worldwide operations since the 1990s.
Find out more about FANUC's
collaborative robot series here
