How to select the type of injection manipulator installed in precision plastic parts processing plant?

When choosing an injection manipulator in a precision plastic parts processing factory, the following factors need to be considered comprehensively:

First, the characteristics of parts

Size and weight

For small precision plastic parts (such as mobile phone keys, tiny gears, etc.), the size may be between a few millimeters and dozens of millimeters, and the weight is light. Usually, a manipulator with a small load (generally 1-5kg) is selected. Such a manipulator can operate with high precision, avoiding the influence of excessive load on positioning accuracy.

If it is a large plastic part (such as car bumper, large industrial shell, etc.), its size may reach several meters, and its weight is heavy (tens of kilograms or even hundreds of kilograms), it needs a manipulator with a large load capacity, which may be about 50-500kg.

Shape complexity

Parts with simple and regular shapes (such as cylinders, cubes, etc.) require relatively low flexibility of the manipulator. However, for precision parts with complex shapes, thin walls, inverted buttons or internal structures (such as medical equipment housings with complex cavities), it is necessary to choose a manipulator with multi-axis freedom (generally at least 5-6 axes) to ensure that the parts can be grasped and placed flexibly and avoid damage to the parts during demoulding or placing.

Second, the injection molding machine parameters

Mold clamping force and mold opening stroke

The clamping force of injection molding machine determines the clamping degree of mold. The working range of the manipulator needs to match the mold opening stroke of the injection molding machine. For example, for an injection molding machine with a mold opening stroke of 500-800mm, the horizontal extension and vertical lifting stroke of the selected manipulator should be able to cover this range to ensure the smooth removal of parts from the mold.

Generally speaking, the working radius of the manipulator (the maximum extension distance in the horizontal direction) should be slightly larger than half of the maximum mold opening distance of the injection molding machine, so as to ensure effective operation in different positions of the mold.

Injection cycle

The injection cycle of precision plastic parts is short, which may be between a few seconds and ten seconds. The action speed of the manipulator needs to be adapted to it to ensure that the operations of taking out and placing parts can be completed within the injection cycle. For example, for a production process with an injection cycle of 5 seconds, the total time of grasping, moving and placing actions of the manipulator should be controlled within 3-4 seconds, which requires the manipulator to have high running speed and acceleration, but at the same time, attention should be paid to the accuracy and stability during high-speed movement.

Third, the production efficiency and accuracy requirements

production efficiency

If the factory's production batch is large and the pace is fast, it is necessary to choose a high-speed manipulator. This kind of manipulator has fast running speed and short cycle time. For example, in some factories that produce mobile phone casings on a large scale, it may be necessary to complete multiple injection cycles per minute. At this time, the single cycle time of taking out and placing the manipulator may be controlled within 1-2 seconds to meet the production demand.

At the same time, it is necessary to consider whether the control system of the manipulator supports multi-task simultaneous operation and rapid programming, which is convenient for flexible adjustment according to different production tasks.

required precision

Precision plastic parts usually require high dimensional accuracy, for example, the dimensional accuracy of some optical lens mold parts requires micron level. For this kind of high-precision production, it is necessary to choose a manipulator with high repetitive positioning accuracy, which is generally required to be between 0.1 and 0.01 mm. High-precision manipulator is usually equipped with high-precision servo motor, precise transmission mechanism (such as ball screw, linear guide rail, etc.) and advanced visual inspection system to ensure the position accuracy of parts in the process of grasping and placing.

Fourth, automation integration requirements

Connection with peripheral equipment

Precision plastic parts processing plants may be equipped with other automation equipment, such as conveyor belts, automatic testing equipment and packaging equipment. The selected injection manipulator needs to be able to communicate and cooperate well with these peripheral devices. For example, the manipulator needs to be able to accurately place the taken-out parts on the conveyor belt and match the speed and running rhythm of the conveyor belt to realize seamless docking.

This requires the manipulator to have a variety of communication interfaces (such as I/O interface, Ethernet interface, etc.), which can easily interact with other equipment for signal and data transmission, and realize the overall cooperative operation of the automated production line.

Control system compatibility

The factory may have used a specific production management system or automatic control system. When selecting the injection manipulator, we should consider whether its control system can be compatible with the existing system or whether it is easy to integrate the system. For example, if a factory adopts MES (Manufacturing Execution System) to manage the production process, then the control system of the manipulator should be able to interact with the MES system, upload the production data (such as production quantity and equipment status) to the MES system, and at the same time accept the production instructions of the MES system to realize intelligent production scheduling.

V. Brand and after-sales service

brand reputation

Choosing a well-known brand injection manipulator can usually ensure the quality and stability of the product. For example, some brands with many years of experience and good reputation in the industry, their manipulators have been verified by a large number of actual production, with mature technology and high reliability. These brands often have their own patented technology in mechanical structure design, electrical control system and software algorithm, which can provide more reliable guarantee for the processing of precision plastic parts.

after-sales service

Good after-sales service is very important because once the manipulator fails in the production process, the production line may be stagnant. It is necessary to check whether the supplier can provide timely technical support, including equipment repair, maintenance and spare parts supply. For example, whether the supplier has a local maintenance service center and can arrive at the site for maintenance within 24 hours after receiving the fault notice; Can you provide regular equipment maintenance training to help factory technicians better maintain and maintain the manipulator?