FORMING AND FABRICATING AUTOMATION
Cobots & Laser Welding—A Powerful Productivity Duo C ombining the simple programming and repetitive reliability of cobots with the speed and quality advantages of laser welding delivers a formidable solution for fabricators. Laser welding
Robots in Resistance Welding R
obots offer a flexible solution by eliminating the need for fixed or specialized tooling while handling and welding multiple types of parts with ease.
Resistance welding (RW) allows for joining of materials at a high weld speed with the versatility to weld a variety of physical config - urations. Typical stand- alone RW machines are manually loaded, actu- ated and unloaded by an operator. To increase production throughput and repeatability, manu- facturers often integrate these machines into au- tomated systems, which offer greater throughput and accuracy while elimi-
offers significant advantages in volume production over tra- ditional welding methods, pri- marily when joining thin ma- terials—carbon and stainless steels as well as aluminum in thicknesses less than 0.25 in. Adding collaborative robots (cobots) to the laser welding equation brings other signif- icant advantages that make cobot laser welding a power- ful productivity combo for for- ward-thinking fabricators.
A cobot-led laser welding setup includes the welding power source, cobot and fixture/ work surface, along with needed support equipment. Flexibility and cost-effectiveness of the process, repeatability, ease of programmability, and safety and portability of cobots make cobot laser welding an increasingly popular option for fabricators.
The ability of robots to aid in resistance-welding tasks allows for increased system efficiency, as this robotic capacitor- discharge-welding example shows. A robot repeatedly can manipulate parts at a higher rate than any operator, and with more flexibility than a hard-automated system.
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nating much of the risk for human error. In RW, for example, robots can be deployed in various ways, showcasing their versatility in automating tasks that, otherwise, would require manual intervention or customized equipment. This flexibility allows robots to streamline production, im - prove efficiency and reduce downtime.
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