How can tire automated handling improve assembly efficiency and quality consistency in new energy vehicle production lines?
Publish Time: 2025-11-13
As new energy vehicle manufacturing moves towards higher cycle times, greater flexibility, and higher reliability, tires, as a key end-component in vehicle assembly, directly impact production efficiency, assembly accuracy, and product consistency through the automation level of their handling, positioning, tightening, and inspection processes. Tire automated handling solutions—integrating intelligent logistics, robotic assembly, visual guidance, and data traceability systems—are becoming a core support for modern new energy vehicle production lines, significantly improving the intelligence level of production lines and the quality of vehicle delivery through fully automated processes, high-precision control, and real-time quality monitoring.
The core advantages of this solution are primarily reflected in its full-process automation and cycle time optimization. Traditional manual handling and installation of tires suffers from high labor intensity, unstable cycle time, and high torque errors. The automated system precisely delivers tires from the storage area to the assembly station via AGVs or conveyor lines. A six-axis collaborative robot, equipped with a specialized gripper, automatically picks up the tires, and a 3D vision system identifies the wheel hub position and posture in real time, achieving dynamic correction at the ±0.5mm level. A servo-electric tightening shaft simultaneously controls the torque and angle of four bolts, ensuring even distribution of preload and preventing brake disc deformation or abnormal noises due to uneven force. The entire process can be completed within 60 seconds, matching the high-cycle production requirements of 60-90 seconds per unit for new energy vehicles.
Assembly accuracy and reliability are significantly improved. The system employs closed-loop torque monitoring technology, uploading the tightening curve of each bolt to the MES system in real time. Abnormal data automatically triggers alarms and blocks vehicle transfer, eliminating risks such as missing parts, stripped threads, or insufficient torque. The vision system can also simultaneously detect tire brand, specifications, DOT code, and tire pressure sensor signals, ensuring precise matching of "one tire per vehicle," meeting the needs of personalized orders and OTA remote configuration. All operational data is traceable to specific VIN codes, providing a complete digital archive for after-sales quality analysis.
Flexibility adapts to multi-model co-production lines. New energy vehicle platforms often encompass sedans, SUVs, and crossover models, with wheel sizes ranging from 17 inches to 22 inches. The automated system, through parametric programming and modular quick-change fixtures, can switch between different tire specifications within minutes without stopping the line for adjustments. In conjunction with WMS and MES systems, it automatically retrieves the corresponding tires based on orders, supporting large-scale customized production.
Human-machine collaboration and safety design are equally comprehensive. Collaborative robots possess force control sensing capabilities, automatically stopping upon encountering obstacles to ensure personnel safety; workstations are equipped with light gratings, emergency stop buttons, and audible and visual prompts, complying with ISO 13849 safety standards. Simultaneously, automation replaces repetitive heavy manual labor, improving the worker's working environment, reducing the risk of occupational injuries, and enhancing the humanistic care level of the production line.
Ultimately, the value of the tire automated handling solution lies not only in "replacing manual labor," but also in its ability to upgrade traditional assembly processes into key nodes of intelligent manufacturing through digital, precise, and flexible technologies. When a new energy vehicle completes precise tire installation without human intervention, and when the data of every bolt is permanently recorded, this system becomes a silent testament to its quality commitment. In today's automotive industry, which is accelerating its electrification and intelligent transformation, tire automated handling is driving Chinese intelligent manufacturing to higher standards with millimeter-level precision and millisecond-level speed.
