How does the shell and plate processing automatic line solution improve the rapid changeover capability of automated production lines for shell and plate processing to handle multiple types of parts?
Publish Time: 2025-12-30
Against the backdrop of the rapid development of the automotive manufacturing and new energy vehicle three-electric industries, shell-type parts—including discs, shafts, rods, and various complex shells—exhibit typical characteristics of "small batches, multiple varieties, high precision, and fast delivery." Traditional rigid production lines struggle to cope with frequent product changes. The shell and plate processing automatic line solution, specifically designed for these parts, significantly improves the production line's ability to rapidly changeover to handle multiple types of parts through its modular architecture and intelligent collaborative technology, becoming a new benchmark for flexible manufacturing.
1. Modular Layout: Achieving "Plug-and-Play" Production Line Reconfiguration
The core of this solution lies in its highly modular physical and functional layout. Turning, milling, grinding, drilling, and tapping processing units are designed as independent standard modules, each equipped with a universal interface and standardized fixture base. When a product type needs to be changed, there is no need to rebuild the entire production line; only specific processing modules need to be recombined or replaced according to the process route of the new part. For example, switching from machining commercial vehicle gearbox housings to new energy motor end covers only requires adjusting the tool configuration and fixture scheme of the milling and drilling stations; the remaining modules can remain unchanged. This "Lego-like" reconfiguration significantly shortens changeover time, typically completing the switchover within hours and greatly improving equipment utilization.
2. Universal Fixture System and Quick-Change Interface: Shortening Assembly and Adjustment Cycles
For parts with different geometries such as discs, shafts, rods, and housings, the solution employs a series of pneumatic/hydraulic quick-change fixture platforms, coupled with standardized positioning benchmarks. The fixture body is fixed to the worktable, while positioning elements and clamping mechanisms are changed in seconds via quick-change interfaces. Simultaneously, all fixture parameters are digitized and pre-stored in the MES system. When switching products, the system automatically calls the corresponding fixture program, and the robot synchronously grasps the matching fixture head, achieving "software + hardware"联动 (linked) switching, avoiding repeated manual adjustments, and compressing the traditional clamping preparation time of several hours to less than 15 minutes.
3. Articulated Robot Cluster: Flexible Logistics and Adaptive Operations
The production line integrates multiple six-axis articulated robots to handle tasks such as loading/unloading, process transfer, flipping, and inspection. These robots possess powerful path planning and collaborative control capabilities, and tasks can be dynamically allocated through a central scheduling system. More importantly, their end effectors support electric quick-change devices, automatically switching between suction cups, grippers, or specialized grippers based on part type. Combined with offline programming technology, robot trajectories for new products can be pre-generated and verified in a virtual environment, requiring only one-click import on-site without downtime teaching, truly achieving "uninterrupted production changeover."
4. Intelligent Vision Positioning System: Eliminating Dependence on Manual Alignment
Traditional production lines often require manual intervention for calibration when facing inconsistencies in blank consistency or slight clamping offsets. This solution introduces a high-precision 3D vision positioning system that performs a full-size scan of the part before robot gripping, calculates the optimal gripping pose and machining coordinate system offset in real time, and automatically transmits the compensation data to the CNC machine tool. This closed-loop correction mechanism makes the production line highly robust to incoming material tolerances. Even when switching to entirely new parts, precise machining can be achieved on the first piece, eliminating scrap due to positioning errors and significantly improving the success rate of the first changeover.
5. Digital Twin and Process Database: Accelerating Changeover Decisions
The entire production line relies on a digital twin platform to build a process knowledge base covering hundreds of shell parts. Each product corresponds to a complete "digital process package," including machining programs, fixture configurations, robot paths, vision templates, and quality control points. During changeover, operators only need to select the target part model on the HMI interface, and the system automatically loads the complete set of parameters and starts the self-inspection process. This data-driven changeover model not only reduces reliance on operator experience but also ensures a standardized, traceable, and zero-omission changeover process.
The shell and plate processing automatic line solution, through the deep integration of modular hardware, flexible robots, intelligent vision, and digital systems, transforms "rapid changeover" from a slogan into a quantifiable and executable engineering capability. While meeting the needs of efficient mass production of electric components for passenger cars, commercial vehicles, and new energy vehicles, it also endows the manufacturing system with unprecedented agility and future adaptability—this is the core competitiveness of the intelligent manufacturing era.
