Thilo Brodtmann, VDMA: "The numbers show a clear upwards trend in professional service robotics. A special show in the area of service robotics at the AUTOMATICA 2010 will also show what is possible today - and that sounds hopeful - also in terms of turnover that are still to be made in this area." Image: Schreier

The robotic and automation technologies were among the factors driving growth in German mechanical engineering in the past few years. MM-editor Claudia Otto and Thilo Brodtmann, Managing Director of the Robotics + Automation Association of the VDMA, discussed the economic situation of the industry and the outlook for 2009. Herr Brodtmann, the area of robotics and automation had some very good years with two-digit growth rates that are now in the past. Looking back, how did things go in 2008? Brodtmann: That can be said in a few words. 2008 was the record year for our industrial sector. We have increased turnover by 35% in the last three years and, especially in 2008, added another 13% to that to get over the 9.3 billion euro mark. That has really set a milestone for our sector of the business. What effects did the crisis in the automobile industry have on assembly, handling and robot technologies? Brodtmann: The free fall from the record year of 2008 down to 2009 has been extreme. We booked fewer incoming orders up to the turn of the year, mainly due to the car industry, as the crisis has made a particularly heavy impact there. The reverse conclusion is that, with 50% dependence on the automobile industry, the outlook for us is also worse. We must therefore assume that, as in this year, we will be confronted with a 20% drop in turnover that will set us back to the level of 2006. Gerald Mies, head of Fanuc Robotics in Germany, reckons with a considerable drop in robot deliveries in 2009. This will be around 10% in his own company. Can this number be applied to the entire sector or what forecast does the VDMA have for the current year? Brodtmann: Because of the dependence on the car industry just mentioned, very much will depend on whether that industry begins in the course of this year to catch up on projects that were postponed. There is a therefore a degree of uncertainty as to how the robotics business will develop in the near future. We assume, however, that for robotics as a whole - for the machine manufacturers as well as for the system integrators - there will be an 20% average drop in turnover in 2009.

Where do you see current sector-related growth markets for robotics and automation?
Brodtmann: That is where the car industry has so many difficulties at the moment, logically general industry; in other words everything that is not associated with the car industry. We still see, as before, clear growth possibilities in photovoltaics, in medical technology, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. The proportion of general industry here is however between 40% and 50% and cannot therefore completely change course.

There is a lot of talk about mobile robots, stand-alone robots and service robots. The International Federation of Robotics, IFR, is predicting enormous growth rates. Critics, however, consider this to be a pipe dream. Who is right?
Brodtmann: That depends on the application. But it can be generally said that service robotics is almost at the point of a breakthrough. We have very high growth numbers there, although as VDMA it is naturally more the professional service robotics that interest us and less the applications in the toy area. The numbers show a clear upwards trend in professional service robotics. A special show in the area of service robotics at the AUTOMATICA 2010 will also show what is possible today - and that sounds hopeful - also in terms of turnover that are still to be made in this area.

Herr Brodtmann, many thanks for this interview.

Editors: Jürgen Schreier and Claudia Otto

Dr. Norbert Stein, VDMA: "AUTOMATICA 2010 will be ideally positioned. In that time, we will have - hopefully, but we are all convinced of it - largely overcome the crisis and again be in the positive growth phase. An ideal time for a trade fair."  Image: Schreier

MM-editor Claudia Otto spoke with Dr. Norbert Stein, Chairman of the Governing Board of the Robotics + Automation Association of the VDMA, about the current economic situation, AUTOMATICA 2010 and technical trends for the future in industrial image processing. Dr. Stein, industrial image processing has just experienced a long phase of growth. What are the conclusions to be drawn for 2008 and what is the forecast for 2009? Dr. Stein: 2008 was a very good year for image processing. We had 5% growth, even if it was less than we had in the long years before that. However, every market goes through a phase at some time in which the annual growth rates are no longer in double figures. But we were doing very well with 5% - taking the drop at the end of the year into consideration. 2009 will be a very difficult year for image processing. That is already apparent. We never had such a drop of 48% in orders received in the first quarter. We are reckoning, based on these numbers, with a sharp decline in sales for the entire year of 30%. We see this, however, as a short-term trend and believe that we can start to climb back slowly to the old figures from 2010 onwards. It is still more than a year till the AUTOMATICA in June 2010. In spite of the crisis the fair, that is supported by the VDMA, is already well booked. Why does anyone as exhibitor or as visitor have to mark this date very clearly in his or her calendar and what impetus does AUTOMATICA 2010 provide, in your opinion? Dr. Stein: The last three AUTOMATICAs were great successes and the next one in 2010, in just over a year, will be ideally positioned. In that time, we will have - hopefully, but we are all convinced of it - largely overcome the crisis and again be in the positive growth phase. An ideal time for a trade fair, most especially for an automation fair such as AUTOMATICA! Our customers can then come and get information about new possibilities of optimising their processes, improving quality and how to produce in a cost-saving manner. The AUTOMATICA 2010 is therefore ideally placed as far as timing goes. We as exhibitors are naturally very pleased to be at the AUTOMATICA 2010 and like to go to this fair as we can meet our customers there and talk to them about our innovations. We are making use of this opportunity we have at the moment with the small economic downturn, if I dare to say it, to make new developments. And we will then be at the AUTOMATICA 2010 with these new products. We are therefore very optimistic that the next AUTOMATICA will be an even greater success than the one in 2008.

Dr. Stein, cameras are becoming ever faster with higher resolution. Can the peripherals - especially the interfaces and the buses - keep pace with this development? And how do I, as user, cope with this?
Dr. Stein: I have been in the image processing industry with Vitronic now for 25 years. We still had analogue interfaces at the beginning. The question did not arise at that time as the cameras were not so fast. Since then we have had a whole series of different interfaces and we have progressed so far today with GigE that we can bring the data fast enough into the computer for all cameras on the market.

Image processing cameras are becoming more intelligent, the software increasingly user-friendly. When will the optical component arrive that allows the user to completely configure his solution on his own?
Dr. Stein: Modular image processing systems are already available. The market for these is also growing - from the simplest systems, the vision sensors, up to more complex systems. However, in the foreseeable future, I would even say for ever, there will be systems that are configured by the manufacturer. The reason for this is that the demands on the systems vary greatly. Configurable systems will exist for standard requirements. But when the customer has very specific wishes, the image processing system will also be very specific. We therefore have both solutions and will continue to have these in the future. We saw in 2008 that the proportion of configurable systems and simple systems is certainly growing but that the complex systems also continue to show growth.

What part does the image processing association in VDMA play in the standardisation of the international image processing standards?
Dr. Stein: In that we have tried to become as international as possible - and have been very successful in this. We set up the European Machine Vision Association (EMVA) that is managed from the office in Frankfurt am Main. We have bundled the standardisation questions in EMVA. That is, we have not shifted it to Europe but have been active ourselves in the matter of standardisation at the European level. That is, I think, sensible as we work with few partners. There is one Europe; we speak for one Europe just as our partner association in the US, the AIA, speaks for the whole of America.

CMOS sensors in camera technology are increasingly in competition with the established CCD elements. What advantages do the new sensors have for the user?
Dr. Stein: The use of CMOS sensors has been increasing for many years. The breakthrough is now slowly approaching - and the breakthrough is justified. CCD sensors were technically superior for a long time. That is no longer so in all areas. CMOS technology is very suitable for the manufacture of large-area sensors. They can be made more cheaply and have also, to some extent, better technical properties. Dynamic range is, for example, very important in image processing. We use CMOS sensors particularly in traffic engineering, and therefore outdoors, as they have a distinctly greater dynamic range than CCDs. That means that they supply image information when the image is partly sunlit and partly in the shade while CCD sensors often have problems here. For applications where the illumination is critical, certain CMOS sensors - but not all - are much better than conventional CCDs. There are also CMOS sensors that are optimised in terms of low-cost production, which further allows the manufacture of low-cost cameras that perform just as well as CCD cameras but cost very much less That means, we have various aspects: on the one hand, very low-cost solutions with CMOS sensors and, on the other hand, very ambitious technical solutions using CMOS sensors. Diversity makes the difference.

Dr. Stein, many thanks for this interview.

Editors: Udo Schnell and Claudia Otto

Bosch (Australia) manufactures and tests remote ignition keys for vehicles in 3-shift operation on a Desktop Factory system from Rexroth. Image: Rexroth

New variants, modifications or fluctuations in piece numbers are no longer a problem in the production of remote ignition keys. The Desktop Factory modular assembly system used provides high flexibility so making it possible to react to market demands at short notice - with a simultaneous reduction in costs. UDO SCHWARZE Dipl.-Ing. Udo Schwarze is Manager for Customer Solutions at Bosch Rexroth AG, Linear Motion and Assembly Technologies, D-70442 Stuttgart, Tel. (07 11) 8 11-2 28 94, Fax (07 11) 8 11-3 34 75, udo.schwarze@boschrexroth.de Anyone who unlocks a car door nowadays has in many cases a remote key in his/her hand made by Bosch Australia Pty. Ltd., Clayton, in the state of Victoria, Australia. When a key is produced every seven seconds, this is the result of sophisticated production processes such as high-frequency testing, laser engraving and quality control using image processing. Instead of conventional solutions that would have demanded high investment and a large amount of manufacturing space for the production of the small door openers, Bosch Australia looked for a new idea and found it in the form of Desktop Factory (DTF) from Rexroth (Fig. 1). The team responsible for the layout planning quickly recognised the benefits. It was therefore possible, due especially to the simple integration of the complete, pre-configured high-frequency test unit on a DTF module (Fig. 2) that is only 220 mm wide, to reduce the time for system set-up by about a third. It was possible, at the same time, to reduce the investment by roughly 15%.

Desktop Factory is a new assembly system from Rexroth. The idea is implemented using standard cells with miniaturised process plug-ins that provide a unified platform for the assembly (Fig. 3). The ready-to-install units, which also include the high-frequency test units used by Bosch (Australia), can be quickly combined into a production system with little design effort, but still with a high degree of planning confidence, thanks to the construction kit.

Assembly system has standardised set-up
The standardised set-up was one of the most important reasons for the Bosch team to use the DTF concept. The production system, with its small space requirement, is ideal for a short cycle time of 7 sec and the production of the relatively small key. That the entire basic outfitting of the DTF is available in an ESD version, was a further criterion in making the decision. Electrostatic discharges are so avoided and pose no problem in the remote key production during 3-shift working.
Bosch (Australia) uses the automatic DTF system with workpiece carrier recirculation system (Fig. 4). That shortens the transport paths within the assembly and considerably reduces the number of components in the process. The system consists of six stations. Firstly, the electronic units are loaded and rotated through 90° so that they can be laid in the workpiece carrier. On the next DTF module, a test is made in a high-frequency-proof chamber and an already-tested piece is simultaneously extracted. The high transparency of the system is evident at each individual station. For example, parts that are evaluated in the high-frequency test as "bad" are immediately discharged to the rear and can be processed on an empty station. Those responsible for the assembly know at all times where and what is being assembled and can follow exactly all the individual processes.
Desktop Factory grows with the tasks to be performed and can be easily adapted to changes in market requirements. Fluctuations in piece numbers and product modifications at a later date therefore have no effect on the initial investment. At the beginning seven variants of the key were made - this has now risen to ten.

Image processing checks the variant number
Only those parts assessed as "good" in the high-frequency test reach the laser and vision stations where they are taken from the workpiece carrier and rotated. A CO2 laser then engraves the variant number and symbol, date, as well as software and hardware numbers on the part. As the laser operates in the infra-red spectrum, the beam is absorbed by a transparent protective door that also comes from the Rexroth product range. There is therefore no radiation danger to people working on the system. The variant number and symbol are then read at the same station und checked by an image-processing system before the part is again laid on the workpiece carrier. In the final unloading station the completed remote keys are again rotated and then handed over to the palletising.
Reduced investment, low space needs and the simple adaptation of the system to changes in piece numbers required were crucial for Bosch (Australia) in selecting Desktop Factory. In addition, the modular kit system provides the financial benefit of step-by-step, no-risk extension to the system: This allows the overall costs to be reduced by up to 30% compared with conventional systems.
Should the piece numbers drop, the basic components of the process modules can naturally be re-used for other products. The financial benefits from the re-use of the process modules can be as much as 80% by the consistent use of the DTF concept. With DTF, users can now fall back on a matured and tested process instead of integrating individual solutions, as is the case in conventional systems. The effort required in adapting to the number of pieces is considerably reduced and the risk, in a retrofit action that parts are temporarily unavailable, approaches zero.
Testing new modules in parallel with production
The Australians benefit from Desktop Factory, even when completely new processes are to be integrated into the system. In the past, it was difficult to establish new processes and make them available when there were extensions and modifications. With the DTF concept, it is now possible to test new modules external to the system and therefore in parallel with the actual production. If the particular process has been matched, the new module can be integrated into the system and several samples immediately produced on it. After that, the production can be reset to the conventional product without any great trouble. This possibility offers flexibility and loss of production is minimised.

Convinced by the DTF assembly concept, Bosch (Australia) is now using the Rexroth modular construction kit in a further project. In the production of a steering angle sensor, it has been possible with Desktop Factory to reduce the production area by around 30% for two lines and even by 40% in a further line.

The new production line at Chery Automobile has been automated using Feederplus, a linear robot system. Image: Strothmann

The linear robot system Feederplus allows the sheet metal blanks to be oriented in up to six axes during the transfer. This enables it to combine the benefits of linear and articulated arm robots. A press line was automated recently at Chery Automobile in China using Feederplus. DEREK CLARK There are controversial discussions in the market about the effective use of conventional robots, classical linear feeders and of transfer systems in the mass feeding of presses. The working life of a press line is around 30 years; it is automated typically three times in this period. The transfer system must be capable of use in small and large gaps between the presses and also for the production of special parts - from ashtrays to the complete side of a car. Two linear robots and an orientation station are necessary for handling in the space between presses in conventional feeder automation. The investment and operating costs rise due to the high number of machines per press gap and the triple tooling. The double-feeder solution has the advantage that the feeder only has to cover half the distance in the press gap so gaining a time advantage, especially for large distances between presses, and so secure a greater throughput that then neutralises the increased investment. New ideas show that a single feeder per press gap that can orient the sheet metal parts itself during the travel and lay them correctly positioned in the press can work more efficiently than a double feeder or articulated-arm robot, especially with small distances between presses. "With the linear, overlaid motion sequences, this feeder type has a significant time advantage compared with conventional robots", explained Michael Spiegel, managing director of Strothmann GmbH.

The feeder concepts considered below should operate under realistic conditions at a centre-to-centre press spacing of 6500 mm without intermediate storage. The estimated output of twelve 4 m × 1.8 m blanks per minute cannot be met by all feeder types without some problems. The feeders have four axes; a fifth or sixth can be integrated as an option for further operations.

The single-joint feeder possesses a rotating axis that can be driven in both directions, horizontal as well as vertical. A rotating joint is located on the tooling connection. The blank must be held slanted initially so that it cannot come to a collision with the upper tool area because of the long axis of rotation. Speed and acceleration capacity of the moved masses are very high because of the centrifugal force of the single-joint feeder. An automatic tooling change is generally possible with the single-joint feeder. "Because of the kinematics, however, this concept was unsuitable for the new linear robot line from Strothmann", said Spiegel.

The four-axis, swivel arm feeder is a linear robot with horizontal travel path and a harmonious motion sequence. A lot of programming effort for the movement to get an optimum cycle time is, however, required. The use of this feeder enables speeds of up to 3 m/s on the horizontal axis and up to 5 m/s on the vertical axis to be achieved. Acceleration values of up to 15 m/s² on the vertical axis and up to 6.5 m/s² on the Z-axis lie in the non-critical range. An automatic tooling change is also possible vertically with the swivel-arm feeder. The robot arms needs at least 1000 mm press stroke because of the horizontal travel. "The geometry and the degrees of freedom of the jointed-arm feeder are rather unsuitable for the press spacing, less than 6500 mm, as collisions with the upper tool are conceivable", said Spiegel. The programming of the motion sequence and rotation is difficult with a swivel-arm feeder with spider joint, a linear robot with rotating linear axis and horizontal travel.

The feeder is not suitable for low spacings between presses when the swivel arm is not telescopically extended.
 An extension about a vertical axis would be sensible. An vertical tooling change is also possible with the swivel-arm feeder. The onboard horizontal axis achieves a top speed of 1.8 m/s and the onboard vertical axis can reach 5.5 m/s. "The accelerations of up to 22 m/s² in the vertical axis and up to 15 m/s² in the Z-axis are critical", reported Spiegel. A sudden stop can lead to complications as the long axis of rotation can collide with the tool.

The blanks can be orientated in up to six axes
The special feature of the four-axis, jointed feeder series is a traversing Y-axis that allows a high vertical speed as well as flexibility in handling. The traversing axis stands vertically; the telescoping arm is attached at the side and not outfitted further. The high accelerations (Z-direction: 22 m/s²; Y-direction: 17 m/s²) are critical areas in this feeder type. Its maximum horizontal speed is 2 m/s (vertical 4.5 m/s). The four-axis traversing feeder is suitable for low press spacings of 6500 mm. An additional horizontal axis makes sense, however, for larger press spacings. "The installation height of the feeder in the press was not suitable for our purposes", the managing director said. "This restricted the ability to make an automatic tooling change".
With the new Feederplus, a linear robot system, the blanks can be oriented in up to six axes during the transfer. This enables it to combine the benefits of linear and articulated-arm robots. "With this newly-developed linear robot, we have gone back to our roots in the pure feeder design that can be combined with robots. We have combined the advantages of both concepts. It makes sense to place the robot arm immediately next to the feeder", as Spiegel explained the development line of the company.
The Feederplus can move linearly and can, thanks to additional axes of rotation, orient the formed parts in various directions during the transfer from press to press. It possesses the necessary degrees of freedom due to its five or six axes. The motion sequence with which the feeder outputs twelve parts per minute can be put into practice in a simple and straightforward manner.
The Feederplus has a horizontally rotating swivel arm with a gearbox attached. "Speed and acceleration lie in a very favourable range", judged Spiegel. With this feeder, suitable for presses with a centreline spacing of 6500 mm, the horizontal axes reach top speeds of 1 m/s (X-direction) and 5 m/s (Y-direction). The respective maximum accelerations are 4.5 m/s² and 13 m/s².
The Feederplus is programmed just like a robot and allows a better synchronisation and higher cycle times when using controlled presses. It is, however, also a robot that is suitable for retro-fitting of old presses. Siemens, for example, supplies the basis with its Simotion control. Production time and number of strokes are calculated using special cam design software. "We have to do that because we give the customer details of the line productivity before the contract is awarded", Spiegel explained.
The Chinese car maker Chery sells 300,000 units annually of its small and off-road cars and so became the number one in the export business. "Such a jump cannot be made without automation. Strothmann is therefore an important partner for us and for cooperation in the future", said Zhao Hong De, deputy chief engineer at Chery Automobile. The complete automation of the press line for the manufacture of body panels was performed by the handling specialists from Schloß Holte-Stukenbrock.

Additional applications are planned
Intelligent further developments in the Feederplus system are in the project phase. These include the optimisation of the rotation arm material (CFRP, composite material) and the incorporation of additional applications, for example further orientation axes that complete the product and in the near future will allow press loading and unloading that use much less complicated and lower cost press tools. Spiegel is certain "that is then a step that will reduce the running costs in the process chain so that no one can complain any more about the slight rise in purchasing costs of this automation".    

Robotic and Motion Control functions can be synchronised using the kinematic transformation program in the Twin-CAT software suite. Image: Beckhoff

The Twin-CAT automation platform from Beckhoff has been extended by the addition of the kinematic transformation program. This allows robots (delta kinematics, SCARA) to be integrated and synchronised with the existing Motion Control functions. The manufacturer explains that this results in a seamless integration into the overall control system and the saving of additional processors for robots. Programmable logic controllers, human-machine interfaces, Motion Control and robotics work with a hardware/software platform on a common industrial PC, explained the manufacturer. Integration in positioning technology The program integrates transparently into the world of positioning technology, explains the manufacturer. Robotics and Motion Control functions allow optimum synchronisation with Twin-CAT NC, is reported further. All NC features, such as cams or flying saws (synchronisation of a slave axis with a moving master axis) can be combined in any way on a common hardware/software platform. Cartesian target coordinates Twin-CAT supports various parallel and serial kinematics that can be used for pick-and-place tasks. The programming of the target coordinates can be conveniently done in the cartesian coordinate system. The conversion of the associated motor position (reverse transformation) is performed by the kinematics module.

System manager for selection and parameter-setting of the kinematics
The selection of the kinematics takes place in the system manager of the platform. The type, rod lengths and offsets are parameterised there. Masses and moments of inertia can be entered for a dynamic feedforward control. It is for example possible, with the help of the flying saw and cam functions, to synchronise the robot to the conveyor belts in order to load or unload workpieces. These are applications that are often met with in the area of handling or in the packaging industry, explains the manufacturer.