Control of an automated dispensing cell with vision controlled feedback

✍ Scribed by A. Razban; B.L. Davies; S. Harris; J. Efstathiou

• Book ID: 103988738
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1995
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 537 KB
• Volume: 3
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0967-0661
• DOI: 10.1016/0967-0661(95)00120-j

✦ Synopsis

The need for having high-integrity, structurally bonded adhesive and sealant joints throughout many industries such as automotive and aerospace is increasing. To ensure process integrity, strict process conllol of the automated dispensing cell is essential. Many industries require the use of continuous beads of adhesive or sealant in applications where the integrity of the joint is critical e.g., structural bonding or gasket sealing. A continuous and uniform bead gives the required strength for good performance of the joints. For these reasons, the dispensed adhesive needs to be consistent. The consistency is a function of the amount of dispensed material and its displacement. The dispensed material is controlled through a closed-loop system which is built around a six-axis robot carrying a digitally controlled dispensing gun, a single-axis linear table carrying the workpieee, and a vision system for on-line inspection and image processing. The bead parameters obtained by image processing are used by the controller to ensure that the bead stays in the desired bandwidth, whilst it is being laid down.