Product category:
Machine Building Components
News Release from: Unimatic Engineers | Subject: XYZ tables
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 26 April 2000
XYZ tables lay down gaskets in diesel
engines
Unimatic positioning tables are being used in computerised fluid dispensing systems to lay silicone gaskets onto oil coolers and blanking plates in Perkins diesel engines.
Motion control specialist, Unimatic has announced that its positioning tables are being used in computerised fluid dispensing systems manufactured by Prodef Engineers of Redditch to lay silicone gaskets at high speed onto oil coolers and blanking plates in Perkins diesel engines Part of the Hawker group of companies Prodef Engineers specialises in the manufacture and distribution of equipment for accurate dispensing of fluids for use in a range of industries as diverse as car manufacture and mobile communications equipment
Prodef computerised systems use a range of single and plural component metering, mixing and dispensing components from Dopag of Switzerland for whom the company is sole UK distributor.
These components encompass transfer pumps, two-component processing systems, material pressure regulators and high quality dispensing valves.
By using the Unimatic tables, Prodef integrates the component parts into a high integrity computer-controlled dispensing system.
In the Perkins Engines application, the tables are used to lay a single component RTV (Loctite) silicone elastomer onto an oil cooler or blanking plate for attachment to the diesel engine assembly.
Diesel engine assemblies pass the Prodef tables on a conveyor system and the gasketed components are attached as appropriate.
This calls for considerable speed in laying the gaskets onto each component.
Prodef designed the table so that components could be inserted from two sides.
An oil cooler placed into the machine from one side is removed once the gasket is laid.
Two blanking plates are then placed into the machine for gasketing while the oil cooler is fitted to the diesel engine.
When the engine assembly moves on, the blanking plates are fitted while the next oil cooler is being gasketed and so on.
This very precise sequence of events, with a single head machine placing silicone gaskets onto very intricate shapes and alternating between cooler and blanking plates called for a machine able to operate with high accuracy at high speed.
Consequently, servo drives were specified to meet the target of placing a gasket onto each of the fairly large profiles with a cycle time of 30 seconds.
The machine is also designed to automatically detect which part - oil cooler or blanking plate - is placed onto the table ensuring that the machine lays the correct gasket each time.
Apart from the benefits of automating a complex procedure, the gaskets produced by laying silicone elastomers in this way provide a far better seal than conventionally applied "component" gaskets.
The silicone gaskets also yield cost savings of an order of magnitude compared with their conventional counterparts.
Unimatic tables are also used by Prodef to lay silicone gaskets in applications ranging from providing a waterproof seal on vehicle fog lamps, through sealing against the ingress of dust and dirt in closed circuit TV cameras, to laying form-in-place gaskets for electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding of mobile telephone handsets.
In such applications, Prodef's dispensing equipment using the Unimatic table can apply gaskets with intricate shapes and fine cross sectional profiles down to a diameter of 0.4mm in x, y and z axes to any required surface.
Unimatic's unique computer-controlled 3-axis gantry tables are controlled via an IBM AT or compatible.
Key features of the tables include large working area, easy to set up and use, and rugged, high quality components.
Unimatic tables are based on a stepper driven ballscrew drive system with anti-backlash ball nuts, and offer repeatability of +/- 0.01mm and accuracy of +/- 0.01/300mm.
Other system specifications include XYZ stroke ranges from 200 x 200 x 125mm to 1200 x 1000 x 500mm and a maximum Z-axis static load of 30kg.
The tables can be supplied with safety enclosures to meet the requirements of the latest UK and European safety regulations. Request a free brochure from Unimatic Engineers ...
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