PRODUCT REVIEWS
TRUMPF innovations at EuroBLECH
At EuroBLECH 2024 in Hanover ( Germany ) this October , TRUMPF presented a new solution for the automated sorting of 2D laser-cut parts .
“ With the SortMaster Station and the SortMaster Vision , customers will be able to sort parts particularly reliably and without any programming effort . The SortMaster Station removes the parts from the sheetmetal in the first step , regardless of their geometry . The machine operator then sorts the separated parts manually or has them removed and palletised fully automatically by the SortMaster Vision . Meanwhile , the laser cutting machine is already processing the next sheet ,” the sheet metal specialist explained .
“ The automated sorting of parts is one of the greatest challenges in the sheet metal world . Conventional methods are particularly suitable for simple components with medium sheet thicknesses of up to 12mm . For many companies , their common automation solutions are too inflexible and timeconsuming to program , so they have their parts sorted by hand . With the SortMaster Station and the SortMaster Vision , we enable automated sorting of any sheet metal parts ,” said TRUMPF CTO for Machine Tools , Thomas Schneider . TRUMPF offers the new solution in a 3m format for laser cutting machines in the 3000 and 5000 series .
The solution uses the LiftMaster Compact loading and unloading automation system
The new SortMaster Station and SortMaster Vision solutions from TRUMPF enable fully automatic sorting without programming .
from TRUMPF . It removes the cut sheet from the pallet changer of the cutting machine and transfers it to the SortMaster station . This separates the components from the scrap skeleton in a few seconds . The separated parts are then conveyed to the sorting area . “ With our solution , we have decoupled the cutting , separating and sorting processes from each other for the first time . This allows users to better utilise the laser machine and increase their throughput ,” explained Schneider . A third pallet station also enables parallel manual sorting , for example for special formats .
Sorting with cameras and intelligent software
Automated sorting with SortMaster Station and SortMaster Vision from TRUMPF . Using adaptive robotic functions , all programming of the sorting process is eliminated .
The SortMaster Vision is used for automated sorting .
“ Partnering for several years with Intrinsic , a leading AI and robotics software company in the Alphabet Group , we have introduced adaptive robotics capabilities to SortMaster Vision , including automated perception and robot path planning . This enables a robot to autonomously recognize the separated parts using AI-supported image recognition ,” said Schneider .
The software autonomously calculates the robot ’ s motion plan including the gripping points . The SortMaster Vision independently obtains all the part information from the cutting program . It uses this to simulate various removals in advance and selects the most suitable one at runtime . This eliminates the need for any programming of the sorting process . The process creates flexibility with regard to the range of parts and batch sizes .
108 | ismr . net | ISMR November 2024