Current technologies from Festo unlock tremendous potential for anyone interested in replacing manual steps with an automated process in the field of electronic device manufacturing. Mechanical engineering companies also benefit from our decades of automation expertise.
Pick & Place
Pick up the smartphone housing from the manual assembly line and transport it to the automated assembly line.
Screwdriving
Insert the circuit board into the smartphone housing and secure it using an automated screwdriving system.
Learn More about Automated Screwdriving
Pressing
Press the display into the smartphone casing automatically after carefully placing it there manually.
Stacking and Packaging
Remove smartphones from the assembly line and place them in a workpiece carrier.
Learn More about Stacking and Packaging
Testing
Remove smartphones from the workpiece carrier to test them on the test device.
Pick & Place: Cut Costs and Save Space
In pick & place applications, the smartphone housing is reliably removed from the conveyor or placed back down again.
As an ideal basis for this, we offer you a cost-effective and space-saving industrial robot consisting of proven mechanical components: electric linear actuator ELGC, mini slide EGSC, and rotary drive ERMO.
This kinematic system can also be used later for almost all handling operations required during the manufacturing process. Take advantage of all the possibilities when selecting the right motors and actuators – from solutions with basic features to high-performance versions.
We have also developed the servo motors EMMB-AS and the motor controller CMMB-AS especially for manufacturers producing in Asia, including connection options based on pulse train technology and with connectors in protection class IP20.
The respective front unit consists of the mini slide EGSC as the Z-axis, the rotary actuator ERMO, the compact and lightweight vacuum generator OVEL, the suction gripper ESG, and the vision sensor SBSI for workpiece detection.
Screwdriving: Everything Precisely Placed and Secured
To assemble the printed circuit board in the smartphone housing, it must first be removed from the workpiece carrier.
To do so, the workpiece carrier is lifted and moved using a linear actuator ELGA. Supported by our image processing system, the PCB is precisely placed in the housing and then secured by an automated screwdriver. Instead of time-consuming manual work, the incoming housings are aligned and secured by guided actuators DFM. In this process, the pressure sensors SPAN indicate the pressure level of the clamping cylinders.
Pneumatics are controlled by the new modular control system CPX-E in conjunction with the attractively priced valve manifold VTUG from Festo’s Core Range. In accordance with our modular automation concept, electric handling in this case also consists of linear actuators ELGC and mini slides EGSC. What makes this system so impressive is that the actuators are all connected directly without adapter plates.
Dispensing: Rapid and Precise Adhesive Application
If adhesive needs to be applied to the smartphone housing automatically and in a fast, precise sequence, we offer the extremely compact planar surface gantry EXCM-40 with stepper motor EMMS-ST and controller CPX-E as a solution. For higher performance requirements, a planar surface gantry EXCM-40 with servo motors EMMS-AS and motor controller CMMT-AS is also an excellent option.
In both cases, guided cylinders DFM align the incoming workpieces and then clamp them. Pressure sensors SPAN indicate the pressure level of the clamping cylinders. Finally, the proportional pressure control valve VEAB precisely controls the amount of adhesive to be applied. Additional benefits of automation include zero excess adhesive, zero manual corrective processes, and less adhesive consumption.
Pressing: Even and Controlled
After the display has been manually and carefully placed in the smartphone housing, a fully automated pressing station takes over further processing.
In this step, both components are pressed together using a predefined and controlled amount of force.
This is a perfect job for the servo press kit YJKP. This consists of modular operating software and compatible standard components from Festo: an electric cylinder, a motor, a motor controller, a force sensor, and a controller – everything you need for electric pressing applications up to 17 kN.
Within the application, the workpiece is moved pneumatically by a system consisting of rodless linear actuator DLGF, guided compact cylinder ADNGF, vacuum generator OVEL, and vacuum gripper ESG.
The servo press kit YJKP is considerably less expensive than conventional press systems – giving you a significant competitive edge when it comes to productivity.
Stacking and Packaging: Picking & Placing at High Speed
At this stage of the production process, the smartphones are removed from the assembly line, placed in workpiece carriers, and stacked in magazines so that they can be fed to further processing steps.
In this process, a high-speed pick & place system consisting of a planar surface gantry EXCH and mini slide EGSC plays the leading role.
Our image processing system for the recognition and alignment of smartphones guarantees that this is carried out with the appropriate precision. They are then placed in the magazines by a boom system consisting of standard electric linear actuators EGC and ELGC with the rotary actuator ERMO and the gripper HGPT. The up and down movement of the magazines themselves is also performed with the standard linear actuators EGC.
Testing: Fully Automated Quality Control
The smartphones arrive at the test station stacked in magazines. The high-speed pick & place solution EXCH in combination with the space-saving and cost-effective industrial robot – consisting of ELGC, EGSC, ERMO, and HGPT – once again ensures that the smartphones are transported safely from the magazine to the test device.
In the testing device, the individual workpiece carriers are secured by several compact air cylinders DPDM. Our compact planar surface gantry EXCM and the new and very short mini slide DGST support touch display testing, while the electrical mini slide EGSC precisely connects the connector for the electric function test to the smartphone.
Labeling: Precise and Reliable
One of the final production steps in the assembly of smartphones is the application of a protective film to the display. Automation ensures that this process is safe and reliable.
The roll with the individual strips of protective film (labels) is moved and clamped in the system with a standard ISO cylinder DSBC. The protective film is drawn in via vacuum and then precisely applied to the smartphone. As in previous stages, the vacuum is generated with the vacuum generator OVEL and the film is placed with a pick & place solution consisting of a linear actuator ELGC and a rotary actuator ERMO mounted directly on it.