Multi-axis Coating Robot Traversing Between Booths
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing aircraft component painting systems face downtime issues due to idle periods of painting robots in large booths, leading to high investment and operating costs, and require separate, dimensionally adapted booths for large and small components, resulting in inefficient use of resources and increased shop length.
Innovation Solution
A coating system with a movable multi-axis coating robot that can traverse between different-sized booths, allowing it to coat components in either booth, thereby reducing downtime and improving utilization, along with conveyors and ventilation systems for efficient component handling and paint management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If separate painting booths are used for large and small components, then each booth can be optimized for its specific component size, but the overall shop length increases and resource utilization decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The painting robot is designed to perform multiple functions by serving both the large painting booth for wings and the small painting booth for smaller components. The robot can be positioned in either booth and equipped with appropriate coating devices, making it a universal resource that eliminates the need for separate specialized robots for each component size category.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a large painting booth is used for large components, then the booth can accommodate big components like wings, but the painting robot experiences significant downtime between painting processes
Solution Approach 1:
The system ensures continuous useful action by enabling the painting robot to work in the small painting booth during idle periods between large component painting jobs. This eliminates idle time and maintains continuous productivity, as the robot can switch to painting smaller components or preparing for the next large component without significant downtime.
Solution Approach 2:
The painting robot is designed with dynamic positioning capabilities, allowing it to move between the large and small painting booths as needed. The robot's configuration can be dynamically adjusted depending on which booth it is serving, with different coating devices and positioning systems optimized for each booth's specific requirements.
3Productivity
If the painting robot is moved between different-sized booths, then resource utilization improves and downtime reduces, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system is segmented into distinct functional modules: the painting robot unit, the large painting booth with its conveyor system, the small painting booth with its conveyor system, and the travel axis connecting them. Each module can be independently designed, maintained, and optimized, reducing overall system complexity despite the multi-booth configuration.
4Ease of operation
If conveyors are arranged in a line one behind the other, then component flow is simplified, but the overall length of the paint shop increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The conveyors in the large and small painting booths are arranged in different spatial dimensions and orientations rather than in a single linear sequence. The large booth conveyor and small booth conveyor can operate in parallel or at different levels, utilizing three-dimensional space to reduce the overall linear length of the paint shop while maintaining efficient component flow.
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 2
AI summary
The invention relates to a coating installation (1) for coating components (3, 5), in particular for painting aircraft components, having a first coating booth (2), in particular for coating large aircraft components (3), a multi-axis coating robot (7) that positions a coating device, in particular a rotary atomizer, a travel axis (8) for moving the coating robot (7) along the travel axis (8), the travel axis (8) running within the first coating booth (2), and a second coating booth (4), in particular for coating small aircraft components (5). According to the invention, the travel axis (8) for the first coating robot (7) extends as far as into the second coating booth (4), such that the coating robot (7) can optionally coat components (3, 5) in the first coating booth (2) or in the second coating booth (4).