Movable Welding Cell Enclosure for Access and Welder Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Generic welding robot cells often compromise between compactness and accessibility, failing to optimize working area utilization while ensuring welder protection.
Innovation Solution
A compact welding cell design featuring a modular protective enclosure with pneumatically controlled side walls and roller shutters, allowing for flexible configuration and maximum working area utilization, with integrated extraction systems for efficient fume management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a protective enclosure is used to protect the welder, then welder protection is improved, but accessibility to working areas deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The protective enclosure is designed with movable side walls that can be dynamically adjusted between different positions. The side walls are equipped with guide devices allowing them to move from a first position (providing full protection) to a second position (providing access to working areas). This dynamic configuration enables the enclosure to adapt its state based on operational needs, resolving the contradiction between protection and accessibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective enclosure is divided into modular components, specifically multiple side walls that can independently move relative to each other. Each side wall can be positioned separately to provide either protection or access, allowing selective opening of specific working areas while maintaining protection in other areas. This segmentation enables flexible configuration to resolve the protection-accessibility contradiction.
2Volume of moving object
If the protective enclosure is made compact, then space utilization is improved, but working area utilization deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The side walls of the protective enclosure are designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing the cell volume to be dynamically adjusted during operation. The side walls can move from a retracted position (reducing cell volume for compactness) to an extended position (increasing working area utilization). This dynamic volume adjustment resolves the contradiction between compact storage and operational workspace.
3Ease of operation
If the protective enclosure is made movable to improve accessibility, then accessibility is improved, but device complexity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The guide devices that enable movement of the side walls are equipped with pneumatic or hydraulic actuators. These actuators provide automated, controlled movement of the side walls between different positions, reducing the manual effort and mechanical complexity required compared to purely mechanical systems. The use of pneumatic/hydraulic systems simplifies the control mechanism while maintaining smooth, precise movement, thereby improving accessibility without excessive complexity increase.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design achieves optimized accessibility and protection for welders, maximizes working area utilization, and ensures compactness and transportability, enabling efficient and safe parallel welding operations.
Implementation Method 1
The guide device may preferably be controlled pneumatically
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a compact cell Z having a protective enclosure 3 for welding operations by means of welding robots 15, having a protective enclosure 3 consisting of a roof 1, side walls 2, a front side 4A and a rear side 4B, said protective enclosure 3 being movable from a first position into a second and back again by a guide rail 23 supported on a pneumatically actuable guide device 24, and as a result being able to enclose a front working area A1 in the first position and a rear working area A2 in the second position, respectively. The front side 4A and rear side 4B of the protective enclosure 3 furthermore comprise at least in each case one roller shutter device (22A; 22B) which can open and close roller shutters (5A; 5B) that close the entire side or modularly combinable roller shutters (18; 20) on respective roller shutter mounts (V1; V2; V3) integrated in the roof 1.