Suitcase Wheel and Handle Assembly with Parallel Workstations
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Solution Overview
Problem
Manual assembly of suitcase wheels and handles results in inconsistent quality, safety concerns, and inefficient use of space due to the need for multiple components at the assembly site, leading to increased operating time and errors.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus comprising a wheel processing device and a handle processing device, which includes conveyance platforms, pick-up arms, and mounting mechanisms to automate the assembly of wheels and handles to suitcase shells, reducing errors and shortening assembly time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual assembly of wheels and handles is performed at the working site, then operators can assemble components to suitcase shells, but a number of suitcase shells, wheels, handles, and locking tools must be positioned at the working site to occupy considerable space and create a messy environment
Solution Approach 1:
The assembly system is divided into multiple workstations (first workstation for wheel assembly, second workstation for handle assembly) that are spatially separated. Each workstation has dedicated conveyance platforms and mounting mechanisms, eliminating the need to position all components at a single working site and thus reducing space occupation and mess.
2Productivity
If manual assembly of wheels and handles is performed by different operators with different experiences, then assembly can be completed, but the finished suitcase shells are subjected to different assembling quality and have safety concerns
Solution Approach 1:
The conveyance platforms are equipped with automatic mounting mechanisms that perform the assembly operations without human intervention. The system self-regulates the positioning and securing of wheels and handles to suitcase shells, ensuring consistent assembly quality regardless of operator experience levels.
3Ease of manufacture
If sequential manual assembly of wheels and handles is performed, then components can be assembled to suitcase shells, but the operating time for assembling wheels and handles is extended
Solution Approach 1:
While the first workstation is assembling wheels to suitcase shells, the second workstation simultaneously assembles handles to other suitcase shells. The conveyance platforms continuously move components through the assembly process without interruption, and the parallel operation of multiple workstations eliminates idle time between sequential assembly steps.
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus for automated assembling of suitcase wheels and handles includes a wheel pick-up arm for moving a wheel and a suitcase shell to a wheel conveyance platform near a wheel mounting mechanism, so that the handle is locked to the suitcase shell to form a half-finished suitcase shell; a handle pick-up arm and a suitcase shell pick-up arm for moving one handle and one half-finished suitcase shell, respectively, to a handle mounting table on a handle conveyance platform; and a mounting plate pick-up arm for placing a mounting plate on an inner side of the half-finished suitcase shell in alignment with the handle previously locked to an opposite side of the half-finished suitcase shell to produce a finished suitcase shell. With the above arrangements, it is able to reduce operating errors and operating time when assembling the handles and wheels to the suitcase shells.