CAMX 2018 preview: ARM Automation

ARM Automation Inc. (Austin, TX, US) is featuring the Ply Picker, a fully automated solution for cutting table clearing, ply inspection, kitting and ply layup. The Ply-Picker system, says ARM Automation, addresses the need for picking of complex cut fabric shapes for part inspection, kitting and automatic layup of preform stacks, while addressing the challenges associated with cut-ply picking and handling, such as complex/varied shapes, uncut fibers and ply distortion. This patent-pending solution identifies uncut fibers and stuck materials prior to lifting them from the nest. Ply shapes and surfaces reportedly are presented in an undistorted manner for high-resolution inspection and in-situ FOD detection. These plies can be placed into kits or directly laminated into preform stacks, with automated removal of backer material and post-layup inspection. The Ply-Picker system can be adapted to cover a range of shapes and sizes, including those smaller than a thumbnail to others as large as the cutting table itself. The robotic workcell solution derives pick information directly from ply shape data and dynamic nest location information to locate ply shapes and deliver them to kit locations. Lower volume operations may require a single robot stacking plies onto open kit-tables at rates of only a few plies per minute. More intensive applications can use multiple pick heads simultaneously, tending one or more conveyorized tables and delivering pieces to automated kit carts or layup stations. Booth F34.