TPT July 2023

ARTICLE

transfluid

Automatic feeding of materials for greater tube bending production efficiency

By Tobias Masur, marketing manager, transfluid

The stored bending programs can be called up via laser-printed QR codes

It does not always have to be about large automated production lines or production cells when it comes to the automation of tube bending processes. Automation solutions are typically included to save time and money. Automated processes are ideally faster, with fewer errors and higher and consistent overall quality. And it is also becoming increasingly important to help deal with shortages of staff and skilled workers. Small and medium-sized enterprises are particularly impacted by the growing shortage of workers. This development led transfluid to equip even smaller production units with cost effective partial or full automation. If, for example, the loading and unloading of the CNC bending machines is carried out by a robot, the specialists can spend their time on the more demanding tasks. But it does not always have to be a robot. In order to create even more flexibility, especially for our CNC tube bending machines, we have developed, for example, a simple and less expensive loading unit that offers our customers the option of operating the machine as a small production cell with automatic unloading – for example on a conveyor belt. Depending on the loading volume, the feeding magazine is equipped with the raw materials. The guide rails can quickly be adjusted for tubes of different lengths or diameters. The tube is transferred to the gripper and fed to the machine and thus to the bending process. At the customer’s request, a loading system can be equipped with various sensors, so the supply can be digitally controlled and monitored. This is particularly interesting in the production of different tube geometries for special constructions or spare parts. transfluid offers a wide variety

of loading systems for all machines, to fit different tube materials, diameters and lengths. All these systems are specifically designed and produced by transfluid to match the bending and forming machines, which guarantees optimal integration and functionality. Experience and quality play an important role in the trouble free operation and longevity of the machines and the systems. Quite early in the mechanical engineering company transfluid’s 35 years of existence, automation became an important topic. They started with the development and production of tube bending machines and quickly came into contact with a wide variety of industries where, in order to remain competitive, it is precisely the added value of automation, efficiency and productivity that is important. It is important that the optimal and most economical solution is found for the production process, for any system that is designed.

A solution for automated tube manufacturing

Various factors play a decisive role in the selection of the loading and unloading option. These must be precisely analysed and taken into account in advance. Simple bending geometries, which are bent from bars, can be fed into the process via loading tables, step feeders or conveyor belts. In this case it is the length and the dimensions of the tubes that decide what is most appropriate. For example, long tubes with a small diameter are not suitable for a chain feeder because of their unstable nature. Here, a loading table or a step feeder would be better choices.

It does not always have to be complicated cells: even simple loading and unloading systems can be automated

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JULY 2023