Automatic Feeding and Tray Loading Equipment
Robot-based automatic feeding and tray arrangement that presents parts to an inspection or assembly station at a consistent orientation and pitch.
Solution Overview
Flexible vibratory bowl alignment + SCARA robot pick-and-place + dual-camera positioning to place loose parts into trays automatically
The automatic feeding and tray arranging equipment (robot version) is a flexible feeding system that automatically aligns bulk material and places it into trays. The equipment consists of material bin loading, linear vibratory feeding, flexible vibratory bowl alignment, top camera image capture and positioning, SCARA four-axis robot picking, bottom fine-positioning camera comparison, tray arranging and conveyor line interface. After the picking module picks a part, it traverses to the bottom fine-positioning camera for image capture and comparison, then the picking head adjusts its position and places the part onto the customer's tray; rejected material is dropped into the NG box.
The core components consist of four parts: the feeding and recognition system, the four-axis motion system, the precision positioning system and the tray conveying system. The flexible vibrating plate handles components gently without repeated feeding, reduces component wear, can move components in any direction and has a removable platform; the vast majority of small components can be fed by the flexible vibrating plate, and installation and commissioning are convenient.
The tray conveyor system consists of the conveyor body, tray locating mechanism, tray lift mechanism and manual tray width adjustment mechanism, and handles the interface between loading empty trays and unloading full trays. The control system uses an integrated control + vision window, with machine vision signals, coordinates and other information exchanged internally, for simple operation.
Solution configuration
Four systems: feeding recognition, four-axis motion, fine positioning and tray conveying
Feeding and Recognition System
- Material Bin Loading
- Linear Vibratory Feeding
- Flexible vibratory feeder alignment
- Top camera photographs for positioning
Four-Axis Motion System
- SCARA four-axis robot
- Nozzle Pick-Up
- Traverse to the bottom camera
- Adjust the position and place the tray
Fine Positioning System
- Bottom camera (fine positioning)
- Traverse and photograph after pick-up
- Camera photographs for recognition and comparison
- Rejects ejected into the NG bin
Tray Conveying System
- Conveyor main body
- Material Tray Locating Mechanism
- Material Tray Lifting Mechanism
- Manual tray width adjustment mechanism
process Workflow
From Bin Loading to Full-Tray Unloading and Transfer, the Whole Process Connects Automatically
- 01 Material Bin Loading
- 02 Linear Vibratory Feeding
- 03 Flexible vibratory feeder alignment
- 04 Top camera photographs for positioning
- 05 Robot picks material
- 06 Traverse to the bottom fine-positioning camera
- 07 Image Capture, Recognition and Comparison
- 08 Adjust the position and place into the tray
- 09 Rejects ejected into the NG bin
- 10 Empty tray loading / full tray unloading transfer
Critical Stages
Flexible Feeding and Secondary Fine Positioning Determine Tray Placement Accuracy and Yield
Flexible Vibratory Bowl Feeding and Alignment
The flexible vibratory feeder handles components gently and requires no repeated feeding; it reduces component wear; it can move components in any direction and the platform is removable; the vast majority of small components can be fed by the flexible vibratory feeder; installation and commissioning are convenient, and it is safer and more environmentally friendly.
- Gentle handling of components, no repeat feeding required
- Reduce component wear
- Components can be moved from any direction, and the platform is detachable
- Most small components can be fed by a flexible vibratory bowl feeder
Top Positioning + Bottom Fine Positioning
After picking, the pick module traverses to the bottom fine-positioning camera; the camera takes an image for identification and comparison, and the pick head then adjusts its position and places the part onto the customer's tray; non-conforming material is thrown into the NG bin. The top camera photographs and positions parts on the flexible vibration bowl, and the bottom camera performs the second fine positioning after picking.
- Top camera: images parts on the vibratory bowl for positioning
- Robot picks material by coordinates
- Bottom camera: images and compares the part after pick-up
- The pick-up head adjusts its position and places the part on the tray; rejects are thrown into the NG bin
Tray Conveying and Material Tray Mechanism
The tray conveyor system comprises the conveyor body, the tray locating mechanism (two sets), the manual tray width adjustment mechanism, the tray placement position, and the tray lift mechanism; along the flow direction the conveyor handles infeed of empty trays and outfeed transfer of full trays.
- Conveyor main body moves along the flow direction
- Tray locating mechanism ensures placement position accuracy
- Tray lift mechanism works with pick and place
- Manual tray width adjustment mechanism adapts to different trays
System Composition and Functions
Component Composition and Control System Functions Given in the Solution
| Item | Content |
|---|---|
| Equipment Name | Automatic feeding and tray arranging equipment (robot version) |
| Appearance and Layout Components | Top camera light source · HMI · buttons · material placement area · nozzle · material bin · SCARA four-axis robot · flexible vibratory feeder · bottom camera light source · linear vibratory hopper · conveyor tray loading area · conveyor tray unloading area |
| Action Steps | Flexible vibratory bowl alignment → top camera imaging and positioning → robot picking → linear vibratory feeding → material bin loading → bottom camera fine positioning → CCD imaging and positioning of the tray → product placed into the tray → conveyor infeed of empty trays and outfeed transfer of full trays |
| Flexible Vibratory Feeder Features | Gentle handling of components with no repeated feeding; reduced component wear; components can be moved in any direction, platform detachable; the vast majority of small components can be fed by a flexible vibratory bowl feeder; easy to install and commission, safer and more environmentally friendly |
| Fine Positioning Process | After the pick-up module picks a part, it traverses to the bottom precision positioning camera → the camera takes an image for recognition and comparison → the pick-up head adjusts its position and places the part on the customer tray → non-conforming parts are thrown into the NG material box |
| Tray Conveying System | Conveyor main body · Tray locating mechanism 1 · Tray locating mechanism 2 · Manual tray width adjustment mechanism · Tray placement position · Tray lifting mechanism |
| Operating System Functions | Integrated control + vision window, simple to operate, can get started in 15 minutes; machine vision signals such as coordinates are exchanged internally, with no communication risks; user management can set multi-level permissions; recipe-based management, one-click switching of product processes; automatic calibration, fast calibration via the calibration wizard; modular software development, flexibly selectable according to usage requirements |
| Outline dimensions and cycle time | [To be added] |
delivery and After-Sales
Starting from the material and trays, feeding, positioning, pick-and-place and conveying are integrated into one machine
- 01 Material and tray confirmation
- 02 Feasibility validation of feeding and positioning
- 03 Solution design and structural design
- 04 Equipment manufacturing and integration
- 05 On-site installation and commissioning
- 06 Trial production and parameter optimization
- 07 Acceptance, delivery and training
- 08 After-sales and spare parts support
Common Question
Common questions about automatic feeding and tray-loading equipment
What does this equipment do?
Automatically aligning bulk material and placing it into trays: from Material bin loading → straight-line vibratory feeding → flexible vibratory bowl alignment → top camera photographing for positioning → SCARA four-axis robot picking → bottom precision positioning camera comparison → placement onto the customer tray, and the conveyor line handles empty-tray loading and full-tray unloading transfers.
What are the features of the flexible vibratory bowl feeder?
Can gently handle components, No Repeated Feeding Required; it reduces component wear; it can move components in any direction and the platform is detachable; most small components can be fed by the flexible vibratory feeder; installation and commissioning are easy, and it is safer and more environmentally friendly.
Why are there two cameras, one at the top and one at the bottom?
Top camera Parts are photographed and located on the flexible vibratory bowl to tell the robot where to pick; Bottom camera Fine positioning is performed after the pick-up module traverses, with photo recognition and comparison, and the pick-up head then adjusts its position before placing the part on the tray. This improves tray placement accuracy.
How are non-conforming materials handled?
After comparison by the bottom fine-positioning camera, Nonconforming material is ejected into the NG bin, does not enter the tray, avoiding mixed material.
Is operation and maintenance easy?
The control system uses Integrated control + vision window, simple to operate, with the solution stated as ready to use within 15 minutes; machine vision signal coordinates and other information are exchanged internally, with no communication risk; it supports user management and multi-level permissions, recipe-based one-click switching of product processes, and quick calibration via an auto-calibration wizard, with software developed in modular form.
What are the overall dimensions and cycle time?
original solution documentation Overall dimensions and cycle time data not provided (the solution notes that the actual designed external dimensions may differ slightly from the solution dimensions, and the actual design dimensions prevail); no speculation is made on this page.
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