"Instead of letting employees continue to load and unload large stacks of heavy totes to and from a paint booth, the company partnered with CapSen Robotics, which customized its 3D vision, motion planning, and control software to suit the task."
Learn How DENSO Partnered With CapSen To Automate its Paint Process
Automotive manufacturing has long benefited from the thoughtful deployment of robotics and automation, and for good reason. Among the many complex production processes, some can be too difficult or too tedious to be completed safely and efficiently by human workers. As a result, industrial automation technologies can add tremendous value to original equipment manufacturers and automotive parts suppliers alike in many ways. For example, leading global automotive parts manufacturer DENSO recently sought to automate a physically challenging and repetitive tote-handling task.
Instead of letting employees continue to load and unload large stacks of heavy totes to and from a paint booth, the company partnered with CapSen Robotics, which customized its 3D vision, motion planning, and control software to suit the task.
DENSO also partnered with systems integrator Invent Automation to develop a system that would streamline the process and allow employees to contribute on the plant floor in more valuable, less physically-demanding ways. The activity contributed to DENSO’s broader efforts to complement human work with automation for improved team member and company performance.
Gone in (under) 60 seconds at DENSO
As part of DENSO’s operations, automotive parts are painted with a low gloss, charcoal-colored paint that visually smooths out the surface for a cleaner appearance while also helping to absorb light and reduce glare inside the vehicle.
In the previous setup, employees stacked six totes full of plastic automotive parts onto a conveyor that were then presented to an operator who would manually remove the parts and put them into a paint booth station (Figure 2), then pack them back into the totes. An employee would stack or de-stack a tote every 30 seconds, day in and day out.
This repetitive motion was identified as an automation opportunity, which would free up team members to perform more impactful work. However, layout constraints on the shop floor made traditional forms of automation difficult, leading to the creation of a compact and flexible system.