Swing Bending Fully Automatic Bending

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Hans Schröder Maschinenbau GmbH

Taiwan Machine Tool & Accessory Builders' Association (TMBA)

SIMTOS (Seoul International Machine Tool Show)

The Schroder Group recently introduced a system for fully automatic industrial production processes: the MAK 4 Evolution UD, which is equipped with a Fanuc robot. The entire automation is controlled via Schroder's software—no special robotics knowledge is required for this.

The market currently offers only a few solutions that can automate the handling of sheet metal parts weighing more than 100 kilos. Typically, press brakes are operated by robots, which is technically complex and slow. The Schröder Group has been penetrating areas for years with their swing bending machines, where only die bending machines were previously used.

Automation solutions based on Schröder's bidirectional swing bending machine follow the principle of "clamp once, bend everything," achieving short cycle times. The solution presented at the last Euroblech (german trade fair) impressively demonstrated the future of industrial bending of heavy sheet metal. The robot loads sheets up to 6 millimeters (approx. 0.2 inches) thick and 3000 × 1500 millimeters (approx. 118 × 59,1 inches) in size onto the machine, while the finished bent products are automatically stacked on a palletizing station. Thanks to the pneumatic stops of the MAK 4 Evolution UD and the up-and-down bending beam, the swing bending machine can go through the manufacturing process completely without robot intervention.

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Keep it Simple

The goal of the Schröder Group was to develop a robust, easy-to-use solution that combines the highest repeatability with a fast cycle time. A crucial advantage is that the manufacturing process itself occurs completely without robot intervention. This is made possible by the already high degree of automation of the swing bending machine. A central element is the precise positioning of the sheet. Schröder's Advanced Handling System relies on an optical edge detection method with two cameras for this purpose. The position of the sheet is detected directly behind the bending line and compared with the geometry of the flat sheet or component. This ensures that the material exactly matches the bending program. Additionally, a position measurement process is conducted, which detects possible rotation of the inserted component as well as an offset in two directions. The machine then calculates the necessary axis adjustments within seconds. Instead of the usual measurement of the sheet at the backgauge, the sheet is measured 200 millimeters (approx. 7,9 inches) behind the bending line. The machine's suction plate stop is responsible for positioning, eliminating the need for highly precise robot positioning. Slower contact with hardware pins of the backgauge by the robot is only used for sheets up to a size of 2500 × 1200 millimeters (approx. 98,4 × 47,2 inches) to prepare the next sheet for the bending process parallel to the main usage time.

The manufacturing with the robotic handling system operates as follows: Initially, the robot picks up a sheet from the pallet with cut blanks and passes it to the double sheet detection. This is a simple measurement system that ensures two adhering sheets are not accidentally picked up. If the spreader magnets in the raw blank pickup stations have not already prevented this, this precaution provides additional safety. The robot arm then positions the sheet so that it aligns correctly with the swing bending machine. A "classic" centering table, used for its simplicity in most sheet metal robot applications, serves this purpose. The robot lays the sheet on the angled table, and the sheet slides against two fixed stop sides. The rotatable suction plate stop of the bending center then takes over the component and aligns it for the bending process.

Efficient multiple use of idle times

Subsequently, the robot arm takes over the stacking of the products. The turn station can be used in this process. It holds the bent product vertically, while the robot moves around it to grip from the other side. This allows bent sheets to be stacked or nested in different orientations on the pallet. Another application: raw blanks often need to be flipped after laser cutting to have the burr side of the sheet inside a bent product. This is often a separate process or must be done manually by the operator. However, the turn station is usually not needed for flipping sheets for reverse bends, as these are performed with the up-and-down bending beam.

The system achieves its high cycle rate through efficient multiple use of idle times. While the bending machine is setting up, the robot can load raw blanks. And while the machine is bending, the robot can either load the next blank or unload a bent product.

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