Cooling line for robot welding plant

Task
The welded parts must cool down during transport to the next station in a robot welding plant to allow the slag to then be removed. The products must cool down for about four minutes. This requires a conveyor that transports the products both over straight and curved sections. The products must be placed on the cooling line by a robot and removed by hand at the end of the cooling line. In addition, access to the inside of the plant for maintenance work must be guaranteed. It must also be possible to open the access area twice a day. The temperature of the welding seam will reach 800 °C for a short period of time. The products weigh six to eight kilograms. The welding system has a throughput of two units per minute, and the conveyor must be designed for the abrasive environment during welding.

mk solution
Several SBF-P flat top chain conveyors with curved and straight sections build the foundation of the cooling line. A robust steel chain, which is suitable for the short-term high temperatures of the welding seams, serves as a transport medium. Thanks to a speed of 5 m/min and the track layout of the conveyor, the welded parts have sufficient time to cool down to an appropriate temperature. The ergonomic conveyor height of 800 mm allows workers to easily remove the parts at the end of the line. A foldable GUF-P 2000 with a wire mesh belt as a transport medium ensures access to the inside of the system. It can be easily swivelled upwards by 90° with handles. Connection elements are mounted as slides over the transitions of the individual conveyors. This allows the products to be reliably transferred from one conveyor to the next. Pans under the conveyors catch dust and particles. The drives and tails were equipped with sliding compartments to allow for easy cleaning.

Customer benefits

• Customer requirements satisfied with simple means
• Cost-effective thanks to standard products with individual adjustments
• Robust steel chain for high temperatures
• Low maintenance

Products

> SBF-P
> GUF-P 2000