A Cyber-Physical Methodology to Automate Robotized Finishing Processes

Abstract

Finishing operations represent a crucial stage in manufacturing, where it is necessary either to remove unwanted material from a part, or provide aspect features to it. This includes smoothing, polishing and machining-alike solutions. In this paper, a new methodology to approach the automation of finishing processes in manufacturing, is presented. Four main steps are defined: part measuring, path creation, finishing operation, and part verification. Two use cases, belonging to real workplaces in an automotive factory of the Stellantis group, are presented as validation scenarios. One of these, a cyber-physical system to deburr a weld beam between two parts of complex geometry, has been successfully working in-line for the last ten years. This represents an improvement of the ergonomics of the operators and their working conditions, as well as a reduction of costs. This shows that the automation of finishing process means an opportunity to increase productivity, quality and efficiency in the factory.