A unique “light” robot assembly cell, designed by the CTRI robotic division of DASSAULT AVIATION has been put in production in DASSAULT's Biarritz assembly plant. The designation “light” was chosen because it represents an alternative to either a heavy single purpose machine or a stiffer robotic system.
The choice was made after a careful examination of the alternatives available and was based on the following hypothesis: a robotic cell, whose cost needs to be justified against a sub-contract opportunity of limited duration, must embody the following characteristics:
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1)
LOW COST in order to assure pay-back with the term of the subcontract
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2)
FLEXIBLE in order to accommodate future production requirements without major system modification.
In order to meet these goals, we chose a standard low mass robot and provided it with a long track in order that it be able to cover a large work area at a minimum cost.
The result was a very cost effective and efficient production system. Just as “small” is often considered “beautiful”, in robotic systems it may be that “light” will be considered “cost effective”.