Würth Automates Logistics With Cobot Grippers From Schmalz

At Würth's distribution center, around 30 employees sort round 3,000 cardboard boxes of screws, nuts and other connectors every day. Since December 2021, they have been supported by a collaborative robot that can see, grasp and sort the boxes. This solution, developed by Schmalz, noticeably reduces the workload for employees and is an important step towards logistics automation for Würth in order to better manage the growing shipping volume.

Products used in the application

Features of the success story

Industry	Mounting and fastening technology
Workpiece	Cardboard boxes
Product group	End-of-Arm Ecosystem MATCH
Type of handling	Automated handling

With Schmalz

3.000

boxes

per day

The customer: Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG

The Würth Group is the world market leader in the development, manufacture and sale of mounting and fastening materials. As the largest single company in the Würth Group, Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG has expanded its Distribution Center West in Künzelsau-Gaisbach: The new distribution center covers an area of 16,600 square meters and enables a significant increase in performance and storage capacity.

The challenge

Würth was looking for a solution to improve working conditions at the VZ West distribution center. In particular, the ergonomic strain and monotony of manual handling of boxes containing screws, nuts and other connectors were to be reduced. The employees there handle around 3,000 cardboard boxes every day in two shifts, which they have to reload from pallets into small load carriers (SLCs). This work is physically very demanding and can lead to strain, particularly due to the constant lifting and movering of the cardboard boxes, which weigh 500 to 5,000 grams. To relieve the strain on staff and at the same time counteract the shortage of skilled workers, Würth decided to increase the level of automation in logistics.

The Cobot reduces monotonous work, significantly improves ergonomics and is therefore a valuable support.

∼ Roland Schneider, Head of the Technical Department at Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG

The solution from Schmalz

The Schmalz solution consists of several innovative components that work together to efficiently solve gripping tasks and optimize work processes: The Bin Picker (SBPG) is circuitried with three different vacuum cups: the SAOF oval, the SPB1 60 and the SPB1 80. This allows the cobot to safely handle boxes of different sizes. In addition, the SBPG is long enough to dip into the boxes and light enough not to put excessive strain on the robot's load-bearing capacity. With the MATCH quick-change module, the cobot can independently replace the various vacuum suction cups of the SBPG as well as the entire gripper. One load handling attachment is always mounted on the robot arm, while the other is ready in the gripper station. Depending on the requirements, the cobot independently selects the appropriate gripper. Thanks to the standardized connection and communication, the gripper is immediately ready for use. The necessary vacuum is provided by the pneumatic RECB vacuum generator, which ensures efficient and energy-saving operation with its integrated SEP nozzle. Schmalz has also developed software with a user interface that allows employees to enter the current order. This software communicates seamlessly with the camera, the robot and the safe laser scanner and adapts the robot controller and the camera to the task at hand after the input. A special feature of this solution is that Würth can control the entire order management of the robot cell via the software. Functions such as the target container check, the recognition and removal of intermediate layers from the source box and the collision check are already 100 percent functional. The software calculates the waypoints that the robot starts up and uses the digital twin to check for collisions. If necessary, obstacles are avoided and new waypoints are defined. The cobot with the vision and gripping solution from Schmalz has been in use since the end of December 2021 and the employees have accepted the new "colleague" well: The employees use the pallet truck to move a Euro pallet with boxes to the designated area. The cobot independently picks up the KLT containers to be filled from a conveyor belt and fills them until the Euro pallet is empty. When they are set down on the conveyor system, the containers are scanned and recorded in the SAP system.