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Bellerophon is not only the character from Greek mythology, but he is also the machine designed by Zetapunto for packaging wafers and cosmetic cases. This machine, like many others from Zetapunto, uses Mitsubishi Electric technology, with which there has been a strong partnership for several years.
Proximity with suppliers is essential, and Zetapunto has been working with Mitsubishi Electric since 2019. "Our first contact," says Filippo Zechini, "happened in a somewhat 'special' way: one of our customers asked us for help with the revamping of a plant in which there was a SCARA robot from Mitsubishi Electric. We asked them for help, and they immediately gave us strong support: since that time we decided to rely almost exclusively on them. When we work on a machine, it is like working with four hands: we design the machine and the functionality, and Mitsubishi Electric guides us in choosing the different components (robot, PLC, drives...) and integrating them. This, among other things, allows us to have one contact person for everything, which makes it easier to solve any problems."
The Bellerophon solution
One of Zetapunto's machines in which Mitsubishi Electric technology is featured is the Bellerofonte, a type of plant designed for the packaging of wafers and trousse for the cosmetics industry. Fully customizable to the user's needs, it is made by four hands.
Mitsubishi Electric supplies almost all the machinecomponents that SCARAs use today. Delta-type robots were previously installed, but the former have become the ideal solution over the years. Indeed, they possess the same performance in terms of speed, but with greater mechanical precision and very little need for maintenance. Moreover, since they do not have to be installed on the ceiling like the deltas, they do not need a robust and expensive structure."
Specifically, the Bellerophon manipulates and orients the wafer in the cosmetic trousse with a vision system the makeup containers, and is equipped with SCARA RH-CRH series robots and FX5U PLC with GS2107 operator panel from Mitsubishi Electric. It has high productivity: in fact, it can process 2,000 pieces/hour, but an increase is not ruled out.
How the machine works
Products arrive on trays attached to each other, the SCARA equipped with a dedicated end-effector picks them up and places them in the incoming troughs via conveyor belt, thanks to the tracking function integrated as standard within the robot controller. The system also integrates two vision sensors with which it is able to verify, upstream of the positioning, the correct dosing and distribution of the glue and, downstream, a quality control to ensure the presence and correct positioning of the wafer. If the camera shows discrepancies from the final check, the trousse is automatically discarded. At the final station, another system. The Bellerophon is customizable as needed: Zetapunto offers several types of end-effectors, and the customer chooses the best one for his or her processing needs.
One end-effector has been patented by Zetapunto: a vacuum with a cloth that does not mark the wafer, which also opens up the market for oriented, multicolored wafer troughs, because there is no need to clean the end-effector, so the risk of mixing different colors is zeroed out."
The biggest plus is the service
The strong partnership between Zetapunto and Mitsubishi Electric stems from the speed and great support the latter is able to offer. "Mitsubishi Electric is not only able to offer us a wide range of products," says Filippo Zechini, "but also guarantees us a high level of support and services, such as training and maintenance. And the latter is an issue that is very close to our hearts, because some of our solutions were developed years ago and now need more attention. Thanks to Mitsubishi Electric, we are able to give tables to our customers to plan for downtime, which is crucial in an industry like cosmetics that has a few weeks of 'peace of mind' within a year."
The Japanese company, among other things, has launched acard called MELFA Smart Plus that allows the implementation a predictive approach to maintenance. The option makes it possible to provide a percentage degree of wear for all parts subject to degradation such as: grease, bearings and the robot belt, giving a maintenance time based on the absorption of the robot's motors and not on the operating time, taking into account the speed, load and acceleration of each joint expected by the application.
Mitsubishi Electric offers the security of always having someone to rely on, whether it is a machine to be built from scratch, a newly installed one, or a revamp.
In the near future, another project to be carried out together: a complex machine with as many as 5 SCARAs.
