How does automated sequencing of composite plies work?

Airborne has developed a plug-and-play, Automated Kitting solution for composite plies. Plies are loaded on a conveyor, or automatically fed from the ply cutter (a digital cutting system). The machine then picks the plies from the conveyor belt cutter and sorts them into groups on trays, drawers or cabinets in a buffer station. The pregroupped plies are then automatically sequenced in the order required for layup. Airborne’s proprietary buffer system design ensures fast operation and a small footprint. 

Performance

Airborne’s standalone and integrated Automated Kitting solutions can kit up to 220 plies per hour and up to 1200 plies per production run. The exact performance of the automated sorting machine depends on the number of kits kitted per production run and the average number of plies per tray.

The kitting algorithm is selected automatically depending on the production requirements to deliver the best performance. A kitting rate of 150 or 220 plies per hour is achieved in most cases. Performance tailoring to specific requirements may be possible through hardware and/or software customisation.

standalone solution

Airborne’s standalone Automated Kitting solution enhances automated cutting by automating the sequencing process. By working independently from the cloth cutter, it is an ideal fit for an up and running facility with one or more cutters that is looking to increase its productivity and material utilization.

integrated solution

Airborne’s integrated Automated Kitting solution delivers all the advantages of the standalone solution, with the additional benefit of further reducing the manual labor content associated with the cutting and kitting process through integration of the cutter. As an end-to-end material roll to ply kits process it is the ultimate sorting solution.

Download the study by Jens de Kanter on Automated composite ply kitting and preforming

In this paper we take a look at the challenges for the industry, the traditional kitting process and the opportunities for and advantages of automating the kitting process. And, as a next step, we discuss how the automated kitting process could be extended to include preforming as well.

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