Application of Industrial Robots in the Furniture Industry
2024-11-11
Data shows that in 2023, solid-wood furniture accounted for 41.8% of China’s wooden furniture market, while panel furniture accounted for 58.2%. Over the past several years, the panel furniture market has maintained an average annual growth rate as high as 20%, with a market value reaching hundreds of billions of yuan, making a significant contribution to China’s entire furniture industry. (Data source: China Report Hall.)
However, the rapid development of the market has placed higher demands on improving productivity. As the output of panel furniture continues to grow, traditional equipment can no longer meet the needs of modern production. At the same time, industrial upgrading is driving trends toward environmental protection and customization, prompting companies to introduce advanced equipment to align with these upgrading requirements. Moreover, increasing cost pressures are compelling businesses to optimize their production processes, enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and maintain their competitiveness.
Robotic Sorting and Palletizing | Unsorted Incoming Materials, Intelligent Recognition and Classification + Short Payback Period + Rapid Sorting
▎Unordered Palletizing and Sorting Technology
Unconstrained by the dimensions of sheet metal specifications, it automatically calculates the stacking sequence and number of layers, fully maximizing pallet utilization and enabling lean production with “flexible single-piece” operations.
❶ Data Collection: The front end transmits the dimensional data of the raw material sheets, after they have been cut, to the PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) in real time.
❷ Smartly Enhancing Pallet Utilization: The PLC calculates the available area of the current pallet and the area of each board based on the data it receives, then intelligently matches the optimal placement sequence and layering arrangement to ensure that the area of each pallet layer is fully utilized.
❸ Precise positioning: Utilize a camera for accurate positioning to ensure the robotic arm’s precision when picking up and placing sheets.
▎Fast Sorting
The sorting and warehousing cycle for finished board components is faster (i.e., the time required to complete one cycle from order picking to warehousing is shorter):
• Each cycle of the small board does not exceed 16 seconds.
• The middle plate should not exceed 18 seconds per cycle.
▎Short payback period
Robots can work continuously without needing rest or shift changes, which means they can complete greater volumes of work in a shorter amount of time. Moreover, thanks to their high operational precision, robots reduce material waste and product defects caused by human error, thereby lowering production costs. All these factors contribute to a relatively shorter payback period for the investment in robots.
An increasing number of users are choosing robots for sorting and palletizing.
Click to learn more: STEP SP180/3200 Palletizing Robot
Click to learn more: STEP SR175/3200 Universal Robot
Click to watch: Robotic Sorting Application for the Board-Based Home Furnishings Industry
Robots have demonstrated tremendous potential and value in the sorting and palletizing stages of the panel furniture industry. As technology continues to advance, robots not only enhance production efficiency and reduce labor costs but also significantly improve operational accuracy and safety. For furniture manufacturers, proactively embracing robotic technologies and establishing efficient, intelligent production lines will be the key to gaining a competitive edge in the future.
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