Intelligent Material Handling
Aluminum Casting AS/RS for Robotic Heat Treatment
Two servo-driven automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) buffer castings into and out of robotic heat treat.
CLIENT
INDUSTRY
SOLUTION
DURATION
The Challenge
The customer’s aluminum casting process fed a robot-automated heat treatment line, and the two run at different rhythms. Casting is sensitive to interruption, while heat treatment runs on its own fixed operating cycle, so a stop on either side would stall the other. The plant needed automated buffers before and after heat treatment that could hold hundreds of castings, track every one, retrieve them automatically and run lights out with no operator involvement.
Key Requirements
- Two AS/RS buffers: before and after heat treatment
- 360 PLC-managed storage positions (180 per AS/RS)
- Feed a robot-automated heat treat line
- 99% system efficiency
- 3-axis servo motion
- Lights-out operation
The ICR Solution
ICR designed and built a casting AS/RS made of two automated storage and retrieval systems: a before-heat-treat stocker and an after-heat-treat stocker, each organized into three storage zones with a servo-driven platter transfer at the heat treat interface. A PLC manages all 360 storage positions (180 per system) and tracks every casting from the manual load and transfer stations through storage and into heat treatment, while 3-axis Yaskawa servo motion handles every move. Operators see each position and its status on the HMI, and Keyence bar code readers confirm part identity at the intakes. Keyence light curtains and Schmersal safety devices, monitored by a safety PLC, protect the load areas so the system runs lights out.
Equipment & Technology
- PLC with Ethernet I/O
- Safety PLC
- Yaskawa Sigma 3-axis servo control
- Touchscreen HMI
- Keyence bar code readers (part ID)
- Keyence safety light curtains
- Schmersal safety equipment
- Omron sensors and safety limit switches
Scope of Work
- Up-Front Engineering
- Mechanical Design
- Controls Design
- Panel Build
- PLC/HMI Programming
- Installation
- Commissioning
Results
Both AS/RS buffers decouple casting from heat treatment, so a stop on one side no longer stops the other. The system manages 360 storage positions automatically, holds 99% system efficiency and runs 24/7 lights out in high-volume automotive production with high operational availability (OA). Castings move into and out of the robotic heat treat line with no operator handling.