Our robot guidance system FINDER was introduced to the market in 2011, and as of today we have installed more than 500 robot guidance systems in the manufacturing industry. At the core of FINDER lies its flexibility, ease-of-use, and adaptability to meet customer needs.
Machine vision-based robot guidance means giving eyes to the robot. The smart cameras find products in the camera field of view and sends picking coordinates to the robot’s control system. Machine vision does not only make the system more flexible and cost-effective than other robot guidance solutions but also helps in reducing operating maintenance costs.
What is your industry?
Are you a robot integrator?
We work closely with our partners and have built a solid partner network with the very best robot integrators in the industry over the years. We specialize in robot guidance, while our partners excel in automation solutions.
How are your products positioned?
Depending on how your products are positioned, you would use different FINDER kits. Read below about the three different types of positioning and which FINDER kit best suits your needs.
Unstructured
When picking unstructured details, FINDER 3D is best suited as no known height coordinate is needed.
Semi-structured
For semi-structured picking where the height of the details varies, or where there are spacers, FINDER Stereo is excellent.
Structured
For structured picking, where the products have a known height, traditional robot guidance with FINDER 2D is used.
FINDER 2D
FINDER 2D is the solution for traditional robot guidance when the products are picked from a surface with known height. It is outstanding when locating sorted goods on a conveyor or in a pallet. Easy configured localization methods and gripper collision detection make the setup very straight-forward, which results in short installation time.
FINDER Stereo
FINDER Stereo is perfect in layered pallet picking applications or when there is variation in product height, providing 3D positions at a very attractive price/performance ratio. A unique matching method is used to provide fast and accurate results, and the configuration of the stereo camera pair is as easy as with FINDER 2D.
FINDER 3D
FINDER 3D is excellent when picking products with complex shapes as well as bin picking applications. It offers a full 3D coordinate and includes advanced collision management in 3D. In case the application requires re-gripping, one or several 2D cameras can easily be added to the system.
FINDER Tubes
FINDER Tubes is tailored to provide robot guidance solution specialized for picking of pipes, rods, and shafts. By linear movement of the product or camera and laser-based 3D scanning technology, the robot is provided with fast and lag-free 3D coordinates.
Some of those who have chosen FINDER for their robot guidance
Automotive
The automotive industry is heavily investing in the build-up of the electric vehicles production. This adds new demands on driveline, battery-manufacturing, and recycling, at the same time as the technical specifications on production up-time, through-put, and product quality remain. FINDER’s flexibility and the possibility to make customized solutions for new and retrofit robot cells aids in a reliable transformation.
Machine tending
The robot picks engine and driveline goods, e.g. gear blanks, shafts, and bearing caps before machining. FINDER guides the handling of structured goods from conveyor or bin without fixturing, as well as in random bin picking.
Engine and driveline assembly
Many components arrive to the assembly robot cells in pallets, separated by spacers or dedicated blisters. FINDER guides the robot(s) picking the parts from the pallet(s) prior to pairing or placing them in the assembly fixture.
Press automation
FINDER is used to verify material position and orientation to ensure yield and avoid damaging the die. FINDER guides the handling of blanks and pressed sheet metal parts before welding or assembly, whether the products are stapled or hanging in a rack.
Painting and sealing
High quality painting and sealing of vehicle bodies requires 3D-positioning. FINDER locates the body based on one or several reference features and guides the robot(s) to the correct starting position(s).
Metal and machining
With the wide range of products, varying in size, shape, and type of material, the metal machining industry requires a flexible manufacturing process. The production systems must be easy to use for the operators. With FINDER, the most effective vision technology can be selected, and even a mix of 2D and 3D vision is supported, with the same user-friendly interface for all. Also, an inspection step can easily be added for subsequent quality control of the located products.
Machine tending
Robots are used to load and unload various machines. Parts can enter the processing cell in a structured fashion (e.g. pre-processed products placed on spacers or in blisters), stacked (e.g. sheet metal profiles), or unstructured (e.g. cast or forged goods in pallets).
Assembly
Before assembly by welding, screwing, or some other method, the robot picks stacked or structured sub-components from e.g. conveyors or light tables. FINDER provides the products’ positions and orientations for correct placing in the assembly fixtures.
Foundry and forging
The foundry industry strives to increase the value of the delivered goods by improving the level of product quality and refinement. Automation is important to minimize the hazards of heavy and monotonous manual handling. FINDER provides a proven robot guidance solution for various material handling and machining applications using industrial cameras with rugged housings. The platform also allows for vision-based quality inspection as an optional feature.
Sand core assembly
The precision of the positioning of the sand cores and flasks is crucial for high quality castings. FINDER provides the picking coordinates enabling automatic assembly in the flasks.
Machine tending
The shape and appearance of castings and forged goods vary and require flexible production systems. FINDER locates the gripping points in automated handling before grinding and machining of both steel and aluminum products.
Plastics and rubber
Manufacturers in the plastic and rubber products industry are investing in automation technologies to reduce production costs, improve productivity and enhance product quality. FINDER provides high performance position of the parts and at the same time checks for e.g. adequate fill grade of the mold cavities or for products defects.
Material handling
In injection molding the production is characterized by short cycle times. The products are often semi- or unstructured in boxes or pallets and are located by FINDER before subsequent handling and refinement.
Assembly
The robot’s main task is to place the plastic or rubber sub-components in the correct positions in the special mounting fixtures used for assembly. FINDER gives the robot the coordinates to pick parts from e.g. light tables in the various assembly processes.
Consumer goods
Increasing the yield in consumer products manufacturing put demands on cost-effective production and packaging methods, quality control, and logistics in high-volume flows. The ability to mix different camera technologies and its adaptability make FINDER an unbeatable option for both the manufacturing process, and the quality control.
Packaging
With a wide range of products incoming on pallets or on conveyors the robot cell’s task is to place the products in cardboard boxes and seal these before storage and transport. FINDER provides the correct coordinate and orientation of the products.
Machine handling
In the production of porcelain sanitary ware several products come mixed on cars moving through the kiln. FINDER is used to identify and to locate the different product types on the line to ensure type specific handling in the downstream processes.