GSM PTF Off Center Pick

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Having some issues with our GSM picking parts that are deliv... - Jun 17, 2015 by robgd3

There is. I've done it. Can't remember how the heck to do ... - Jun 17, 2015 by SWAG

Thanks for the shot at it :) So, I discovered the "feeder... - Jun 17, 2015 by robgd3

Awesome! It's good you found feeder teach. One warning: f... - Jun 17, 2015 by SWAG

robgd3

#74101

GSM PTF Off Center Pick | 17 June, 2015

Having some issues with our GSM picking parts that are delivered by the PTF off center; and wondering if there's a relatively painless way to calibrate where the head goes to pick the part on the belt.

Near as I can see, the PTF is picking the parts fine, and placing them on the belt...that's where things get strange. I can see that the part is not being picked in the center (or anywhere near the center).

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks, ..rob

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SWAG

#74102

GSM PTF Off Center Pick | 17 June, 2015

There is. I've done it. Can't remember how the heck to do it 100%, though! We no longer have GSM's and it was years ago so sorry I'm not much help but I'll try. I remember a couple details... I put clear or kapton tape on the part (sticky side up) probably during step mode? and the pick nozzle came over and attempted a pick from the transfer belt. I could see where the nozzle hit the part as the tape picked up a circle shape shadow. I measured to the center of the part with calipers and changed the pick point in the software. I'm not sure where that pick point is in the software. I think it might be feeder database for "TrayLF" or "TrayRF" or wherever you have the PTF installed. Maybe a spin on this would be to create a pick on the part thats on the belt using the tape method (use a 08MPF or something that won't pick it off the belt) then shoot it with your camera to find exact center relative to pick (feeder teach for TrayLF, etc.) - (if the camera will travel that far???). I'm not sure how you'd keep the belt from zeroing and tossing the part into oblivion, though. Just a thought. I know UIC has some tricky fixtures for this but this worked for me to get us going. Sorry about sketchy details but this is what I remember.

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robgd3

#74104

GSM PTF Off Center Pick | 17 June, 2015

Thanks for the shot at it :)

So, I discovered the "feeder teach" feature that UIC has in the software. It's fantastic...except it doesn't give the option to have the PTF deliver a part to the belt. That was mildly disappointing.

In the help files, I found that when you do that feeder teach, it has you zero the camera on the lower left of the part, and then the upper right of the part. Which is moderately difficult to do without a part on the belt. I also learned that when using this feature for the PTF, it is recommended to use the nozzle nearest the camera.

I suppose I could write up a custom program to force that nozzle, etc. But, I ended up getting lucky

I started the job I was in the middle of running...and the PTF quietly loaded up 4 ICs on the belt (one for each nozzle), and zipped them into the machine...I was able to hit the e-stop before the parts were picked....and then go into the "feeder teach" set-up and run the set-up process. Bingo...picking issues fixed!

I'm hoping that it extends to the next part that I put in there, and doesn't need to be repeated for every different size part. I'm also thinking that next time around, I'll write the custom program, and put double sided sticky tape on the belt so that I can go with your suggestion of a failed pick, then do the set up.

Cheers, ..rob

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SWAG

#74105

GSM PTF Off Center Pick | 17 June, 2015

Awesome! It's good you found feeder teach. One warning: feeder teach is not slot specific (at least not when I ran GSM). Example: You teach an 8mm feeder in slot 30. You then teach an 8mm feeder in slot 31. The pick will change for the slot 30 8mm feeder (relative to the slot 30 pin) = bad. You will have to create feeders for each slot in the database for example, "8/30", "8/31", "12/30", "12/31", etc. Swap them in after optimizing. Hope that makes sense. The newer machines (Advantis, Genesis) do it automatically so you don't have to create a bunch of feeders on your own. There might be an easier way or maybe your software version is different than what I had; we were just kind of winging it figuring stuff out on our own without training so I probably learned bad habits... Related tip: You can create individual tracks in a single vibe feeder the same way I just described and run diffent length parts in the same track (8SOIC next to a 16SOIC, etc.) = great space savings. You can lie to the machine and tell it the track only takes up one slot to do this. I always say programming is a bunch of lies to get what you need.

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