In the world of food manufacturing, cheese presents a unique challenge when it comes to precise cutting. Its crumbly texture and tendency to crack under pressure make it difficult to achieve perfect slices consistently. Elliptical Design, a British design and manufacturing company specializing in bespoke machine solutions for the food industry, has tackled this problem head-on by developing a cutting-edge ultrasonic cutting system. To enhance the system's efficiency and minimize waste, they partnered with industrial robot supplier TM Robotics.
Traditionally, cheese cutting in manufacturing has been a manual process, often resulting in breakage and damage due to the drag of the knife. This not only leads to wasted product but also affects the aesthetics and uniformity of the cheese slices. Elliptical Design's ultrasonic cutting technology offers a solution by using microscopic vibrations of a blade to pass through the cheese easily, delivering precise and accurate cuts without causing damage.
To further optimize the cutting process, Elliptical Design integrated industrial robots from TM Robotics, the UK distributor for Shibaura Machine, formerly Toshiba Machine. With over three decades of experience in the robotics industry, TM Robotics provided the expertise necessary to ensure the success of this complex project.
The cheese manufacturing system incorporates robots for three distinct functions. Two of these are pick and place applications, utilizing vision and conveyor tracking capabilities. In one application, a robot picks up a large, half-moon piece of cheese and places it into plastic packaging. The other involves a robot picking up three small pieces of cheese simultaneously and placing them into packets. For these tasks, TM Robotics supplied its THP700 SCARA robot, the most powerful and fastest option in Shibaura Machine's SCARA range. With a fast cycle time of 0.3 seconds and the ability to perform 120 cycles per minute in 24-hour continuous operation, the THP700 is well-suited for the demands of food production. Additionally, the robots have an IP65 rating, making them suitable for handling raw food.
The third robotic application is the ultrasonic cutting system itself. In this process, a robot picks up a 10 metric ton piece of cheese and moves it onto a weigh station, followed by a cutting station where it is precisely cut in half using ultrasonic technology. For this system, TM Robotics provided the TV1000H 6-axis industrial robot, which boasts a maximum cycle time of up to 0.9 seconds and a repeatability of ±0.03mm. The robot's IP65 or IP67 rating, depending on the model, ensures its suitability for food-grade applications.
Integrating the robots with the vision system posed a challenge, particularly in fine-tuning the robot's ability to pick up and place the cheese accurately. Shibaura Machine robots are generally easy to integrate with vision systems, but the slim margin for error in plastic tote placing required extra attention. The team's engineers, with support from TM Robotics' direct partnership with Shibaura Machine, found the right algorithm in the vision program to enable the robot to identify non-uniform shapes and pick the cheese accurately.
The collaboration between Elliptical Design and TM Robotics has yielded impressive results. Prior to the project, the cheese manufacturer's production process was almost entirely manual, taking between four and five days to produce the weekly quota. With the implementation of the ultrasonic cutting system and Shibaura Machine robots, the same production quotas are now reached in just two days, thanks to increased throughput and reduced waste.
The success of this project has prompted Elliptical Design to order another Shibaura Machine robot to build a demonstration system at their headquarters, showcasing the benefits of industrial robots to customers in the food industry. As food manufacturers consider investing in industrial automation for food handling, the impressive impact on productivity and waste reduction makes it a step worth taking.
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