Field tests planned for later this year

18.06.2014. Kiesling Maschinentechnik will launch Averex, the world’s first robotic wiring centre, in the second half of 2014. After a five-year development period, this automation solution for machinery, control enclosure and switchgear manufacturing is now all but production-ready. But first, two to three real-world field tests will be conducted. Averex saves valuable time by eliminating the need to wire mounting plates manually. Now, connections between devices are made automatically and meet all applicable standards and safety requirements. This reduces the number of working hours per enclosure by up to 15 hours. Additional features, such as push-in connections and automatic wire-changing and labelling increase the degree of automation even further.

As Rolf von Kiesling, Managing Director of Kiesling Maschinentechnik, explains, "the Averex wiring centre can help manufacturers to significantly accelerate their production processes, particularly in production systems engineering, where the same wiring configurations are used over and over again, and on a scale close to mass production. If the engineers can access complete component data quickly, automated wiring rapidly becomes cost-effective – even in a lot size of one."

Averex has been specially developed for wiring enclosure mounting plates. The system cuts the wires to the correct length, before stripping them and crimping them with wire ferrules. Then, it feeds the wires through the cable duct and attaches them to components such as terminal blocks, contactors and motor circuit breakers.

On average, it takes around 180 seconds to complete this wiring process manually – but Averex finishes the same task in approximately 40 seconds. What’s more, it is exceptionally reliable, utilising lasers to identify the parts and check their dimensions against the assembly tolerances. Automation reduces the number of required working hours by around 15 per enclosure compared to manual wiring (based on 300 wires).

The solution’s standout technical feature is its patented machine head, which can be rotated by 270 degrees and includes cable routing, cutting, stripping and crimping units, torque-controlled screwing and a tool changer that can hold up to six tools. In addition to screw connections, terminal blocks with push-in connections can be used. An automatic wirechanger – with capacity for up to 16 wires – and automatic wire labelling increase the degree of automation even further.

A specially developed machine-to-machine interface transfers data to Averex. This includes data from Eplan, and information on components and their respective locations on the mounting plate, drawn from the 3D model. Averex starts by using this information to check the manually assembled mounting plate before wiring up the components automatically and autonomously. It can also switch to wires of different colours or thicknesses. This significantly accelerates wiring tasks that are normally performed by hand. The outstanding benefits delivered by Averex – the first solution of its kind anywhere in the world – are time and cost savings and a truly end-to-end workflow.