The modular machine concept from Kurtz Ersa Smart Production bridges the gap between standard machines and custom machine engineering. The flexibly scalable platform architecture enables high-precision micro assembly systems that can be tailored exactly to customer needs.
A Modular Toolkit for Automation
The technological foundation is a comprehensive process operating system with decentrally networked control modules. The basis of all systems consists of various standardized base machines featuring robust machine frames, high-precision axis systems, and master PC controls. The individually customizable manufacturing processes are flexibly implemented via more than 100 different process modules. Thanks to uniform interfaces, they can be easily integrated into all machine types via plug-and-play. This reduces development costs as well as delivery times and ensures maximum future viability and sustainability of the customer´s production technology.
Cutting-Edge Technologies on a Single Platform
The modular machine platform combines a wide variety of key technologies from the modern micro assembly world in a single system. In addition to the precise handling of three-dimensional components, the system masters the high-precision dispensing of adhesives and pastes as well as complex methods for thermal joining and laser soldering. A technological highlight is the in-house developments in the field of active alignment for optical applications. During the assembly of camera or laser modules, this solution enables the active alignment of optical components in six degrees of freedom in the nanometer range. The fully integrated automated optical inspection (AOI) monitors and documents all steps directly within the running process. Coupled with integrated traceability, all process data, component parameters, and test results are recorded. In total, more than 40 freely combinable core processes and technologies are available on the platform.
Efficient Fixture Construction and Scaling
A central economic advantage of this platform philosophy is the complete integration and scalability of a wide variety of processes. The OurPlant Smart Tools already showcase their strengths during product development and fixture construction for high-precision micro processes. Internally developed processes and new products are initially validated on the compact desktop solution. During subsequent scaling, the determined process parameters and utilized modules can be transferred one-to-one to the larger, fully automated production systems. This reduces the technological risk during production ramp-up in high-volume series, and the customer benefits from a significantly shortened time-to-market phase.
Unified Control ensures Future Variability
Kurtz Ersa Smart Production consistently relies on standardized interfaces and maximum flexibility. As a result, users can also implement highly specific or internally developed processing heads or fixtures. The straightforward system integration into existing production lines saves valuable development time. Since all machine types – from laboratory to series production systems – run on the same intuitive process operating system, OurPlant OS, the training effort for operating personnel is significantly reduced. Existing processes can be adopted directly without any programming effort. This paves the way for seamless scalability of manufacturing capacities.
More than just well-etablished
With more than 30 years of use in microassembly, the exceptional design of this platform has long been well-established. Renowned customers from the worlds of sensor technology, medical technology, laser technology, optics, semiconductors, and the automotive supply industry use these systems for their most demanding fields of application. The numerous installed systems have proven themselves in 24/7 manufacturing environments just as they have in applications with quality requirements exceeding Six Sigma*. The question of whether such a decentralized control architecture, far removed from conventional PLC controls, is suitable for industrial use has thus long been answered impressively. Instead, this new smart machine engineering world holds significant growth opportunities for Kurtz Ersa and its customers.
*Six Sigma is a management system for process improvement, a statistical quality objective, and a quality management method. Its core element is the description, measurement, analysis, improvement, and monitoring of business processes using statistical methods. It is a method with a comprehensive set of tools for the systematic improvement or redesign of processes. In process improvement projects, the project structure plan follows the Define – Measure – Analyze – Improve – Control (DMAIC) approach
→ source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Sigma
