Quality Machine and Automation Employment.
ㅤFor over a year I had the privilege to work at Quality Machine and Automation through the Careerline Tech Center’s Capstone program, a program for high schoolers looking to get early and advanced experience in STEM fields! I was able to stretch my capabilities in FANUC Robotics, vision systems, panel-building, and automation cell wiring.
ㅤFor vision systems we mainly used these Keyence IV3 cameras on these neat articulating arms. Once you set the arm in position, you had to tighten those bolts so they hopefully wouldn’t loosen until the heat death of the universe. This was to ensure that the camera would be able to see everything in the exact same way every time. This also meant that you had to take into account the light and windows of the shop. They WOULD be different for a different shop, so don’t program it to be more sensitive where there is currently a sunbeam.
ㅤOptimally, the cameras would be well out of the way, while being able to clearly make out each individual clip (most of our machines where automation clip-placers). Even this picture is out of date, since I was told to move it farther back to the corner of the cell. So I did, and though you could see the clips less well, the Yes/No program was pretty sharp, and could still pick it up very well.
ㅤI think I programmed about ten of these cells with the Yes/No program with multiple cameras each. I experimented with other programs, but Yes/No was far and away the best for the mylar and clip machines we made.
ㅤDuring high school, I attended the Careerline Tech Center where I obtained my Level 1 FANUC Certification, and I was able to use it at Quality to program positions and movements. Some customers below are running my program on the robots!
ㅤIt was awesome being able to program these powerful 6-axis (or 2-axis) robots, but it was even cooler watching the customers run the program and watching it work in real time! Surreal. This cell in particular was a lot of work on my part. I worked on the vision systems and its feedback to the robots, so they don’t pick up nothing, and don’t miss picking up a mylar. The positions and movements of these robots were also programmed by yours truly.
ㅤI single-handedly did more panel-building than any other engineering activity, probably because I have a passion for electrical engineering, but also because it was fairly easy to understand. It didn’t look easy, I mean, look at all these pages! With the help of my co-workers I was able to quickly grasp the cycle of panel-building and the standards at work here at Quality.
ㅤThe first task is to cut the wireways and DIN rail according to the drawing measurements. We have thick clippers for the wireways and a specialized and measured cutter for the DIN rail. I cut them to length, and then lay out where they would go, mark where holes should go in the baseplate, then drill out those holes with a self-threading drill-bit.
ㅤNext up is a simple step, placing all the components onto the panel. Usually the drawing is correct for this, but every now and then I needed double-check that the high power components were separated from the low power components. Another thing I had to double check here was that there was enough Ground Terminal Blocks, or later on, I might have to add more terminal blocks if it turns out one of the components needed to use more contacts, for example.
ㅤI also had to print out label stickers for each terminal block, each side of each wire, and labels for each component as well. All this is labeled on the drawing, but creating the labels on our Brady label system was my own job.
Time for the best part! The wiring! With my own wire strippers, a callused thumb, a sheet of label stickers, and the panel’s electrical drawing, I went to town on cutting the wires (in bulk for most components) and connecting them end to end. Each time I finished a wire, I highlighted it on the drawing so that the panel integrators would know all the wires I had connected. Just in case.
ㅤThe wireways often got busy, but that is what zip-ties were for! Zip-ties are great for holding cords of wires together and keeping them neat. Neatness is very important when your customer is paying your company so much money.
ㅤOnce every wire was in its place, all that was left to do was to double-check that the wire labels were all facing the same direction, and cut the wireway lids! Panel done!
ㅤBecause of my time and effort spent at Quality Machine and Automation, I was awarded the Superior Commitment Award from the Careerline Tech Center!