Bee Frames assembled by Robot

Automated honey bee foundation frame assembly.

Cycle Time: 2 frames/minute

1. Robot first picks up a top bar and bottom bar from operator loaded feeders and places them into nest on a servo axis index table.

2. Robot picks up two end/side bars from a small 3D printed pallet. Holds the two end bars under a glue dispenser where both ends of the parts are glued. Then places them into the nest on the index table.

3. Index table rotates the nest into the next station where a foundation sheet is singulated from a stack then dropped into place. The nest then clamps all the parts together.

4. The index table rotates again to the stapler gantry where the bee frame is stapled in the four corners.

5. Index table rotates again to the next station where a servo gantry pick the finished frame out of the index table nest and holds it up in front of a vision system for inspection. The vision system checks to make sure staples have been placed in the frame and in the right locations. If the frame is good it is stacked in groups of 5. If it is a fail it is then rejected.

6.Finally, the stack of frames then moves along a conveyor through a strapping machine. A strap is applied to each end of the stack holding the frames together.