UNIT II

AUTOMATED FLOW LINES

Prepared By:
Rajesh Shah
Assistant Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
Aditya Engineering College, Surampalem
Andhra Pradesh
 Fundamentals of Automated
Production Lines
• In this unit we will know about manufacturing system used for high production
of parts that requires multiple processing operations.

• Each processing operations are performed at a workstation and the stations

are physically integrated by means of mechanized work transport system to
form an automated production line.

• APL includes Robotic spot welding in Automobile final assembly plants, sheet
metal press working and electroplating of metals.
 The objectives of the use of flow
line automation are:-
• To reduce labor costs
• To increase production rates
• To reduce work-in-process
• To minimize distances moved between operations
• To achieve specialization of operations
• To achieve integration of operations
Fundamentals of Automated
Production Lines
• An automated flow line consists of several machines or workstations
which are linked together by work handling devices that transfer parts
between the stations.

• A raw work part enters one end of the line and the processing steps are
performed sequentially as the part moves from one station to the next.

• Figure is representing the General APL.

General APL configurations
Terms in figure

• Proc means processing Operation

• Aut means Automated Work station.

• The flow line can be symbolized as shown in Figure1 using the symbols
presented in Table1.

• The Flow lines may include the inspection stations to perform the intermediate
quality checks.

• Sometimes manual stations are located along the line to perform certain
operations, which are difficult or uneconomical to automate.
• Each stations performs different operations for what they have been
assigned.

• Multiple parts are processed simultaneously on the line, as apart of

workstation.

• No. parts on the line at any moment is equal to the number of workstations.
• Automated Production lines(APL) are also called as fixed
automation or hard automation in as much as the lines of machines
are designed to produce one type of component or product.

• Product-design modifications are essential to make the automated

assembly system successful.
Table below shows the principles to be observed while redesigning
products for automated assembly.

Principles of Product Redesign

1. Reduce the amount of assembly required
2. Reduce the number of fasteners required.
3. Design components to be automatically delivered and
positioned
4. Design products for layered assembly and vertical insertion

of parts.
5. Design parts so that they are self-aligning.
6. Design products into major modules for production.
7. Increase the quality of components
Figure 2 symbols used in production systems diagrams
 Automated Production Lines
mechanism
• An automated production line operates in cycles, similar to a manual assembly
line.
• Each cycle consists of processing time plus the time to transfer parts
to the next station.
• The slowest work station sets the speed of production of line, just as in an
assembly line.
•

• where Tc = ideal cycle time on the line, min; Tsi = the processing time at
station i, min; and Tr = repositioning time, called the transfer time here, min.
 Work Part Transport
• Transport mechanisms used on automated production lines are
usually either
(A) Synchronous (B) Asynchronous (C) Continuous.(Rarely)
• Synchronous transport has been the traditional means of moving
parts in a transfer line.
• Asynchronous transport provides certain advantages over
synchronous transport:
(A) They are more flexible
(B) They permit queues of parts to form between workstations to act
as
storage buffers.
(C) It is easier to rearrange or expand the production line.
• Continuous work transport systems:
Although widely used on manual assembly lines.
• This is uncommon on automated lines due to the difficulty in
providing accurate registration between the station work
heads and the continuously moving parts.
Part Handling System
• Depending on the geometry of the work part to be processed, the line
may utilize pallet fixtures for part handling.

• A pallet fixture is a work-holding device that is designed to

(1) Fix the part in a precise location relative to its base.
(2) Be moved, located, and accurately clamped in position
at successive
• Due to PF the part itself is accurately positioned relative to the processing
operation performed at the station.
• It is used where tolerance requirement is 100th of 1 mm or 1000th of an inch.

• The system using this PF is termed as Palletized Transfer Line.

• The term palletized transfer line is sometimes used to identify a transfer line
that uses pallet fixtures or similar work-holding devices.

• The alternative method of work part location is to simply index the parts
themselves from station to station, this is called a free transfer line

• Advantage of this method is that, it avoids the cost of the pallet fixtures.
 System Configurations.
• Figure below shows the flow of work to be in a straight line.

• But in actual case the work flow can actually take several different forms.
(1) In-line
(2) Segmented in-line
(3) Rotary.
In-line Configurations
• The in-line configuration consists of a sequence of stations in a straight line
arrangement, as in Figure below.

• This configuration is common for machining big workpieces.

Such as Automotive Engine Blocks, Engine Heads and Transmission cases.

• LOGIC:- Such parts require a large number of operations, a production line with
many stations is needed.

• The in-line configuration can accommodate a large number of stations.

• In-line systems can also be designed with integrated storage buffers along the flow
path.
In-line Configurations
Segmented in-line configuration (SIL Configuration)
• SIL Configuration consists of two or more straight-line transfer sections,
where the segments are usually perpendicular to each other.
There are a number of reasons

Logic for designing a production line in this configuration rather than in a pure
straight line are as follows:-

(1) Available floor space may limit the length of the line.

(2) A workpiece in a segmented in-line configuration can be reoriented to

present different surfaces for machining.

(3) The rectangular layout provides for swift return of work-holding fixtures to

the front of the line for reuse.

• Two machining transfer lines. On the left is a segmented in-line
configuration that uses pallet fixtures to locate the work parts.

• The return loop brings the pallets back to the front of the line. On the
right, the second transfer line is an in-line configuration. Pallet fixtures
are represented as rectangles.

• The manual station between the lines is used to reorient the parts,
represented as ovals.
Rotary configuration

• The work parts are attached to fixtures around the periphery of a circular
worktable, and the table is indexed (rotated in fixed angular amounts) to
present the parts to workstations for processing.

• A typical arrangement is illustrated in Figure 16.4.

• The worktable is often referred to as a dial, and the equipment is called a dial-
indexing machine.
• Rotary indexing systems are commonly limited to smaller work parts.
rotary system usually involves a less expensive piece of equipment and
typically requires less floor space.
Rotary indexing systems
• Rotary indexing systems are commonly limited to smaller work parts
and fewer workstations.
• Rotary indexing systems are commonly limited to smaller work parts
and fewer work stations.
• They cannot readily accommodate buffer storage capacity.
On the positive side, the rotary system usually involves a less
expensive piece of equipment and typically requires less floor space.
Work part transport mechanisms
This Process can be divided into two categories:

(1)Linear transport systems for in-line and

segmented in-line systems
(2)Rotary indexing mechanisms for dial-indexing
machines.
Linear Transfer Systems
• Automated production lines for most of the material transport systems
described in linear motion uses following modes:-
• Powered Roller Conveyor System(PRCS)
(A)Belt Conveyors
(B)Chain Driven conveyors
• Cart-on-track.
• Pin on hole
• Walking beam transfer
 Powered roller conveyor
system(PRCS)
• PRCS Used for general stock handling systems in automated flow lines.
• In PRCS rollers can be powered by either of two Ways.

1. The first is a belt drive, in which a flat moving belt gets support from the
rollers placed under the belt and provides the rotation of the rollers by
friction.
2. A chain drive is the second common mechanism used to power the rollers.
• The chain is driven by pulleys in either an “over-and-under” configuration, in
which the pulleys turn about a horizontal axis.
• Or an “around-the-corner” configuration, in which the pulleys rotate about a
vertical axis.

Side view of chain or steel belt driven conveyor (“over and- under” type) for
linear work part
transfer by using work carriers.
Powered roller conveyor system
Belt And Roller Driven Chain Drive Roller System
Conveyor System
NOTE :- Powered roller conveyors are versatile transfer systems because they
can be used to divert work pallets into workstations or alternate tracks.
Cart-on-track

• In this system conveyors provide synchronous parts movement and

designed to position their carts within approx. 0.12mm to 0.005 inch.
Which is sufficient for many processing situations.

• Synchronous means traditional means of moving parts in a transfer

line.
walking-beam transfer
In this the parts are synchronously lifted up from their respective stations
by a transfer beam and moved one position ahead, to the next station by
transfer beam.
Step-I All w/p will be placed in the nest.
Step-II Next the synchronous is going to lift up the w/p. And in the same
time it will move one step forward.
Step- III After moving forward again synchronous will come back to original
position.
 Rotary transfer mechanisms
• Geneva mechanism:
• Continuously rotating driver to index the table.
• If the driven member has six slots for a six-station dial indexing machine, each
turn of the driver will cause the table to advance one-sixth of a turn.
• The driver only causes movement of the table through a portion of its rotation.
• For a six-slotted driven member, 120° of a complete rotation of the driver is
used to index the table. The other 240° is dwell.
• For a four-slotted driven member, the ratio would be 90° for index and 270° for
dwell.
• The usual number of indexing's per revolution of the table is four, five, six, and
eight.
 Calculation related to GM
Where,  = Angle of rotation of worktable
In general during
indexing (degrees of rotation)
ns = Number of equally spaced slots
in the
Geneva.

The angle of driver rotation during indexing = 2

The angle of driver rotation during which the worktable experiences dwell time
is (360 - 2).
Geneva mechanisms usually have four, five, six, or eight slots, which establish the
maximum number of workstation positions that can be placed around the periphery of the
table.
Given the rotational speed of the driver, total cycle time
is
 CAM Mechanisms:

• Cam mechanism provide probably the most accurate and reliable method of
indexing the dial.

• They are in widespread use in industry despite the fact that the cost is
relatively high compared to alternative mechanisms.

• The cam can be designed to give a variety of velocity and dwell characteristics.
Storage Buffers
• A storage buffer is a location in the production line where parts can be
collected and temporarily stored before proceeding to subsequent
(downstream) workstations.
• It can be operated manually or Automated.
• An automated buffer storage consists of a mechanism to accept parts from
the upstream workstation, a place to store the parts is located in between the
system and a mechanism to supply parts to the downstream station.
• Important parameter of buffer storage is “storage capacity”(No. of parts can
be stored)
• It can be located between every pair of adjacent stations or multiple locations.
 Reasons for B.S.
• There are two principal reasons for the use of buffer storage zones.

1. The first is to reduce the effect of individual station breakdowns on the line
operation.

2. Second The continuous or intermittent transfer system acts as a single

integrated machine.
Reasons for using storage
buffers:
• To reduce effect of station breakdowns.
• To provide a bank of parts to supply the line.
• To provide a place to put the output of the line.
• To allow curing time or other required delay.
• To smooth cycle time variations.
• To store parts between stages with different production rates.
Assignment Question Date of Submission:- 31/7/2018
1) Write about fixed automation and programmable automation.
2) Explain ten strategies for automation and process improvement
3) Explain the different types of production automation. Show, by
suitable graph, three types of production automation as a
function of production volume and product variety.
4) Define automated machine tool? Classify actuators. What is the
difference between hydraulic and pneumatic actuators?
5) Explain the three general methods of transporting the work
pieces on automated flow lines.
6) Explain any four reasons, why storage buffers are used on
automated production lines?
 Control of Production Line(CPL)

This section covers Two important aspects of CPL.

(1) The basic control functions that are accomplished to run the line.
(2) Controllers used on automated lines. (Line Controller)

• The basic control functions that are accomplished to run the line.
Three basic control functions can be distinguished in the operation of an
automated production line:
(1) Sequence control.
(2) Safety monitoring.
(3) Quality control.
 Sequence control.

• The purpose of sequence control is to coordinate the sequence of actions of

the transport system and associated workstations.

• The various activities of the production line must be carried out with
split-second timing and accuracy.

• Safety Monitoring function:

• Quality Control
For example
• The parts must be released from their current workstations,
transported, located, and clamped into position at their respective
next stations.

• Then the work heads must be actuated to begin their feed cycles, and
so on.
• The SCF in automated production line operation includes both logic
control and sequence control.
Safety Monitoring Function
• The safety monitoring function ensures that the production line does not
operate in an unsafe manner.

• Safety applies to both the human workers in the area and the equipment
itself.

• Additional sensors must be incorporated into the line beyond those required
for sequence control, in order to complete the safety feedback loop and
avoid hazardous operation.
 For example
• Interlocks must be installed to prevent the equipment from operating when
workers are performing maintenance or other duties on the line.

• In the case of machining transfer lines, cutting tools must be monitored for
breakage and/or excessive wear to prevent feeding a defective cutter into the
work.
 Quality control function
• In the quality control function, certain quality attributes of the work parts are
monitored.

• The purpose is to detect and possibly reject defective work units produced on
the line.

• The inspection devices required to accomplish quality control are sometimes

incorporated into existing processing stations.

• In other cases, separate inspection stations are included in the line for the sole
purpose of checking the desired quality characteristic.
 Line Controllers
• Programmable logic controllers are the conventional controllers used on
automated production lines today.

• Personal computers (PCs) equipped with control software and designed for
the factory environment are also widely used.
Computer control offers the following benefits:

• Opportunity to improve and upgrade the control software, such as adding

specific control functions not anticipated in the original system design.

• Recording data on process performance, equipment reliability, and

product quality.(in some industries product quality records must be
maintained for legal reasons).
• Diagnostic routines to expedite maintenance and repair when line breakdowns
occur and to reduce the duration of downtime incidents.

• Generation of preventive maintenance schedules to reduce the frequency of

downtime occurrences

• A PC provides a more convenient interface than a PLC between the operator

and the automated line.
 DESIGN AND
FABRICATION CONSIDERATIONS
• For designing and building an automated flow line, some of the details needs to
be considered, they are the following:-

Whether the flow line is to be engineered in-house or by a machine tool builder

Size, weight, geometry, and material if a processed work part
Size, weights, and number of components if an assembly
Tolerance requirements
Type and sequence of operations
Production-rate requirements
Type of transfer system
Methods of fixturing and locating work parts
Methods of orienting and feeding components in the case of assemblies
Reliability of individual stations and transfer mechanisms, as well as overall
reliability of the line
Buffer storage capability
Ease of maintenance
Control features desired
Floor space available
Flexibility of line in terms of possible future changes in product design
Flexibility of line to accommodate more than a single work part
Initial cost of the line
Operational and tooling cost for the line
Analysis of Transfer Lines
The analysis and design of automated production lines, three problem areas
must be considered:

(1) Processing technology

(2) System reliability
(3).Line Balancing
 Analysis of Automated Flow Lines
• In analyze the performance of automated flow lines, two general problem
areas must be distinguished.

• The first is related to the production processes used on the line.

• The second general problem area of flow line performance.

The first is related to the production processes
used on the line.
• To understand this take an example, consider a transfer line that performs a series of
machining operations to remove the extra material for this an extensive knowledge
related to the theory and practice of metal machining is required.

• This knowledge includes the proper specification and use of cutting tools, the
metallurgy and machinability of the work material, chip control, machining economics,
machine tool vibrations.

• Many of the problems encountered in the operation of a metal-cutting transfer line

are directly related and can be solved by the application of good machining principles.
The same is true for other production processes.
In the same way :-
• In each area of production, a technology has developed after many years of
research and practical experience in the area.

• By making the best use of the given process technology, each individual
workstation on the line can be made to operate at or near its maximum
productive capability.

• However, even if it were possible to operate each station in an optimal way.

• This does not guarantee that the overall flow line will be optimized
The second general problem area of flow line performance.

• This second area is concerned with the systems aspects of designing and running
the line.

• Major problem associated with an automated flow line is the problem of

reliability.

• Since the APL often operates as a single mechanism. Failure of one component of
the mechanism will often result in stoppage of the entire line.

• There are techniques to solve the problem that surpass the manufacturing
processes at individual stations for analysis process.
These are questions that can be analyzed using a systems approach .

• What is the effect of the number of workstations on the performance of the

line?
• How much improvement can be obtained by using one or more buffer storage
zones?

• What is the effect of component quality on the operation of an automated

assembly machine?

• How will the use of manual workstations affect the line?

Line balancing
• The objective of this to spread the total work load as evenly as possible
among the stations in the line.

• The problem is normally associated with the design of manual assembly

lines.

• lt is also a consideration in automated flow lines, but the reliability problem

usually predominates.

• The reliability of the line will be the principal concern of Line balancing.
GENERAL TERMINOLOGY
Flow line performance can be analyzed by means of three basic
measures
• Average production rate
• Proportion of time the line is operating (line efficiency).
• Cost per item produced on the line.

• For Above analysis two methods are used

1. Flow lines that possess no internal buffer storage capacity.
2. Flow lines that possess internal buffer storage capacity.
Flow lines that possess no internal buffer
storage capacity.
• workstations are interdependent in an automated Production line with
no internal parts storage.

• When one station breaks down, all other stations on the line are
affected, either immediately or by the end of a few cycles of operation,
due to starving or blocking.
• To begin the analysis. we must assume certain basic characteristics about the
operation of the line.
• A synchronous transfer system is assumed. Pans are introduced into the first
workstation and are processed and transported at regular intervals to
succeeding stations.
• This interval defines the ideal or theoretical cycle time Tc of the flow line is
equal to the time required for parts to transfer plus the processing time at the
longest workstation.
• The processing times at different stations will not be the
same. Long holes take more time to drill than short holes.
• A milling operation may take longer than a tapping operation.
• The stations which require less time than the longest station
will have a certain amount of idle time.
• The components of Tc are illustrated graphically in Figure 5.1
• The following assumptions are made about the operation of
these systems:
(1)The workstations perform processing operations such as
machining, not
assembly
(2) Processing times at each station are constant, though not
necessarily equal
(3) Work part transport is synchronous.
 (A)Cycle Time Analysis
• In the APL, parts are introduced into the first workstation and are processed
and transported at regular intervals to succeeding stations.
• This interval defines the ideal cycle time Tc of the production line.
• Tc is the processing time for the slowest station on the line plus the transfer
time, that is

Equation (1)
where Tc = Ideal cycle time on the line, min; Tsi = Processing
time at station i, min; Tr = repositioning time, called the transfer
time here, min.

The Max(Tsi) is used in Equation because this longest service

• In the operation of a transfer line, random breakdowns and
planned stoppages cause downtime on the line.
• Although the breakdowns and line stoppages occur randomly, their
frequency can be measured over the long run.
• Downtime occurrences cause the actual average production cycle
time of the line to be longer than the ideal cycle time given by
equation below.
• The actual average production time Tp can be formulated as
follows:
Where
Tp = Tc + FTd
F = downtime frequency, line stops/cycle;
Equation (2)

Td = average downtime per line stop, min.

The downtime Td includes the time for the repair crew to swing into action,
diagnose the cause of the failure, fix it, and restart the line.

Thus, Average downtime on a per cycle basis=FTd

• Let pi = probability or frequency of a failure at station i, where
i =1,2,………… n and n = the number of workstations on the
line.

• The frequency of line stops per cycle is obtained by merely

summing the frequencies pi over the n stations, that is
Equation (3)

where ,
F = expected frequency of line stops per cycle,

pi = frequency of station breakdown per cycle at station i, causing a line

stop; and
n = number of workstations on the line.
 F = np
Equation (4)
where all pi are equal, p1 = p2
erformance Measures.
…………………………………………..= pn = p
One of the important measures of performance on an automated
transfer line is production rate, which is the reciprocal of Tp:

Equation (5)

where Rp = actual average production rate, pc/min; and Tp is the

actual average production time from Equation (5), min.
It is of interest to compare this rate with the ideal production rate given
by

Equations (6)

where Rc = ideal production rate, pc/min. It is customary to express

production rates on automated production lines as hourly rates, so the
rates in Equations (5) and (6) must be multiplied by 60.
The machine tool builder uses the ideal production rate Rc in its proposal for
the automated transfer line and speaks of it as the production rate at 100%
efficiency.

• Unfortunately, because of downtime, the line will not operate at

100% efficiency.
• In APL, line efficiency refers to the proportion of uptime on the
line and is really a measure of reliability more than efficiency.
• Line efficiency can be calculated as

Equations
where E = The(7)
proportion of uptime on the production line.
An alternative measure of performance is the proportion
of downtime on the line D, which is given by

Equations (8)
It is obvious that
Equations (9)
• An important performance measure of an automated
production line is the cost per unit produced.
• Piece cost includes the cost of the starting material i.e. to be
processed on the line, the cost of time on the production line,
and the cost of any tooling that is consumed (e.g., cutting
tools on a machining line).
• The piece cost can be expressed as the sum of the three
Equation (10)
Where,
factors
Cpc = cost per piece, $/pc;
Cm = cost of starting material, $/pc;
Co = cost per minute to operate the line, $/min;
Tp = average production time per piece, min/pc; and
Ct = cost of tooling per piece, $/pc.
Co includes the allocation of the capital cost of the equipment over its
expected service life, labor to operate the line, applicable overheads,
maintenance and other relevant costs, all reduced to a cost per minute
• Equation (10) does not include factors such as scrap rates,
inspection costs, and rework costs associated with fixing
defective work units.

• These factors can usually be incorporate into the unit piece

cost in a fairly straightforward way.
Example Transfer Line
Performance
 Given that
• Cm=Cost of material = 3.00
• Co= Cost per minute to operate line $/min ,$75/hour=$75/60 min= 1.25/min
• Tp= Average production time/piece=Tp=$2.0min/piece
• Ct= Cost of tooling/piece=Ct=0.80/piece
Flow lines that possess internal buffer storage capacity.

• workstations are interdependent in an automated Production

line with no internal parts storage.
• When one station breaks down, all other stations on the line
are affected, either immediately or by the end of a few cycles
of operation, due to starving or blocking.
• Starving
• Blocking
• Starving
On an automated production line means that a workstation is prevented
from performing its cycle because it has no part to work on. When a
breakdown occurs at any workstation on the line, the downstream stations
will either immediately or eventually become starved for parts.

• Blocking
• It means that a station is prevented from performing its work cycle
because it cannot pass the part just completed to the neighboring
downstream station.
• When a breakdown occurs at a station on the line, the upstream stations
become blocked because the broken-down station cannot accept the next
part for processing from its upstream neighbor.
• Therefore, none of the upstream stations can pass its completed part
forward.
• Downtime on an automated line due to starving and blocking
can be reduced by adding one or more parts-storage buffers
between workstations.
• Storage buffers divide the line into stages that can operate
independently for a number of cycles, the number depending
on the storage capacity of the buffer.
• If one storage buffer is used, the line is divided into two
stages.
• The number of stages will then equal the number of
• If two buffers are used at two different locations along the line,
workstations.
then a three stage line is formed, and so forth.
• For an n-stage line, there will be n - 1 storage buffers, not
including the raw parts inventory at the front of the line or the
finished parts inventory at the end of the line.
• The two extreme cases of storage buffer effectiveness can be identified as
1. No buffer storage capacity at all
2. Storage buffers with infinite capacity

In the case of no storage capacity, the production line acts as

one stage. When a station breaks down, the entire line stops.
This is the case of a production line with no internal storage
analyzed. The efficiency of the line is given by Equation below.

It is rewritten here as the line efficiency of a zero capacity

storage buffer,

E0 as the efficiency of a line with zero storage buffer capacity, and the
other terms have the same meanings as before.
• Where the subscript k is used to identify the stage. According to
the preceding logic, the overall line efficiency is given by:

• Where the subscript identifies E as the efficiency of a line whose

storage buffers all have infinite capacity.
• By including one or more storage buffers in an automated production line,
one expects the line efficiency to be greater than E0 but E  cannot be
achieved because buffer zones of infinite capacity are not possible.

• Hence, the actual value of line efficiency for a given buffer capacity b will
fall somewhere between these extremes:

• Next, consider the problem of evaluating Eb for realistic levels of buffer

capacity for a two-stage automated production line K = 2.