The client has informed us of the need to incorporate a reference unit into their inventory, in which they can test different coatings whilst precisely controlling various factors such as temperature, humidity and ventilation. The client requires precise temperature control, as well as humidity control to humidify and dehumidify the controlled environment within the booth. In addition to the above, they have provided us with approximate dimensions of the workpieces.
As this is a theoretical verification system, the client wishes to eliminate the human factor from the tests; therefore, they require an application robot that guarantees constant and quantifiable feed rates and layer thicknesses in order to account for all factors.
- Estimated dimensions: 78.74 x 78.74 // 59.05 in.
- Temperature requirements: 0 to 90°C ±1°C.
- A relative humidity of 90% is required during painting.
- Humidity requirements of 20–90% during drying.
- Controlled air velocity.
- Temperature control: ±1°C.
- Humidity control: ±1%.
- Dehumidification control: ±2%.
- Ventilation control.
- Fercabin’s proprietary management software.
- Energy-efficient lighting.
- Robotic application arm.
After analysing all environmental factors, we designed the machine to determine the structural dimensions of the equipment; similarly, this preliminary study helps us to determine the specifications for the ventilation, temperature and humidity control systems.
As regards temperature control, we are convinced that the best option is a modular air duct system that provides rapid, efficient and highly precise heating. This allows the operating temperature to be adjusted to the nearest degree, whatever the outside temperature. This system uses natural gas, propane or even other gas mixtures, giving us a wide range of fuel options, all with the same objective: to supply the necessary heat energy to the facility.
Another key factor is the humidity control required by the client, which demands high precision and appropriate processing times; this necessitates the installation of electrode steam humidifiers that ensure rapid, accurate and adjustable air humidification. This equipment ensures precise fine-tuning of humidification controlled by the cabinet software; a PID control system will ensure at all times that humidity is maintained at the setpoint value correctly and in the shortest possible time.
Various solutions are being considered for dehumidification, but these are tailored to the client’s requirements and capabilities. Given that the client has a waste liquid cooling system from another process, an air-to-liquid heat exchanger condensation system has been implemented. Once the process air is passed through the coil, it is dried cyclically during the drying phase. This enables us to achieve significant, adjustable reductions in humidity, as well as using software that allows us to control the air flow through the exchanger to set the desired value.
As if all that weren’t enough, in this case, the client wants a robot ‘suspended’ in the centre of the booth, enabling it to process different types of parts and geometries with its range of motion, making it possible to apply the product and subsequently dry it on almost any type of part. To achieve this, we have manufactured a robust booth enclosure capable of supporting a 992,08 lbs application unit, which, due to its operational inertia, will exert significant structural forces.
You can see the final result of everything described in the accompanying images: a combination of design and calculation, utilising our own design and control software, which enables us to meet the client’s requirements in each and every area covered in the explanation above.
The result is a system that has been performing remarkably well since its installation at our client’s site.