A robotic apparatus for painting a workpiece includes a redundant axis robot for use in a robotic painting system. The redundant axis of rotation provides the robot arm additional flexibility in avoiding obstacles and reaching an interior of the workpiece to apply paint thereto. The robotic apparatus could be a seven-axis robot arm or a five-axis parallel link panel opener robot arm for opening and/or closing the panel. The robot arms are mounted on at least one vertically oriented column adjacent a path of travel of the workpiece through a painting booth and the robot arms can be mounted on a common base.

An application system for coating components with a coating agent can include: (i) an application apparatus including a printing head which ejects the coating agent from a plurality of coating agent nozzles, wherein a nozzle valve which opens for a valve opening time when a coating agent droplet is to exit the respective nozzle is attached to each individual coating agent nozzle; (ii) a coating agent infeed line by way of which the coating agent nozzles of the printing head are collectively connected; (iii) a valve control for controlling the valve opening times and valve closing times of each individual valve; and (iv) a pump by means of which the coating agent to be applied is fed to the coating agent nozzles by way of the coating agent infeed line.

A coating device includes a head, a wiping mechanism, an arm, and a controller. The head includes a nozzle surface for discharging a coating material. The wiping mechanism wipes the nozzle surface. The arm holds the head. The controller controls movement of the head via the arm. The controller relatively moves the head with respect to the wiping mechanism to wipe the nozzle surface.

Systems and methods disclosed are directed to receiving an image; performing an analysis on the image via one or more algorithms; generating tire and rim data based on an outcome of the analysis; transmitting one or more instructions including actuation of an end effector that is configured to apply tire dressing to a tire; and actuating an end effector that is configured to apply the tire dressing to the tire in accordance with the one or more instructions.

The disclosure relates to an operating method for a coating system, in particular for a painting system, for coating components (2), in particular motor vehicle body components (2), having the following steps: conveying, by means of a conveying device (3), the components (2) to be coated in a conveying direction through a coating booth (1), coating the components (2) in the coating booth (1) with a coating product by means of an application device (17-19) which applies a spray jet of the coating product, a portion of the applied coating product being deposited on the components (2) to be coated while another portion of the applied coating product floats into the interior of the coating booth (1) as an excess coating product mist (21), and reducing the excess coating product mist (21) from the interior of the booth by means in addition to or other than the downwardly directed air flow generated by a filter ceiling. In addition, the disclosure includes a correspondingly designed coating system.

The disclosure concerns a coating device and a corresponding coating process for coating components, in particular motor vehicle body components, with a coating agent (e.g. paint), with a coating robot with a first printhead which is mounted on the coating robot. The disclosure provides that the first printhead is exchangeably mounted on the coating robot and can be exchanged for a second printhead during a color change. Another variant of the disclosure, on the other hand, provides for a second printhead to be mounted on the coating robot in addition to the first printhead, the two printheads each applying a specific coating agent in order to enable a color change without changing the printhead.

A method of determining a degree of clogging of discharge holes of an apparatus for applying a coating medium to an object, the method including conducting air through the discharge holes; determining an output air pressure between an air flow regulator of the apparatus and the discharge holes, the air flow regulator being arranged to regulate a flow of the air; and determining a degree of clogging of the discharge holes based on the output air pressure. An apparatus for applying a coating medium to an object, a calibration system including an apparatus and a blocking device, an industrial robot including an apparatus, and a method of determining clogging characteristics of an apparatus, are also provided.

The disclosure concerns a coating device and a corresponding coating process for coating components, in particular motor vehicle body components, with a coating agent (e.g. paint), with a coating robot with a first printhead which is mounted on the coating robot. The disclosure provides that the first printhead is exchangeably mounted on the coating robot and can be exchanged for a second printhead during a color change. Another variant of the disclosure, on the other hand, provides for a second printhead to be mounted on the coating robot in addition to the first printhead, the two printheads each applying a specific coating agent in order to enable a color change without changing the printhead.

A coating system includes a first robot configured to open an opening/closing portion of a vehicle body and a second robot configured to coat an interior of the vehicle body through the opening/closing portion opened by the first robot. The first robot has a first base via which the first robot is mounted to a structure forming a coating area. The second robot has a second base via which the second robot is mounted. The second base is mounted below the first base in a vertical direction.

A method of controlling application of at least one material onto a substrate includes configuring a material applicator having an array plate with an applicator array. The applicator array has a plurality of micro-applicators with a first subset of micro-applicators and a second subset of micro-applicators. Each of the plurality of micro-applicators has a plurality of apertures through which fluid is ejected. The first subset of micro-applicators and the second subset of micro-applicators are individually addressable, and a liquid flows through the first subset of micro-applicators and a shaping gas, e.g., air, flows through the second subset of micro-applicators. The flow of shaping gas shapes the flow of the liquid from the first subset of micro-applicators to the substrate.