Siemens Automotive — Robots and Lasers

Abstract

The new highly automated electronics assembly and test line at Siemens Automotive's plant at Foix in France is claimed to enable high‐volume production without compromising on flexibility. Known as MELF ( Mise en Ligne Flexible ), the FF105 million line is claimed to have the capacity to produce a total of 200 product references at random and achieve an output of 5,000 assemblies per day in three shifts. Among the innovative technologies employed in MELF are a FF1 million laser system for applying barcodes to boards and a FF4 million four‐armed robot for mounting exotic components onto boards.