7 awards for inovativeness for TPV Group
At the beginning of June, the awards for best innovations by regions were presented as a part of the call by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia (GZS) for proposals for innovations 2019. TPV Group participated in the call for proposals in three regions where it also operates – the Štajerska, the Posavje and the Dolenjska-Belokranjska region. TPV Group received 7 awards in total; 2 golden, 4 silver and 1 bronze and 31 individual innovators participated in the award-winning innovations.
The following innovations received GOLDEN AWARDS for innovation of The Dolenjska and Bela Krajina Chamber of Commerce (GZDBK):
• “Smart factory module for automatic removal of products from KTL hangers with automatic quality control of products after the operation of adding KTL surface protection”, by innovators Mišo Pereško, Domen Murn, Miran Ferenčak, Jernej Knežič, Aleš Hribar, Tatjana Lamovšek, Aleš Mohorčič, Andrija Puškaš from the Croatian company Pro EL and assistant professor Drago Bračun, PhD, from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering in Ljubljana. The innovation has also ranked on a national level!
Description of the innovation:
With the aim of continuous improvements to increase productivity, improving quality, ergonomics, safety, reducing labor costs and aiming at the 4.0. industry, we developed a module of smart factory to strip products from KTL hangers with automatic quality control after KTL surface protection. With the innovative solution, we combined all the necessary operations into one. A sophisticated and advanced technological solution replaced the operator’s repeatable movements which consequently occur while working with high-volume products and subjective evaluation of checkpoints.
• “Development of optimal leakage of surface protection medium by changing the design of the product and improving the work process using an innovative welding cell” by innovative authors Miha Končar, Boštjan Piletič, Dario Novak, Marko Redenšek, Marko Malnarič and Ines Rajkovič.
Description of the innovation:
The innovative product design extends the life expectancy of the product itself, reduces the possibility of the failure of the vehicle’s safety system and contributes to a smaller CO2 footprint of the product. The new sleeve design solves the problem of (non) leakage of the surface protection medium, resulting in stagnation, excessive application, and consequent loss of surface protection. The process of innovation is based on an innovative robotic welding cell design combining the classic two-cell design with two robots into one. While eliminating the need for manual manipulation and table rotation, we save on the cost, space and time of the product production.
The following innovations received SILVER AWARDS:
• “Innovative Design of a Polymer Element for Preventing Fatigue Damage to the Fuel Tank Attachment Belt” handed by The Dolenjska and Bela Krajina Chamber of Commerce (GZDBK). The authors of the innovation are David Stušek, Vili Malnarič, Rajko Marinčič, Jurij Švegelj and Vladimir Anžlovar.
Description of the innovation:
One of the leading truck manufacturers has approached the TPV and the SiEVA research and development teams in order to solve the breakdown of the fuel tank mounting straps of their trucks. The problem caused great concerns to the manufacturer and even higher costs of recalling inappropriate vehicles, as the lane could break due to the rupture of the fuel tank. This would lead to an unprecedented problem: the possibility of causing a serious traffic accident and even an ecological disaster could result in the leakage of more than 100 liters of oil. The buyer intended to solve the problem by stripping the tape or replacing the material with a more solid one, which is not in line with the principles of “lightweight construction” in the automotive industry. The group of innovators developed an intermediate element that effectively prevents the attachment belt from breaking, increase only minimal weight of the assembly and is financially extremely acceptable for the customer.
• “Automation of operating the KTL entrance with AGV” by an innovation team composed of Mišo Pereška, Domen Murn, Franci Košiček, Zdravko Bučar and Aleš Gričar.
Description of the innovation:
The purpose of the innovation is to improve and automate the KTL process by operating automated guided vehicles (AGVs). The goals of the innovation are to shorten the manipulation time of the KTL input material, introduce “micro” planning of the KTL line, and ensure 100% traceability of the material throughout the KTL process (input – manipulation – transfer – KTL protection – output). In general, the KTL process is divided into smaller process assemblies (material / order / stock / manipulation unit). The current KTL process is “extended” to previous operations (welding, hanging) and is completed after packaging. Each level has a material ID and a stock that is executed through production orders, and in between there is a performance of supply / consumption / acceptance.
• silver recognition by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Posavje region for the innovation “Autonomous control of the suitability of the thrust lever with seat adjustment function” by authors Mišo Pereško, Veljko Goleš, Uroš Brinc and Domen Murn. The innovation has also ranked on a national level!
Description of the innovation:
In the automated process of product control, we control the quality of varnishing with the machine vision technology. The central part of the line is represented by an industrial camera with a user interface, where we set parameters or control criterias. The camera captures the outer surface of the tube and displays a developed image with located defects at the interface. A test of the internal geometry of the tube is carried out at the exit of the line following the principles of gravity and the system with go – no go gauges. The device places the appropriate tubes in the final packaging or, in case of error, in the ejection bin, according to the information in the control section. Errors are divided into visual surface errors and transient errors (gravity test). The automated packaging assembly of the machine is performed with an empty packaging dispenser in which the system folds automatically the exact number of finished products and then transports the full packaging unit to the operator at the end of the line.
• silver recognition by the Štajerska region Chamber of Commerce for innovation “Development of a family of caravans for dog transportation”. The authors of the innovation are: Željko Šekuljica, Aleksander Karlovčec, Anita Leben, Peter Hajdinjak and Sandi Kramberger.
Description of the innovation:
On the market, there are many strictly dedicated products that do not fully suit the requirements and wishes of consumers due to changeability of consumer’s habits and trends in the direction of modularity, universality and widespread use of the product. Keeping up with the wishes of our customers, TPV Prikolice developed a universal caravan trailer which is primarily designed for dogs transportation, as all necessary standards and recommendations have been followed. Only with minor interventions (removal of barriers), the trailer gains general use and the possibility of transporting different loads.
BRONZE award of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Posavje region for the innovation “Manufacturing and installation of smart ejector of NOK pieces on sheet metal forming tool”, by authors Marko Pečarič, Anton Draginc, Miroslav Kuharič and Rudi Crnić.
Description of the innovation:
The TPV Group developed a system for smart ejector of inappropriate pieces, which captures information from the press and tool, and automatically eliminates inappropriate pieces via pneumatic system, smart flaps, sensors and controller. Innovation represents a complete solution that prevents the passage of inappropriate pieces with missing bushings, rivets, nuts, pins, screws and threaded threads. The innovation fully automates the process of checking and ejecting pieces and eliminates the need for an operator.
