Robot for CNC Wood Milling

[Andreas Renz]

Hy Guys,

I'm new in the RobotWorld and I'm looking for some advice. I have a small Woodshop making Furniture and Woodenobjects. I have quite some experience in 3 Axis CNC Milling with Fusion 360. Now I would like to buy a Kuka Robot for bigger and more organic Objects. I could buy a Kuka KR15/2 with a KR C1 controller and I would like to stay on Fusion 360 if possible. Am I on track???
Do you have better ideas or recommendations? Is the Kuka 15 strong enough for efficient milling?

Thanks for any input.

Andreas

[Johannes @ Robots in Architecture]

Hello Andreas,

I wouldn't recommend a KRC1 robot, first of all it's limited in regards to memory, but to my knowledge it also does not comply with the current machine safety regulations. So at least in Germany you couldn't set up a new KRC1 robot legally, you could just replace a robot in an existing cell. That might be different depending on where you are. I'd go for at least a KRC2 ed05 (runs Windows XP, supports USB sticks, larger memory, etc.)
We had some fun milling with a KR16 robot and a cheap Kress 1050 spindle which actually worked quite OK. If you've got the space for a larger robot, it actually shouldn't be more expensive than a used KR16 or similar and with it's higher weight it should be more accurate (less vibrations) while also allowing you to produce larger pieces and mount stringer spindles.
Most nice spindles with a HSK holder weigh more than I would feel comfortable mounting on a 15kg robot.
Through KUKA|prc you can postprocess your Fusion G-code into KRL.

Best,
Johannes

[Andreas Renz]

Hello Johannes,

thank you very much for the answer. Helps a lot. I already noticed that larger robots really are not more expensive, but space is a issue (at least for the moment). But as you recommend, I will definitely look now for a Robot with a KRC2 ed05. Now I have to make some space and go on.

Best,
Andreas