Design Tool, Inc. Screw Dispensers

Design Tool Inc. offers Automatic Feed Screw Dispensing systems for nuts, bolts, screws, and pins. These systems are design to feed a predetermined number of fasteners into a collection bin assembly. The exact count allows fastener accountability to eliminate waste and prevent extra fasteners from being accidently dropped into assemblies. These systems also prevent extra fasteners from becoming a safety hazard to the end user in applications such as air bag assemblies in automobiles. The systems use a vibratory bowl feeder and patented Design Tool Inc. single exit feed mechanism to feed, count, and deliver the fasteners to the collection bin assembly. These systems utilize programmable logic controllers to operate the feed and blow mechanism. The collection bin assembly can be mounted on the vibratory bowl feeder baseplate, or it can be remotely mounted in a customer specified location. The fasteners are blown into the collection bin assembly through a feed tube, offering flexibility in the mounting location and feed tube routing. The collection bin assembly can be opened manually to drop the nuts into the operator’s hand, or opened automatically using an air cylinder to dispense the fasteners into an assembly fixture for automated equipment. The collection bin assembly can be design to accommodate whatever number of fasteners a customer wishes to count, and the remote mounting feature offers our customers greater freedom to locate the collection bin assembly in the most efficient location possible. Our standard manually operated systems offer the customer the option of changing the count using an LCD screen and control buttons on the PLC. If a fastener fails to load due to an empty bowl or incorrect fasteners in the feed mechanism, the system will enter “retry” mode, cycling the feed three times to attempt to load the fastener. If the “retry” mode fails and the correct count is not achieved, the unit will turn on an error light and must be reset by the operator, eliminating the possibility of incorrect counts. We also offer more sophisticated systems that can change the count number based upon a signal from the customer’s assembly equipment. For example, we have built systems that communicated with the customer’s assembly line controller and varied the count based upon the bar codes on the components being assembled. The customer’s line controller reads the barcode, and sends our PLC a signal for the correct count. We can also design systems using customer specified PLC brands such as Allen-Bradley or Siemens to insure communications with the customer’s equipment. Various communication protocols such as RS232, Ethernet, and CAN bus systems are offered as well. Design Tool Inc. also offers automatically operated collection bin assemblies. These assemblies open upon receiving a signal from the customer’s assembly controller, therefore releasing the fasteners into a location on the assembly line. This feature can also be used to isolate the fasteners in the event of an incomplete count. The collection bin assembly can be programmed to only open when certain conditions are met in the event of an incomplete count, totally eliminating the possibility of over or under counting the fasteners. The various levels of sophistication allow Design Tool Inc. to tailor a dispensing system to meet almost any customer need. If a customer wishes to eliminate wasted fasteners, or needs fastener accountability for safety or quality concerns, our Automatic Dispensing systems can meet the requirements.