Lisa Herweg // Mobile Factory - Fugenfüller

 

 

Compared to other industries, in the building sector the majority of work is still done by human physical strength. Even the sealing of joints with silicone is still done by hand. This comes along with huge time investments, hard physical burden and high risk of injury for the construction workers. Inspired by my own observation of the construction site of the new car park near the University Hospital Aachen, a possibility for automated sealing of silicone joints was developed in this project. After research and consideration of different variants, the type “climbing robot” turned out to be a sensible solution for the task. In the context of the mobile factory, several specimens with their necessary equipment for silicone removal and renewal are delivered to the site. Included are power cables, hoses, pumps, drones and joint material. Two different attachments can be added to the robots, depending on whether the joints only have to be refilled or old silicone also has to be removed beforehand. The climbing robots adhere to glass by vacuum technique, move forward on small roles and can overcome small obstacles such as facade profiles thanks to a flexible arm. Drones with cameras monitor the position of the robots and determine the work progress. Compared to manual execution, an automatized process offers many advantages. Especially in deployment, risk of danger and working duration huge improvements can be assumed. In addition, the material consumption can slightly be reduced by a more precise application of silicone. Eventually staff and material savings lead to lower costs. Since up to eight robots work at the same time, it is possible to renew kilometers of joints in just one day.

 
 

Examiner: Univ.-Prof. Dr. techn. Sigrid Brell-Cokcan
Co-Examiner: Junior-Prof. Dr. Linda Hildebrand
Supervisor: Eike Stührenberg

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