Robotized stator cable winding

Journal article, 2018

Automated stator winding assembly has been available for small and medium sized conventional electric machines for a long time. Cable winding is an alternative technology developed for medium and large sized machines in particular. In this paper we present, evaluate and validate the first fully automated stator cable winding assembly equipment in detail. A full-scale prototype stator cable winding robot cell has been constructed, based on extensive previous work and experience, and used in the experiments. While the prototype robot cell is adapted for the third design generation of the Uppsala University Wave Energy Converter generator stator, the winding method can be adapted for other stator designs. The presented robot cell is highly flexible and well prepared for future integration in a smart production line. Potential cost savings are indicated compared to manual winding, which is a backbreaking task. However, further work is needed to improve the reliability of the robot cell, especially when it comes to preventing the kinking of the winding cable during the assembly.