If you are evaluating automated pick-and-place systems, you are usually trying to solve one of three problems: an operator-loaded station that cannot keep up with takt, an inconsistent placement that drives downstream rework, or a manual handling task that is hurting people. We build the cell around whichever is biting you hardest.
AMD Machines has designed custom material handling automation for more than thirty years, with over 2,500 machines delivered. An automated pick-and-place system from AMD is engineered around your part — geometry, weight, surface, pick rate, placement tolerance, and takt — and integrated with the vision, controls, and traceability your line and your customers expect.
What is an automated pick-and-place system?
An automated pick-and-place system is a production cell that uses a robot — SCARA, delta, six-axis articulated, or Cartesian gantry — with an end-of-arm gripper and typically a vision system to transfer parts from a source to a destination at precise positions. It runs at fixed cycle time, sorts pass and reject parts automatically, and serializes each pick for traceability.
Compared with manual loading, an automated cell:
- Places parts to the same XYZ and orientation every cycle, eliminating operator drift
- Holds deterministic takt, so it never becomes the line bottleneck
- Logs each pick — part ID, position, vacuum or grip confirmation, timestamp — to your MES
- Removes a repetitive lifting task that often drives ergonomic injury rates
How an automated pick-and-place system works
- Part identification — vision, barcode, or upstream PLC handshake confirms which part has arrived.
- Locate — a 2D or 3D camera (Cognex, Keyence) measures part position and orientation in the source frame.
- Pick — the controller computes the trajectory; the robot drives to the part and the gripper (vacuum, mechanical, or magnetic) engages with confirmation feedback.
- Transfer — the robot moves through a collision-checked path at programmed speed and acceleration.
- Place — the part lands in a nest, tray, fixture, or downstream machine to within the placement tolerance.
- Confirm and log — placement is verified by sensor or vision; the result is serialized to the MES; pass/reject sortation routes the part.
Pick-and-place robot types compared
| Robot type | Best for | Typical throughput | Payload | Repeatability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delta (parallel) | High-speed pick of small light parts off moving belts | 150–300+ ppm | 0.1–8 kg | ±0.05–0.1 mm |
| SCARA | Horizontal-plane assembly, small-part packaging, test loading | 60–150 ppm | 1–20 kg | ±0.01–0.02 mm |
| Six-axis articulated | Complex orientation, heavier payloads, multi-station service | 20–60 ppm | 3–250 kg | ±0.02–0.05 mm |
| Cartesian gantry | Long reach, very heavy parts, multi-machine service | 5–30 ppm | up to 500 kg | ±0.05–0.1 mm |
Real cells often combine types — a delta loading a SCARA loading a six-axis machine-tend handoff. We pick the architecture from your takt, payload, reach, and accuracy budget, not from a preferred vendor.
Key components and technologies
- Robot and controller — FANUC (M-1iA, M-3iA delta; SR-3iA SCARA; LR Mate / M-20 / M-710 six-axis), ABB (IRB 360 FlexPicker, IRB 1200, IRB 2600), Yaskawa (MotoMINI, GP series), Epson (T-series SCARA), or Cartesian linear actuators from Bosch Rexroth, Parker, and Festo
- End-of-arm tooling — vacuum (Schmalz, Piab), parallel and angular grippers (SMC, Festo, SCHUNK), or magnetic grippers, sized to part and acceleration
- Vision — Cognex In-Sight, Keyence CV-X, or 3D systems (Cognex 3D-A1000, Photoneo, Zivid) for locate and verify
- Controls — Allen-Bradley CompactLogix/ControlLogix or Siemens S7-1500, with FactoryTalk View or WinCC HMI
- Safety — SICK or Banner light curtains and area scanners, dual-channel circuits per ISO 13849 PL d/e
- Data — serialized logging to OPC UA, MQTT, or SQL; MES integration with Rockwell FactoryTalk, AVEVA, Ignition, or SAP
Integration, controls, and traceability
Every AMD automated pick-and-place system ships with:
- Per-part serialized records — part ID, pick coordinates, grip/vacuum confirmation, place verification, timestamp
- Upstream/downstream handshakes — EtherNet/IP, PROFINET, or EtherCAT to conveyors, presses, assembly stations, and machine vision inspection stations
- Recipe management — barcode-driven setup loads gripper offsets, pick patterns, and place coordinates per part number
- SPC and trend alarming — placement-error trending on the HMI with rule-based alerts before drift becomes scrap
Industries we serve
- Automotive — sub-assembly transfer, fastener feeding, test station loading
- Electronics — small-component placement, tray-to-fixture transfer, conveyor-tracked sortation
- Consumer products — high-rate packaging, kitting, and case loading
- Appliances — component handoff between assembly, welding, and packaging lines
Why AMD Machines
We are not a robot integrator that bolts an arm to a frame. We engineer the entire cell in-house — mechanical, electrical, controls, EOAT, vision, safety, and data — against the part on your bench and the takt on your floor:
- 30+ years of custom automation and 2,500+ machines delivered
- EOAT, vision, and trajectory engineering tuned to your part — not a catalog cell
- One supplier for the robotic bin picking, flexible feeding, and palletizing the cell connects to
- Machine vision and traceability designed in from day one
Have a part, a pick rate, and a placement tolerance? That's enough to start. Request a quote or send us your part print and we'll scope the cell around it.