If you have ever noticed the tiny screws that keep your laptop together, then you know how important fasteners are to the assembly process. The whole laptop is held together with small screws, and removing just one or two of these screws can cause vital components to slide out. Forget one when you put the whole thing back together, and the optical drive might fall out when you pick up the laptop. And a device that comes directly from the factory with a screw that is missing, loose, or damaged from over-tightening is unacceptable to your customers, potentially giving your company a reputation for shoddy quality.
The only things that stand between your products and an unwarranted bad reputation are your assembly line, your quality control team, and the electric screwdrivers they use. The best electric screwdriver for an assembly line station can be programmed with the correct torque setting for the screws in question to ensure they are fastened tightly without damaging the fastener or the substrate, can be connected to devices that check that no screws are omitted or cross-threaded, and can account for special requirements such as preventing electrostatic discharge (ESD). The best electric screwdriver for an assembly line is not a screw gun off the hardware shelf but rather a precisely engineered device for building other precisely engineered devices.
The Best Electric Screwdriver Prevents Over-Torquing Screws and Product Damage
Torque is the measure of turning force applied to a fastener. When the fastener is turned into the threads, it creates tension that clamps pieces of equipment firmly into place. A properly torqued screw applies enough tension that everything is held firmly in place. However, if too little torque is applied, then the lack of tension will allow vibrations to loosen the screw. Alternatively, too much torque creates tension that can damage the screw; threads could strip off, or the shaft could deform, crack, or shear off entirely. As such, screws need to be fastened with exactly the right torque specifications in order to hold reliably and keep a product functioning correctly. For light manufacturing assembly lines, the solution is to turn to electric screwdrivers that can be programmed to shut off exactly when the preset torque is achieved. These tools ensure that fasteners hold tightly without damaging the product.
There are additional considerations on an assembly line that go beyond simple torque control. Torque screwdrivers also must not violate manufacturing standards on the line. Clean rooms, vacuum chambers, and whether or not the electric screwdriver will be operated by a human or a robot are all factors to consider when choosing the best electric screwdriver for your assembly line.
The Different Types of Electric Screwdrivers Used by Assembly Lines
The requirements for an electric screwdriver varies depending on the type of product you are assembling. In traditional industrial settings, products are significantly more robust and the electric screwdrivers you use should be capable of handling high torque settings. While a screw for a laptop or a hard drive case may have torque settings as low as a single inch-pound of force (lbf.in) or even lower, a lawn mower engine shroud may need around 40 pound-feet of force (lbf) on a screw. Therefore, you will need to match your electric screwdriver to the amount of force needed for assembly.
In industries such as electronics or medical device manufacturing, you will need to consider ESD and biological or foreign object contamination. If you will be working or near computer equipment that is sensitive to static discharge, then you’ll want an electric screwdriver that is designed to avoid electrostatic discharge on the manufacturing floor. If you will be working with fasteners with reverse threads, pick a screwdriver that provides programmable settings for clockwise (CW) and counter-clockwise (CCW) angles. In clean rooms or vacuum-sealed environments for electronics manufacturing, the best choice is a screwdriver that can be used either manually or by automated systems. Or, robotic electric screwdrivers hooked up to automated systems may be ideal for keeping these highly specialized manufacturing areas free from dust, particulates, and biological matter.
In any precision manufacturing environment, screws must be controlled along with the process of driving them. Screw presenters place fasteners in a fixed pick-up point that keeps operators from having to fumble around for screws. This not only speeds up assembly but also ensures that screws are tightly controlled and won’t drift around the assembly line where they can damage assembly equipment or disrupt the assembly process. A screw counter, on the other hand, ensures that every product that comes past a workstation receives the correct number of screws. Plus, a screw counter can also detect fastening errors such as cross-threading and rundowns and will keep track of cycle completions. It’s like having a quality control inspector at each workstation.
Ensuring that screws are fastened correctly—and are always correct—will have enormous results for the quality of the products coming off your assembly line. After all, a screw that comes completely loose due to vibration can render a device non-functional after only a short period of use. One that is over-tightened can crack housings and disconnect circuits, making it so that a brand new device never works correctly at all. Customers who purchase non-functional equipment will never forget the inconvenience, even if the faulty product is swiftly replaced. The best electric screwdriver for your assembly line ensures that everything is tightened exactly to spec and that the quality of your designs and your products are self-evident.
