Case Study: Automated End Cap & Felt Welding System for Automotive Production

Project Overview

A customer in the automotive component industry needed to automate the welding 

of plastic end caps and felt parts. Their manual production process caused unstable quality,

 high labor cost and limited output capacity.

TIMEAST designed and delivered a fully automated ultrasonic welding system to solve 

these manufacturing challenges.

Customer Challenges

• Manual assembly created inconsistent weld quality

• High labor dependency increased operating cost

• Production speed could not meet growing demand

• Difficult to maintain stable quality standards

• Low-noise operation was required in the workshop

Custom Solution Provided

The final solution combined feeding, die cutting, welding, inspection and sorting into 

one automatic production line.

• Automatic plastic end cap feeding

• Automatic felt die cutting and transfer

• 8-station rotary indexing platform

• Precision ultrasonic welding station

• CCD vision inspection system

• Automatic OK / NG sorting system

How the System Works

1. End caps are fed automatically

2. Felt material is cut to required shape

3. Parts move through rotary stations

4. Ultrasonic welding joins felt and plastic

5. Vision system checks weld quality

6. Finished products are sorted automatically

Control & Safety Design

• Allen-Bradley PLC control system

• HMI real-time monitoring interface

• Emergency stop button

• Safety light curtain

• Door interlock protection

• Tower alarm light

• Low-noise operation below customer requirement

Project Results

• 40% production efficiency improvement

• Defect rate reduced to below 1%

• 50% labor reduction

• Stable continuous production achieved

• Improved consistency and product reliability

Engineering Evaluation Before Project Launch

For new automation projects, we recommend an engineering review before machine manufacturing.

We can assess product drawings, assembly requirements, output targets and process feasibility.

For selected applications, sample trials can be arranged after tooling preparation. 

Fixture or horn cost may apply.

Why This Project Matters

This project shows how custom automation can replace unstable manual operations 

and create a scalable manufacturing process for high-volume production.

Need a Similar Custom Automation System?

Send us your drawings or samples. Our engineering team can evaluate feasibility

 and provide a tailored automation proposal.