Safety Knights

Have you explored the laser guarding route?

Podojil & Associates, Inc. www.podojilconsulting.com has been safeguarding machinery for over 50 Years. Depending on the type of press brake, size of the piece, and the type of dies you are using for the parts, you could adopt a "No Hands In Die" Policy, and use hand tools like you would find in a forging operation for tiny part, or try magnets like those offered from https://aaapressbrakedie.com/magnetic-squaring-arm.html

You could use a slide and part holding device with clamps or magnets to hold small parts, and then push the part into the machine.

As with any press brake operation, though it’s especially critical in small-parts bending, the operator must be completely safe while their hands are close to the pinch point. The list of safety devices can be categorized into three main types: physical restraints, infrared light curtains, and laser light curtains.

Restraints are effective but require fine adjustment to suit the job, especially for tiny parts that require an operator’s fingers to be within millimeters of the pinch zone. These restraints strap over the hands to physically stop the operator from reaching into danger.

Light curtains consist of a vertical array of parallel light beams, typically spaced an inch apart, that form a barrier between the press and the operator. Based on ANSI standards, established charts specify the open height of the hazard zone with respect to the distance of the light array from the hazard zone. Typical light arrays are offset about 8 in. from the tool centerline.

However, if the part is less than 8 in. square, how does an operator hold the part? In the U.S., it is legal to install a “floating blank,” which means light beams can be muted, or ignored, should an obstruction of a specified size block their path. This is useful for box side flanges, but only to a certain point. The maximum height of the floating blank is 3.12 in., or roughly the thickness of a forearm.

When the light guard is set to ignore 3.12 in. of obstruction, the light array technically needs to be half an arm away. Depending on the floating-blank size setting, the light guard may need to be moved. Since that is not so easy to do, the guards should be permanently secured at the maximum distance away from the hazard zone. This, of course, does not always lend itself to handling small parts.

The most popular safety systems are laser guards that emit one or more discrete laser beams under the punch tip (see Figure 4). These lasers travel up and down with the ram. If anything breaks the beams, the ram stops. The downside is that the ram must slow down to a certain speed when it is at least 0.375 in. above the workpiece, depending on the ram’s stopping distance when an emergency stop or light blockage is triggered. The distance above the pinch point that the laser needs to be slow equals the brake’s stopping distance plus the average finger thickness. Usually, this is no less than 0.5 in. This slowdown zone does prolong the overall cycle time, but it comes with a big benefit: The operator can safely have his fingers within 1.5 in. of the pinch point.

There are also other optical systems on the market that “see” the entire hazard on every bend. When an object that should not be there enters the zone, the system stops the ram just like infrared light curtains and laser systems do. If no unwanted object enters the field of view being monitored, the ram can descend fast without the 0.5-in. slowdown zone every stroke. These systems use either infrared- or laser light-illuminated fields.

Bending strategies for small parts encompass factors such as tolerance, forming speed, investment cost, and safety. Fabricators rarely find a one-size-fits-all solution. However, if a shop’s product mix includes many small components, using a small electric press brake for small parts can be effective. This principle tends to remain true regardless of whether the application involves high volume, high precision, or anything in between.

I hope this helps. Podojil & Associates, Inc. offers a Certified Machine Guarding Specialist course and an advanced Certified Machine Guarding Specialist course.

Paragon industrial Controls, Inc. provides safeguarding for press brakes please contact us (draff@paragon-ind.com) with model and serial # of the machines. From this we can determine what type of guarding system is best.
visit our website for more detail: www.paragon-ind.com

Press brakes are scary!!! About 5 years ago I was touring a prospective customer's plant with their HR Manager. I spotted a Press Brake and immediately thought to myself. "Oh Dam! Not one of those too! On second thought you should not be so surprised as they have more mechanical presses than you have seen in a long long time! Usually where there are mechanicals there is at least a brake press or two."
As I approached the press brake I relaxed a bit as I saw light curtain bars on each side of the machine. Then I saw the employee was operating the machine with her fingers within 1/4" of the point of operation. Then I thought, "Well she should be ok with the light curtains!"
As I walked away my eye caught come dirty duck tape. I looked closer and blurted out to the HR Manager, before I could stop myself, "Holy SHXT! You have deactivated (neutralized) the light curtains on that press brake! It looks like it has been like that for a long time! You must have turned the light curtain off. What the HEXX, you like amputating employee's fingers? With fingers that close to an unguarded pinch point we are NOT talking IF someone will lose fingers! We are only talking when! Get that tape off that light curtain!"
She looked at me and said, "Well how is the person supposed to hold the piece to be formed? If she is holding the piece she breaks the light curtain if it is on. She cannot even use pliers, tongs, or other hand tools!"
I said, "Well there are restraints and lasers. We used restraints in the old days. Now they have lasers that are really slick! You must do something you cannot just allow this!"
Well I thought that was customer that I would lose. Well they bought a laser system for $35k and hired me as a consultant for 2 years! A few months later they bought a brand new press brake with a laser system built into it! An employee could have their fingers 1/8" from the point of operation.
John above has some excellent recommendations I have never worked with either, but the second one really looks like they know press brakes and their safety!!! My source for all guarding problems in the Midwest, especially near Chicago is Rockford Systems. They do not specialize in press brakes but know all machines. I know from experience they really know the press brakes cousin, mechanical presses. They also work closely with the the National Safety Council, (Green Cross people) and NSEC, the National Safety Education Center at Northern Illinois U. NSEC is the OSHA ATO for those of us that are OSHA Outreach Instructors in WI, IL, and MN.
Rockford Systems: https://rockfordsystems.com/
or by phone 1-800-922-7533

Branded is right! On press brakes lasers are the way to go!!!

Like John P stated regarding magnets as a great option as long as there is iron in your metal & you are not working with high heat, the magnet will last quite a long time too.