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What is non-standard? It refers to production equipment customized for clients, with extremely low liquidity! I have been in this industry for many years and have worked with a variety of companies, including those from the Fortune 500 list as well as smaller foreign-funded enterprises. First, I was exposed to Taiwanese equipment; then there were Japanese, American, and Korean equipment. I’ve also worked with equipment from Italy and Spain – each has its own style! Many of my colleagues, when working in this industry, are like those kneading dough – they keep kneading it without ever turning it into noodles. What we actually need is to create a main thread from which branches can emerge; whether it’s design, assembly, or on-site debugging, there must always be a clear main thread! When meeting customer needs, what is the most important thing for non-standard solutions? I think it’s stability! If a device manufactured can be used continuously for N hours without the need for any troubleshooting, that is already considered a success! Just like cars, they have features such as a panoramic sunroof, adaptive cruise control, automatic parking, one-button start... and so on. Are these features important? What matters is that there are no unusual noises, no fault alerts, and the steering is precise; the number of airbags, etc., are not important – these basic functions are what truly count, with everything else being supplementary features. Otherwise, fully automatic will turn into semi-automatic, semi-automatic will turn into manual, and machine-mounted frames will become purely hand-crafted! The remaining non-standard factors such as production cost, cycle time, safety, ergonomics, ease of maintenance, and user-friendly interface are all supplementary! To achieve stability, there are two factors at play: organization and control. First, regarding the structure: before designing it, the layout must be carefully considered, as this determines the space required for the equipment. Starting over would result in a loss of a lot of time and effort. When designing, it’s not necessarily necessary to use an NB mechanism; rather, a suitable mechanism is what’s needed, and this requires experience accumulation (such as by drawing on precedents). I have always believed that if a simple mechanism will suffice, there’s no need to use a complex one. It is harmful rather than beneficial, whether considering costs or subsequent maintenance. Why are Volkswagen Sagitas still on the roads? Even those who repair motorcycles can fix some faults! For some processes without prior experience, experiments must be conducted for verification! ! ! There is still a gap between theory and practice. The selection of standard components in a mechanism is equally important; inappropriate standard components can directly affect the quality of production and the service life of the device. For example, if the diameter of the cylinder is too small, riveting may not be proper or reliable; if the diameter is too large, the impact force increases, causing the entire module to vibrate. In such cases, linear bearings should be used instead of guide sleeves, and so on. The next part is the control section. Control components and programs (including circuits). The key aspect lies in the selection of components. Many mechanical design engineers have only a superficial understanding of control components; for example, they think that choosing model A is sufficient, but in practice this often leads to unnecessary alarms in the equipment, or the servo motor fails to account for torque resulting in insufficient stiffness. The CCD does not take into account area and pixel counts, which prevents the measurement accuracy from meeting requirements, and the lead screw is not selected based on its pitch, leading to issues with the timing of operations. These are all common, basic mistakes that are made frequently! Another aspect relates to the programs and circuits: unexpected shutdowns occur, and reset attempts are ineffective; in such cases, it is necessary to shut down the system and restart it. The rapid movement of the drag chain can cause multiple wires to break. Although these faults do not directly lead to increased costs, they require a lot of time to resolve. Sometimes, troubleshooting an unnecessary alarm related to a certain signal can take an entire day. The success of custom equipment does not depend on how complex its design is, but rather on its stability. Only stable equipment can reduce maintenance costs and maximize profits, and it is the profits that enable a company to sustain its development!