The home appliance industry is a major consumer of screws. An air conditioner might have dozens of screws, while a washing machine could have over a hundred. These screws are distributed across plastic housings, metal brackets, circuit boards, and other locations, ranging in size from M3 to M8, with materials including iron, stainless steel, and galvanized steel.

In the past, these screws were basically tightened by workers using manual electric screwdrivers. At peak times, one worker might tighten thousands of screws a day, with hand fatigue and eye strain being the norm. Moreover, manual operation inevitably has variations—some tight, some loose—making quality consistency difficult to guarantee.

In recent years, automatic screw locking equipment has become increasingly prevalent in the home appliance industry. Looking at Chisu Automation's customers, home appliance companies have the fastest-growing demand for automation upgrades and the most diverse application scenarios. Today, I'll discuss several real cases to show how home appliance manufacturing can achieve locking automation.

I. Pain Points of Locking in the Home Appliance Industry

Before discussing solutions, let's look at several common problems faced by home appliance companies.

First, there's the variety of screw types. A home appliance product often involves screws of multiple specifications and materials. For example, an outdoor air conditioning unit has both thick screws for fixing brackets and thin screws for securing circuit boards. When mixed together, manual sorting is prone to errors and wastes time.

Second, locking positions are complex. Home appliance designs are becoming increasingly compact, with many screw holes hidden in corners or gaps. Workers find these positions awkward to access, resulting in low efficiency and easy omissions.

Third, production capacity fluctuates significantly. The home appliance industry has obvious peak and off-peak seasons. During peak season, it's hard to hire enough workers; during off-peak season, it's hard to retain them. Manual locking has limited capacity adjustment flexibility and struggles to respond flexibly.

Finally, quality traceability is difficult. Traditional locking processes have no data recording, making it impossible to trace which screw had problems. Once quality complaints arise, it's hard to identify the cause.

II. Typical Application Scenarios and Solutions

2.1 Air Conditioner Outdoor Units: Multi-Axis Coordination for Dense Locking

A well-known air conditioning brand's outdoor unit production line had a takt time requirement of one unit every 45 seconds. The outdoor unit base plate had 12 M6 screws to lock, originally done by 4 workers in division of labor, but still couldn't meet the takt time.

Chisu's solution was a 6-axis fixed automatic screw locking machine. The equipment has 6 locking axes working simultaneously, completing all 12 screws in two operations. The takt time shortened from the original 60 seconds to 25 seconds, more than doubling capacity.

The key is that the equipment is equipped with an intelligent screw feeding system that automatically distinguishes and feeds 6 types of screws. Workers only need to place the base plate and press the start button. The error rate dropped from the original manual 0.5% to below 0.01%.

2.2 Washing Machine Control Panels: Coordinate Equipment for Irregular Workpieces

Washing machine control panels are typical irregular workpieces with irregular shapes and screws distributed across various edges and corners. Moreover, these products change models frequently, and screw positions may be completely different for different models.

For this scenario, Chisu recommended a desktop coordinate screw locking machine. The equipment moves through X-Y-Z three-axis motion, allowing the bit to reach any position on the workpiece. When changing models, simply call up the corresponding program on the touchscreen, and the switch can be completed in minutes.

The customer feedback was that the biggest benefit of this solution is flexibility. Previously, changing models required adjusting fixtures for half a day; now it just takes a program adjustment, making production planning much more flexible.

2.3 Refrigerator Compressors: Visual Positioning for Precision Assembly

The refrigerator compressor is the core component of the refrigerator, with high assembly precision requirements. Screw hole tolerances are tight, and the workpiece surface is reflective, making ordinary positioning methods difficult to align.

Chisu used a visual positioning screw locking machine for this application. The equipment first takes photos through a CCD camera, identifies the actual screw hole positions, then calculates deviations and automatically adjusts the locking position. Positioning accuracy can reach ±0.05mm, fully meeting compressor assembly requirements.

More importantly, the vision system can also detect whether screws are stripped or floating. Problems trigger automatic alarms without flowing to the next process, ensuring quality from the source.

III. Solution Selection Guide

After looking at the above cases, you might wonder which solution is right for you. Here's a simple selection framework.

First, look at volume and takt time. If volume is high and takt time is tight, prioritize multi-axis fixed equipment that can lock multiple screws at once with high efficiency. Chisu's 8-axis equipment can achieve up to 2 screws per second.

Second, look at workpiece characteristics. If workpieces have regular shapes and fixed screw positions, fixed equipment is most suitable. If workpieces have complex shapes and frequent model changes, coordinate or visual positioning equipment is more flexible.

Also consider screw characteristics. If a product has only one type of screw, equipment configuration is relatively simple. If multiple screw types are mixed, you need intelligent feeding systems and screw recognition functions.

Finally, don't forget to consider future scalability. If current volume is small, you can start with semi-automatic equipment, but it's best to reserve upgrade space when selecting equipment to avoid having to replace equipment in a couple of years.

IV. Return on Investment Analysis

Equipment is installed—what are the actual results? Let me show you the real numbers from a Chisu customer.

This company manufactures microwave ovens. Originally, the locking process used 8 workers in two shifts, with labor and management costs of about 40,000 yuan per month. After installing 4 Chisu dual-axis automatic screw locking machines, only 2 workers are needed for loading and unloading, with equipment investment of 150,000 yuan.

Calculated monthly labor cost savings of about 30,000 yuan, achieving payback in 5 months. Moreover, capacity increased by 40%, and defect rates dropped from 0.3% to 0.05%. This investment makes sense any way you calculate it.

Of course, specific payback periods depend on each company's actual situation. The larger the volume and the higher the labor costs, the faster the payback. Chisu's project team provides detailed ROI calculations based on customers' specific circumstances.

Conclusion

Locking automation in home appliance manufacturing has evolved from 'whether to do it' to 'how to do it better.' Different companies and products require different solutions. The key is finding equipment that matches your needs rather than blindly pursuing high-end configurations.

Chisu Automation has served thousands of home appliance industry companies, accumulating numerous successful cases. Whether you're just starting to consider automation or want to upgrade existing equipment, we can provide targeted solution recommendations. Feel free to contact us anytime—let professionals help you find the right path.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: Can automatic screw locking machines adapt to rapid model changes in home appliance products?

A: Chisu's coordinate and visual positioning equipment both support rapid model changes. Through program switching, different products can typically be switched in 5-10 minutes. For fixed multi-axis equipment, changeover time is longer and requires fixture replacement.

Q2: Will using multiple screw types cause errors?

A: Chisu's intelligent feeding system can distinguish screws of different specifications, paired with visual recognition to ensure each screw is delivered to the correct position. The system also detects screw length and diameter, automatically alarming when abnormalities are found.

Q3: What are the requirements for operators?

A: Chisu equipment uses touchscreen operation with intuitive interfaces. Ordinary workers can operate independently after 1-2 days of training. No professional technicians are required, lowering the employment threshold.

Q4: What if the equipment breaks down?

A: Chisu provides a nationwide after-sales service network with 4-hour response in major cities. Equipment has built-in fault diagnosis functions, and common problems can be resolved through remote guidance. Key components use modular design for convenient on-site replacement.

Q5: Is automation suitable for small-batch production?

A: If batch sizes are indeed small, we recommend starting with semi-automatic equipment or handheld screwdrivers—low investment and high flexibility. Upgrade to fully automatic equipment when volume increases. Chisu has a complete equipment series to meet the needs of companies of all sizes.

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Author: Chisu Automation Technical Team

Published: June 2026

Keywords: home appliance manufacturing, automatic screw locking, multi-axis locking, visual positioning, smart manufacturing