Motion Control: Basic Types

Definitions of motion control vary widely in industry today. Depending on the application, motion control can refer to simple on-off control or a sequencing of events, controlling the speed of a motor, moving objects from one point to another, or precisely constraining the speed, acceleration, and position of a system throughout a move.

Engineers working for the first time in some aspect of motion control may be confused by varying interpretations used in the field. Motion control means different things to different sections of industry. As an introduction, this chapter differentiates among motion-control techniques. It puts each technique into perspective in terms of where typical applications arise.

In many cases, motion-control techniques are intimately tied to the controller as well as to the positioning hardware and actuator. No overview of motion control would be complete without a discussion of the various control options that are widely used. These include simple timers and counters, chip-level and board-level computers, programmable logic controllers, and pneumatic sequencers.

 Industrial motion control can be divided into four categories: sequencing, speed control, point-to-point control, and incremental motion.


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New Industrial Ethernet Cables For Tray Applications

Industrial Ethernet offers plenty of flexibility when it comes to designing complex automation networks.  Until recently, you couldn't say the same about data cables used in these networks.

CAT 5e Ethernet cables have traditionally been intended for stationary applications. And in the early days of industrial Ethernet, that limitation didn't matter much. Modern automation systems, however, increasingly require a new breed of Industrial Ethernet cables that can withstand more flexible conditions.

Our new ETHERLINE® Tray cable has been designed with flexibility in mind.  With its PLTC rating, the ETHERLINE® Tray can be used in cable trays, interconnecting the Industrial Platform with the Commercial Infrastructure.  The new ETHERLINE cable features four twisted pairs of stranded copper, and can handle gigabit speeds. 

Reliable Data Transmission.  Reliable data transmission is a must-have if you want to control production equipment over an Ethernet network. Unfortunately the electrical noise that pervades most manufacturing environments makes error-free data transmission a challenge. The new ETHERLINE cables combat electrical noise with a rugged, flex-friendly foil and braid EMI shield.

The construction of the Etherline Tray CAT.5e consists of a polyolefin-based insulation and a PVC jacket. The cable has a 600V rating making it ideal for tray applications alongside power cables. When used in flexible applications, the cable can withstand operating temperature from -25 to 80ºC.  They have a characteristic impedance of 100 Ω, ±15 Ω, at 100 MHz. 

Important Approvals. The new ETHERLINE cables have a wide range of approvals, which lets them serve in many different settings. These approvals include: 

• CMR per UL 444
• CMG per UL 444
• PLTC per UL 13
• AWM 2570 80°C 600V
• c(UL) CMG
• RoHS II

For more information on the ETHERLINE CAT.5e Tray Cable,  click here

Keep Your Equipment Up to Date for Efficiency

Many manufacturing companies operate on thin margins, so wringing every drop of efficiency out of your equipment is crucial to profitability. This is especially important in food manufacturing, where consumers are often price sensitive. In addition, unplanned line stoppages or processing delays can result in scrap or spoilage of high cost ingredients or products. Here are eight simple tips to keep your equipment properly maintained and running smoothly.

Plan preventive maintenance

The most important thing you can do to keep equipment running smoothly is to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for scheduling preventive maintenance. Your team may have to perform some maintenance activities after a period of elapsed time or after a certain level of production. Keep a log for each piece of equipment to be certain that the team is on top of the recommended maintenance.

Part of the maintenance program should be to inspect all components and to replace them at the first sign of wear. Replacing parts before they fail can prevent unplanned downtime. If you can, upgrade components such as wire and cable to higher quality replacements that have a longer expected life or that can withstand more stress.

Stock spare parts

Many manufacturers provide a recommended spares list. If possible, stock the items that fail most frequently. It’s a good idea to stock items such as wires, cables and shear pins so you can get back up and running quickly in the event of a problem.

Choose cables and components that stand up to your environment

Food manufacturing can be a hostile environment for electrical and mechanical equipment. Long hours of continuous operation processing acidic or abrasive foods followed by frequent cleaning with water, heat and chemicals are a normal part of the day in the food industry, but perhaps not for electrical equipment.

When you replace wires and cables, be sure to select materials designed for this harsh environment. The quality and reliability of such simple items as wires and cables directly affects the performance and reliability of your food processing equipment.

Firmware updates

Much of the equipment in use in today’s factories includes computerized components that may require periodic updating. Part of your preventive maintenance program should be monitoring the equipment company’s support website to be on the alert for software or firmware updates. Up-to-date software may improve the equipment’s efficiency and prevent possible problems that could cause disruption during production. It’s worth the time to check and update a machine’s firmware if it can help prevent unplanned downtime.

Calibration

Part of your preventive maintenance program should be calibration of your equipment, but you may also need to adjust your gauges and calibration tools. Scales and measuring devices can get out of alignment or their accuracy may deteriorate over time. You can’t calibrate your equipment if your gauges are off, and lack of calibration may result in improperly mixed or otherwise poor-quality product.

Operator training

Poorly trained operators may cause equipment malfunctions or unnecessary wear and tear on equipment because of improper or inefficient procedures. While it takes time and effort to train operators in proper setup and operation of equipment, it pays off in the long run with higher-quality product, less scrap and rework, more throughput and less unplanned downtime. Properly trained operators can improve efficiency and extend the life of your equipment.

Periodic inspections

Even though you have a preventive maintenance program in place, you might want to add a periodic inspection to your activities list. Inspecting machines for unexpected signs of wear allows you to keep equipment in peak condition. You may want to replace the original equipment wires and cables with higher quality, more reliable counterparts designed to withstand the rigors of your environment. Not only will this prolong the life of the equipment, it may also prevent unplanned downtime due to equipment failures.

Cleanliness and hygiene

Especially in food processing, cleanliness is a manufacturing imperative. Spills and dried-on gunk attract insects and vermin that may choose to snack on your equipment as well as your product. Of course, you do everything you can to stay compliant with government regulations for cleanliness, but cleanliness is more than a regulatory hassle. It can increase productivity and improve quality in addition to prolonging the life of your equipment.

Keeping your equipment in peak condition improves performance. It reduces unplanned downtime due to breakdowns, improves production efficiency and throughput, and improves the quality of your product.

Made in Germany

Jürgen Sielaff, U.I. Lapp GmbH

Highly specialized production with the best levels of quality assurance - this continues to be a unique feature of German industry. The new metal processing center for industrial connectors operated by the Stuttgart-based Lapp Group shows that the industrial production of components can be performed at the highest level, even in the age of globalization and internal competition.

Fully automated, reliable and made in Germany.

 

The Stuttgart-based Lapp Group boasts one of the most modern plants in Europe for the mechanical processing of rectangular industrial connectors, having operated its new metal processing center since mid-2013. Four handling robots, two independent metal processing centers, a washing center and a fully automatic riveting station with a loading and unloading station work around the clock to produce around 580 industrial variants of the EPIC ^® rectangular and circular connectors from 54 unfurnished housings. The new production facility not only achieves greater throughput, it can also manufacture all variants in the product range in a flexible manner with short lead times. The state-of-the-art plant was supplied and manufactured by German-based CHIRON Werke GmbH.

The contact inserts of the rectangular connectors have been manufactured in Germany for some time. This process was previously performed manually, but was now automated and integrated into production so as to reduce delivery times. This has resulted in highly automated production with a very high and consistent level of quality. The process data is subject to continuous digital monitoring – without any added costs. One of the additional aims of this process integration was to enable new product variants to flow flexibly into the processes and to engage in continuous adaptation of the product range in line with the new requirements.

Highest levels of repeat accuracy

Although quality control of the EPIC ^® connectors was previously performed manually, the entire process will now be performed fully automatically. The robots use a measuring button to measure each individual part and calculate any deviation and tolerance. They then immediately offset the deviation and search for the zero point of the hole or identify parts in which the tolerance deviation is too high, enabling the production facility to achieve a very high level of repeat accuracy.

The focus then moves to the riveting station, another area featuring fully automated processes. The bolt is individually moved, positioned and riveted in accordance with the type and position. The riveting point is corrected automatically as required. The riveting pressure is also monitored, with the values being documented and stored. This provides assurance for the operators that each part has been riveted. Conversely, in the case of manual production, this can only be observed by the operators once production is output by the machine. The advantages are obvious: the plant does not output any parts that have been processed incorrectly and traceability is assured at all times.

Milling instead of cutting

A unique feature of the Lapp metal processing center is thread manufacturing with the help of thread milling cutters – a system that was developed in-house. As special aluminum coatings with outstanding hardness are used for the EPIC ^® housing in order to make it suitable for application in all kinds of environments, this results in a fivefold to tenfold reduction in the service life of standard drilling and threading tools. However, thread milling cutters sustain virtually no measurable wear and provide a range of additional advantages.

The thread milling cutters enable spindle rotation speeds of up to 20,000 rpm to be achieved. After processing, it is as though the thread has been polished – no cleaning is required. The dimensional accuracy of the CHIRON precision processing centers is in the m range. In addition, various core hole and thread diameters with an identical gradient can be manufactured using only one tool. A further advantage of PCD cutting, in which polycrystalline diamond is used as a cutting material, is the low level of component heating. Due to the quick processing, there is less of an increase in the work piece temperature. This is more cost-effective as it enables operation with minimum quantities of cooling lubricant. In this case, however, the components are virtually warm to the touch upon exiting the device.

With the help of the circular bore thread milling cutters and the

undercuts that can be generated with them following the thread output, thread depths are achieved in virtually the same way as with through-hole threads. As a result, the rectangular connectors are compatible with conventional cable glands. The fact that there are no longer any burrs in the thread outlet means that deburring does not need to be performed. By implementing the thread milling cutter in the new metal processing center, we were able to further increase the service life of the tool.

New machinery concept

The aim of the new machinery concept was to not leave anything to chance and to turn weaknesses into strengths. "The combination of full automation and digitised quality control enables the machine to attain a high level of repeat accuracy and quality," enthuses Jürgen Sielaff, Production Manager for mechanical processing at Lapp.

The biggest challenge was to ensure that all the different variants of the EPIC ^® rectangular and circular connectors could be produced using a single machinery unit. The adjustment of the various product variants using the zero point calculator was a very complex procedure, but CHIRON was ultimately able to create a basic device with the ability to accommodate all 54 connector variants. "In succeeding in accommodating dozens of product variants across a very broad range at a principal tension, we have created an incredibly flexible production facility," explains Kristoffer Siegmann, Project Manager at CHIRON.

This means that the CHIRON production facility is also equipped for future demands, not least thanks to the integrated cleaning device that exceeds current requirements.

Control is now performed by a central computer with an SAP connection that enables it to immediately convert each customer order into a workshop order. In the event of a complaint, every employee can instantly access all quality assurance data.

Staying competitive through innovation

The example described here is a highly modern production plant that, thanks to the combination of numerous innovations, an elaborate machinery concept, fully automated production and highly qualified and highly trained personnel, achieves the highest level of quality without generating costs any higher than those involved in production in low-wage countries. This means that the "made in Germany" manufacturing process remains competitive whilst guaranteeing the highest levels of quality and dimensional accuracy. 

Cable Connectivity Solutions for designing a more efficient and flexible factory of the future

Flexible production with "plug & produce"

Industry is currently undergoing a fundamental change: we are seeing the integration of all components of the value chain into the corporate network. The radical changes associated with this sea change do not just affect companies in the IT sector, even if the development of intelligent factories is often seen primarily in terms of IT. Even manufacturers of cables and connectors can make a considerable contribution to this new era with intelligent solutions, thereby supporting industry and increasing efficiency and flexibility.

Machines, plants and devices are made "intelligent" by connecting them to one another using the "Internet of Things". The resulting cyber-physical systems form the basis of the intelligent factory of the future - its vision: to generate maximum flexibility and efficient production with batch size 1. Cyber-physical systems are functional units with embedded hardware, software and mechanics. The fact that they are capable of communicating with one another is opening up new horizons for plant and machinery manufacturers, who can break plants down into individual modules that only have to be programmed and tested once. Depending on the customer's requirements, a mechanical engineer can then assemble the standardized modules in a flexible and personalized way and feed in the data that is required for production - plug & produce.

This leads to fundamental changes in the cabling of an industrial plant. A network cable no longer ends in the control cabinet; instead, it is run directly to the motor of a machine, for example. For the manufacturers of connection technology, this means that the cables with inserts that have previously been used primarily in office environments now need to be suitable for industrial applications. The cables must be able to withstand high mechanical stress, extreme temperatures, vibrations and contamination. In this kind of environment, they may also be exposed to aggressive media. Ethernet cables used in industrial applications must also be shielded against much stronger EMC interference, such as that found in the vicinity of motors or live cables that are generating an electromagnetic field.

"We are certain that the "fourth industrial revolution", by which we mean the increasing networking within production facilities and the associated transition to a more flexible type of production, as well as the increasing customization of product variants, will be the defining development in German industry over the next few years", says Siegbert Lapp, Member of the Board at Lapp Holding AG. Because of this conviction and its aspiration to help fashion the industrial production methods of the future, the Lapp Group is taking part in a number of research projects on the topic. Together with project partners, Lapp is researching "production work 4.0" under the leadership of the Fraunhofer IAO. The research mainly focuses on the following questions: how could the work environment look in a factory of the future, what kind of tasks will factory workers undertake and how can they be supported in fulfilling their tasks? "This is important for understanding the entire production system, that is the plants and operators. We want to use our findings to develop solutions that are even more suitable for the factory of the future," explains Siegbert Lapp.

In addition to this, Lapp is involved in the SmartFactory^KL e.V. technology initiative run by the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI). The SmartFactory^KL is a demonstration factory inside a laboratory, where researchers from the DFKI can use technologies for the intelligent factory of tomorrow in a production environment as close as possible to the real world. The DFKI and the companies involved hope that the resulting findings will help to realize the vision of the new industrial era, with totally flexible factories manufacturing heavily customizable products. The solutions developed in this context aim to support companies in achieving resource efficient and ergonomic production, with dynamic integration of their customers and business partners into the value chain.

Lapp is taking the lead on the quality inspection module for the research and demonstration platform, which will involve testing innovative cabling and connection solutions for data network cables. Quality inspection includes the use of a high-resolution camera, which raises a particular challenge in itself as it must be able to transfer data consistently and reliably at the highest data rate in the demanding conditions of a production environment. In this case, the highly flexible ETHERLINE ^® FD Cat.6_A cable, together with the field-configurable X-coded M12 data connector, ensures this function. Data rates of up to 10 Gbit/s are possible for high-resolution cameras in moving applications. Industrial Ethernet assemblies comprising robust, resilient cables with M12 connectors, also ensure a reliable connection in areas where contamination and damp must be taken into account. This extensive networking paves the way for new possibilities in maintenance and storage, as well as in production. With this in mind, Lapp is planning on attaching RFID chips to its cables, among other innovations. If a replacement were required, a service technician would be able to scan the exact data directly from the cable and then immediately initiate an order for the required part from the e-shop.

The "fourth industrial revolution" has many challenges in store for machinery and plant construction firms, hardware and software suppliers and, last but not least, manufacturers of connection technology. To achieve the flexible and customized vision of production that lies at the heart of the futuristic intelligent factory concept, companies are going to need innovative solutions that allow the vertical and horizontal integration of their value creation processes. Developments that facilitate the processing of large data volumes and communication between the various components are spurring this revolution on.

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