Two driving market trends for both PLCs and drives in the automotive machine tools industry are a demand in efficiency in both, and the integration and connection of components, both of which will continue to increase the use of varying PLCs and drives as they evolve with the market.
Demand for Efficiency
With the great increase in electric on-road applications, as well as the technical evolution of utility vehicles, all-terrain vehicles, agricultural vehicles, and mobile construction vehicles, a well-designed low-voltage and high-current drive technology that is well-designed for efficiency and performance has become paramount. In order to travel long distances, energy efficient motor components are required, as well as optimum gearmotor technology and good aerodynamics, while all battery-powered vehicles require lightweight construction for all their components. The drive unit system for these vehicles must be designed to ensure optimal comfort when driving, in addition to dynamic response and quiet operation.
A class of ultra-compact drives has emerged to serve the growing market demands and trends in efficiency. Operating from battery power, they are designed to perform at high efficiency, as batteries supply significantly less voltage than a wall plug power (the voltage of the drive limits the current produced, in turn limiting the speed and torque of the motor). ATVs and recreational vehicles frequently need high-torque that require drives with a high power density, though now “there are drives that can deliver 160 amps at 80 volts DC in a package that fits in the palm of your hand,” according to John McLaughlin, president of Elmo Motion Control.
The company ABM Drives further developed the industry proven asynchronous motor for use in mobile traction drive units on order to increase the motor's energy efficiency, offering an economical alternative to the often permanently excited synchronous motor.
In a manufacturing environment such as automotive machine tools, the builder must be focused on the minimization of engineering requirements, while speeding up machine development. Complex sequences must be broken down into functional machine modules, and then all aspects such as mechanics, electronics and software must be seamlessly put together once more.
Integration and Connection for PLC's
This growing market demand and trend in efficiency has caused the integration of parts and functions to become a necessity. In networked manufacturing settings, the key to merging machine automation within factory environments (for automotive tools as well as others) is the "integration of connectivity." This provides information and control, as well as real-time connection with production lines and systems, the basis for smart manufacturing.
Bill Faber, from Industrial Automation Business Group, states that the AH10EMC is an example of the latest control CPU module that represents this integration through its PLC and Motion Control being designed together in one.
A built-in PLC reduces the need for reprogramming the main controller and makes it an easier drop-in solution as it sequences local operations. This enables the Variable Frequency Drive to handle motor bearing warm-up single handedly, as well as pneumatic control of air which could be used to keep the motor bearings cool during high speed operation. The drive additionally comes with a new enhanced braking feature (called Energy Control Mode) allowing for shorter motor braking time by adjusting the motor speed and current dynamically.
Demand for Efficiency
With the great increase in electric on-road applications, as well as the technical evolution of utility vehicles, all-terrain vehicles, agricultural vehicles, and mobile construction vehicles, a well-designed low-voltage and high-current drive technology that is well-designed for efficiency and performance has become paramount. In order to travel long distances, energy efficient motor components are required, as well as optimum gearmotor technology and good aerodynamics, while all battery-powered vehicles require lightweight construction for all their components. The drive unit system for these vehicles must be designed to ensure optimal comfort when driving, in addition to dynamic response and quiet operation.
A class of ultra-compact drives has emerged to serve the growing market demands and trends in efficiency. Operating from battery power, they are designed to perform at high efficiency, as batteries supply significantly less voltage than a wall plug power (the voltage of the drive limits the current produced, in turn limiting the speed and torque of the motor). ATVs and recreational vehicles frequently need high-torque that require drives with a high power density, though now “there are drives that can deliver 160 amps at 80 volts DC in a package that fits in the palm of your hand,” according to John McLaughlin, president of Elmo Motion Control.
The company ABM Drives further developed the industry proven asynchronous motor for use in mobile traction drive units on order to increase the motor's energy efficiency, offering an economical alternative to the often permanently excited synchronous motor.
In a manufacturing environment such as automotive machine tools, the builder must be focused on the minimization of engineering requirements, while speeding up machine development. Complex sequences must be broken down into functional machine modules, and then all aspects such as mechanics, electronics and software must be seamlessly put together once more.
Integration and Connection for PLC's
This growing market demand and trend in efficiency has caused the integration of parts and functions to become a necessity. In networked manufacturing settings, the key to merging machine automation within factory environments (for automotive tools as well as others) is the "integration of connectivity." This provides information and control, as well as real-time connection with production lines and systems, the basis for smart manufacturing.
Bill Faber, from Industrial Automation Business Group, states that the AH10EMC is an example of the latest control CPU module that represents this integration through its PLC and Motion Control being designed together in one.
A built-in PLC reduces the need for reprogramming the main controller and makes it an easier drop-in solution as it sequences local operations. This enables the Variable Frequency Drive to handle motor bearing warm-up single handedly, as well as pneumatic control of air which could be used to keep the motor bearings cool during high speed operation. The drive additionally comes with a new enhanced braking feature (called Energy Control Mode) allowing for shorter motor braking time by adjusting the motor speed and current dynamically.