MechChem Africa talks to Willem Strydom, Electronics Business Development Manager at SEW-EURODRIVE, about the extended range of drive automation solutions for applications from synchronising the torque and speed of a motor to controlling a multi-axis automatic machine or robot.
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A: A MOVIDRIVE modular solution with three axis modules driving and synchronising one linear and two rotating shafts. B: A reversing pulley belt drive with Interconnected MOVIMOT units seamlessly switching to keep the belt tension above the pulleys and the slack below.
“Our MOVI-C® modular automation system offers scaleable end-to-end automation solutions for a host of application, from controlling the speed and torque of a single drive motor, all the way to synchronising the operation of a multi-axis automatic machine,” begins Willem Strydom, the Electronics Business Development Manager at SEW-EURODRIVE.
With total flexibility in mind, the range typically combines state-of-the-art application-specific control software with centralised or decentralised inverter drives and SEW electric motors or gearmotors. “Together, these components form one complete, end-to-end modular automation system made up of devices and field units that can be combined to suit almost any motion control requirements and bus topology,” he explains.
The range flagship is the MOVI-C Controller module, which Strydom says is typically mounted in a control panel and connected to one of three different ranges of decentralised units: “These can be used to control MOVIDRIVE® modular and MOVIDRIVE® system application inverters, along with decentralised peripherals such as MOVIGEAR® mechatronic drives and SEW’s MOVIMOT® units, which can all be connected to each other and/or to the MOVI-C® CONTROLLER – via EtherCAT®/SBusPLUS – for the delivery of real-time control of machines or processes, he explains.
The MOVI-C® controller is programmed with setpoints for the connected decentralised inverters, taking care of tasks such as application specific synchronous functions and motion. “We have over 100 predefined MOVIKIT® software modules that have been purpose developed for use on systems such as pumping and HVAC systems, hoists, conveyors and packaging machines,” says Strydom, adding that graphical editors make the implementation of MOVI-C technology for a host of motion control applications quick and easy.
“A large number of mechanical configurations are already covered, while any new functions can be added to best suit the needs of client applications,” he assures. All client data is also safely stored via a data exchange function on a memory card in the MOVI-C® Controller.
From a flexibility point of view, the drive-inverters can be panel mounted or field mounted near the point of use. “The MOVIMOT, for example, has the inverter drive clipped directly onto the motor, but exactly the same technology is used if panel-mounted electronics are preferred. Both inverters and integrated drive modules, such as MOVIMOT and MOVIGEAR, are available with different levels of ingress protection (IP) – IP 65 for dust and gentle wash downs; and IP 69k versions where pressure wash ingress protection is required – for food-grade cleanliness, for example.
“Across the range, the inverter drive and the software underpinning the applications are interchangeable, transferable and reprogrammable. This modular approach keeps everything very simple. Our keypads, for example, can be fitted onto any of the drive units should parameters or software need to be changed, due to application changes or if repurposing the unit,” Strydom assures. “Everything is modular and a lot of the hardware components overlap as well. The software can be transferred and all of the separate modules can speak to each other,” he adds.
MOVIDRIVE Technology, he continues is the most intelligent of the standalone SEW-EURODRIVE inverter drives. “Our MOVIDRIVE Modular can handle up to 64 different axes. It is not a standalone VSD, but a modular solution with one power supply and separate axis modules that can be combined to control up to 64 axis.
On the other hand, the simplest and most cost effective solution for a single moving axis is the MOVITRAC unit. “If complex functionality is not really needed, such as for a VSD application on a single pump motor, then MOVITRAC offers the most cost effective solution.
Application successes
Historically, SEW-EURODRIVE’s electronics range has been very successful in automotive, food and beverage, bottling, and packaging applications. “Wherever the movements of items on a conveyor need to be controlled, such as bottle cleaning, filling, sealing and packaging lines for soft drinks, wine or beer, for example, our drives are likely to be driving and synchronising the activities to get the line moving as fast and efficiently as possible. Here we typically use the decentralised portfolio of MOVIGEAR or MOVIMOT units to drive the line, with a MOVI-C Controller communicating with and synchronising each decentralised unit,” he says.
“Previously, a master controller or PLC would have been needed to manage these processes, but not anymore,” he adds.
On the mining side, he describes a recent success at a chrome smelter: “The smelter uses an exceptionally slow very high torque steel conveyor system to carry ferrochrome into the furnace. A dual electric drive system is used to drive the pulley of this conveyor, with a planetary gearbox on either side of the pulley.
“The customer wanted to replace one of the planetary drives with an SEW P-series equivalent, but the reduction ratios were not identical. Since these units deliver more than two million Nm of torque, they had to be perfectly synchronised to prevent them from destroying the pulley. So we used a MOVIDRIVE modular solution to do multi-axis speed control of the two systems, which ensures perfectly synchronised rotation of the pulley and even torque distribution.
To demonstrate the synchronisation capability of the range at Electra Mining Africa, SEW-EURODRIVE set up two working demonstrations. The first involved a reversing pulley belt drive with a drive at both ends. Interconnected MOVIMOT units were used to drive the two pulleys, with the torque seamlessly switching between the motors to keep the belt tension above the pulleys and the slack below, regardless of the belt’s direction of rotation.
The second system used a MOVIDRIVE modular solution with three axis modules to drive one linear and two rotating shafts. As the linear drive moved the two shafts together, the angular positions and rotating speeds automatically synchronised so that two pins on the one shaft could lock into two mating holes on the other, turning on a light when engaged. This regardless of the initial speeds of either shaft.
In addition to the units themselves, Strydom highlights the use of an SEW-EURODRIVE developed a hybrid cabling solution that enables both communications and electrical power to be carried to each interconnected unit through one cable, which significantly simplifies installation times and complexity.
“From a basic conveyor to a very complex automatic machine or production line, our MOVI-C range, along with associated SEW high-efficiency motors and gearmotors, always enables us a to find and optimal solution,” says Strydom. “The range offers end-to-end modular automation that includes all the necessary hardware and software, from planning and startup to operation and servicing,” he concludes.
