CONNECTRIC STANDALONE TURNKEY SYSTEMS

Connectric Systems manufactures economical standalone turnkey systems that can be added to existing or new machinery.  Below are examples of the systems we have manufactured to solve customer applications.  Each system is designed to meet exactly all the requirement of the customer.  All systems are standalone, just provide standard AC power and the system provides the power to the sensors.  All systems come with documentation, encoder or sensor mounting tips, any fine tuning calibration if required, etc.  We also provide full after sales support.

Connectric measurement and control systems can be easily added to existing or new machinery.

PLEASE DISCUSS YOUR REQUIREMENTS WITH US.

Plastic Extrusion Cut To Length
Plastic Extrusion Cut To Length

Plastic Extrusion Cut To Length

Application:

A number of our customers manufacture extruded plastic. The plastic extrusion is pulled between two belts, and cut to length using a guillitone. The customers want to cut repeatedly the extrusions at programmed lengths, and count the number of pieces cut.

Solution:

We provided systems where the measuring wheel runs on the top puller belt.  The encoder signals are scaled to display inches with 1 decimal point.  The customer programs the cut length using the touch screen, and the counter provides a cut signal to the knife through a solid state relay.  The counter resets to zero and increments the batch count.  When the batch quantity is reached, a stop signal is sent to the machine.  The customer presses the reset button and the system is ready for the next production batch.

A sensor can be added to inhibit count if no extrusion is present while the belt is running.

Glue Application Control

Glue Application Control

Application:

One of our customers manufactures plastic film packaging envelopes for major courier companies. They wanted to control glue guns to turn on and off so that the edges of the sealing flaps of the envelopes have no glue.

Solution:

Connectric provided a glue control solution to turn on and off the guns.  The customer sets the width of the envelope (e.g. 12"), and the width of the area where the glue gun is off (e.g. 1").  The envelopes are then cut / sealed in the centre of the area where there is no glue so that there is 1/2" of no glue on each edge of the envelope.  We provided an encoder with a measuring wheel attached, and a display controller.  The 1 " and 12 inch were programmed on the counter using buttons or touch screen, and a relay turned on and off the glue gun. The counter reset automatically every 12" for continuous unattended production.  

Some units were required to trigger on registration marks.  Dual counter controllers were provided, the customer just selected the mode he required.  The customer purchased multiple systems.
 

Glue Thickness Monitor And Control

Glue Thickness Monitor And Control

Application:

One of our customers manufactures label pouches for major courier companies. Glue is applied to one side of plastic film after which a peel off layer is applied. The customer wanted to control the amount of glue being applied to the film.

Solution:

Connectric provided a system using an analogue output UV sensor and an analogue display. The sensor monitored the amount of glue and provided an analogue signal proportional to the amount of glue applied. Upper and lower limits were set on the displays with an audio alarm. If the amount of glue was outside the limits, the alarm would sound to notify the operator so that the glue flow could be appropriately adjusted.

Monitoring Hoist Position In A Mine

The customer wants to monitor the hoist position in a mine.

The hoist is equipped with a drum containing 4000 feet of cable distributed across 13 layers. Determining the hoist's position is essential for the customer. The cable layers exhibit varying diameters due to over wrapping, resulting in differing amounts of cable per drum rotation on each layer. To accurately measure the cable length, especially considering the changing position of the wire rope as it is unwound or wound back onto the drum, the system employs a straightforward method based on the drum shaft's rotation.

To facilitate precise length measurements, a linearization table has been integrated into the Connectric Length Measurement System. This table is specifically programmed to account for the cable lengths on each of the 13 layers. It effectively displays the total length of cable either released or retrieved, thereby providing an accurate representation of the hoist's current position.

Wood Moulding Production Monitoring
Wood Moulding Production Monitoring
Wood Moulding Production Monitoring

Wood Moulding Production Monitoring

Application:

One of our customers manufactures wood moulding and wants to monitor the total length of moulded wood in a batch and production week.

Solution:

Connectric provided a measuring system to measure in process the total length of a batch of wood moulding produced.  The customer can set to total length required in feet or meters, and the system counts the length produced and can provide an output when the required quantity has been reached.  A second counter was used to monitor the production for the week.  A key reset for this counter was provided to prevent accidental resetting of the production count.

The systems can also be used to provide an alarm then the desired batch length of wood moulding has been manufactured.

To accommodate different thickness of moulding without adjustment of the position of the measuring wheel and encoder, the wheel was mounted under the table so that the wood runs on the wheel.

Temperature Measurement System

Temperature Measurement System

Application:

The customer was using a commercial hand held infra-red temperature gun to measure the temperature in the production of carpet tiles.  He wanted accurate continuous measurement of the temperature for his quality control.

Solution:

Connectric provided a temperature measurement system using a permanently mounted temperature sensor mounted to a analogue display.  the display was scaled to read in degrees F.  Two versions are available, to read 0 - 400F or 300 to 1000F.  The sensor can be permanently mounted with ranges of 4 to 8 feet.  Optional alarms can be provided for over or under temperature settings allowing for unattended monitoring.

Speed Measurement & Display

Speed Measurement & Display

Application:

The customer wanted to monitor the speed of his machine conveyor.

Solution:

Connectric provided an economical system using a small proximity sensor to detect cogs on the gear, and connected the sensor to a speed monitor appropriately scaled to show the speed of the machine. The large bright character display showed the speed to be read at a distance.  Trigger devices can be simple proximity sensors counting gear cogs, photoelectric sensors, encoders directly coupled to shafts, encoders with measuring wheels, etc.  Optional alerts such as buzzers or lights can be used to indicate under or over speed.  Optional data logging can be used for data logging the production speed.

Carpet Cutting

Carpet Cutting

Application:

One of our customers manufactures carpet tiles.  They wanted to have a system that could provide greater cut accuracy and easy to add on to their existing machine

Solution:

Connectric provided a length measurement system with a controller, encoder, flexible encoder  mounting arm and an accurate measuring wheel.  The desired length is programmed into the touch screen display / controller.  When the length is reached, a timed output is provided to signal the cutter, and the counter is automatically reset to zero ready for the next cut.  The customer was extremely happy that with the system, he was able to improve the cut accuracy to less than 1/4".  (carpets stretch).  Batch cut and control is also available upon request.

Feeding Control On A Robotic Machine

Feeding Control On A Robotic Machine

Application:

The customer wanted acurate feed control of plastic film from a roll on a robotic laser cutting machine.  He wanted the machine to feed the material, stop at the preset length, have a laser cutter cut the material, which would then be removed by a robot.  After completion of that cycle, he wanted to feed additional material and repeat the process till the batch quantity was reached.

Solution:

Connectric provided a system which measured the feed and provided a relay output when the length was reached.  A start button sent a signal to the drive to start the process.  The length relay output was timed, and the control of the relay output also inhibited count of the feed during the drive slow down period.  Thus there was no overshoot of count, each cycle started at 0.  The drive provided a signal to the laser cutter which in turn provided a signal to the robot.  Once the material was removed, the robot signalled the drive to start again.  This cycle was repeated till the batch count was reached.  The Connectric system provided a beacon and buzzer, and a relay output to stop the process.  The 2 line display showed the length being pulled (with automatic reset to zero), and the number of pieces processed.

Accurate Very Long Length Measurement

Accurate Very Long Length Measurement

Application:

One of our customers wanted to measure very accurately very long lengths.

Solution:

Connectric provided a length measuring system with the Connectric very high accuracy Measuring Wheel.  Each wheel is coated with non marking polyurethane and individually manufactured with a tolerance on diameter: .002” (+/- 0.052%).  We provided additional calibration instructions whereby the customer fine tuned the calibration by measuring a set length of say, 100 feet, and checking the read length.  By fine tuning the scaling, the customer verified the accuracy over the test length.  He was then able to get the desired accuracy on very long lengths.

Display Production Speed Of Chocolate Bars

Application:

The customer wants to display the rate of production of chocolate bars.  The bars run on a conveyor, he wants to display the speed of production.  The customer provided photographs of his machine.

Solution:

Connectric provided an easy to implement low cost solution.  The solution included an inductive sensor to detect bolt heads on a rotating roller.  The pulses were fed to an easy to read touch screen display / controller programmed to display r.p.m.  Appropriate scaling was programmed into the display / controller to display bars per minute instead of rpm.  The sensor was powered by the display, all the customer had to do was to provide standard AC supply to the display/controller.

Connectric Counting System

Application:

One of our customers manufactures plastic film printed with registration marks.  The film is used by their customers to make bags.  Different production runs have different colour registration marks, the goal is to read marks of different colours against different backgrounds. 

The requirement is to count the registration marks during production of the film, and ensure that the end customer is getting the desired number of bags per roll.  This is a QC application.

Solution:

Connectric provided an easy teach registration sensor and a counter.  The push button teach allows the customer to change the film for different customers, and the high speed counter reliably counts the number of marks on the roll.  The optional output on the counter can provide RS232 output so that the number of marks per roll can be logged on a computer data base (customer provided).

Production Packing Assistance

Application:

One of our customers manufactures packing slip envelopes.  These are packed manually into boxes of 500 pieces.

Solution:

A sensor detecting the pouches sends a count signal to a counter programmed to reset automatically at 500.  When the count of 500 is reached, a timed relay output switches in a resistor to the drive input which speeds up the conveyer.  After a short period, the resistor is switched out of the drive control input which reverts to the normal speed of the conveyer.  The speeding up of the conveyer puts a gap between each batch of 500 pieces which is then packed while the next batch is being manufactured.  If required, a batch count can be set up to count the number of batches of 500 pieces.

Monitoring Hoist Position & Rate of Descent

One of our customers needed to monitor the position of a hoist in a mine down to 4000 feet, as well as track the speed of its descent. The hoist operates with a wire rope wound around a drum in multiple layers.

Solution:

The rope wraps around the drum in 13 layers, where the length of rope per layer varies due to over wrapping. Outer layers have a greater length per wrap compared to inner layers. Our customer provided details on wraps per layer and feet. Connectric calculated the wrap lengths for each layer and programmed the counter for linearization.

To monitor drum rotation and speed, Connectric recommended a Kuebler SSI encoder with an incremental track to be mounted on the drum shaft. This would perform 2 functions, display position and speed of rotation.  The SSI output provided position data, while the incremental track supplied speed information. In case of power loss, the SSI encoder would maintain position accuracy. The linearity feature of the Motrona IX350 SSI counter/controller was used to display accurately the hoist position, while the DX355 was used to display the drum rotation speed. Connectric individually programmed the displays for accurate monitoring of hoist position up to 4000 ft and drum rotational speed.  Full documentation including a colour coded wiring diagram and linearization table was provided to the customer.

  • Back to top