Milk in a minute—packing lines stack cartons 20% faster
Is it possible to get milk straight from the cow and into the glass? That might be feasible on the farm, but consumers in the city still want their milk just as fresh. Achieving this requires quick filling and packing. The automation specialists at Advanced Machine Company AS (AMC), Vestfossen, Norway, have developed packing lines that can stack almost 30 different versions of filled milk cartons in containers. This small company has earned a reputation as a major systems supplier to the Norwegian dairy cooperative.
“The rising capacities of modern filling machines require faster handling of the cartons once they’ve been filled. This is particularly true for milk—a completely natural product,” said Harald Hals, CEO, AMC. “This means we have to be very flexible and reliable in our work. We expect exactly the same from our suppliers as we search for solutions and the shortest possible delivery times for high-quality components.”
Seven hours less work
The most recent success story at AMC stars new packing lines for a dairy plant. It places milk cartons into the individual rates situated in roll-in containers. Those cartons are then ready for dispatch to shops, companies and schools. Compared with previous systems, which could fill and pack no more than 6,000 cartons per hour, the new lines have capacities for 7,000 cartons with 1,500 more in reserve.
This rise results in part from an increase in the speed of the lines by more than 20%, said Hals. “These new filling and packing lines let this dairy plant achieve enormous savings in production time—about seven hours daily with just the same output. That’s a factor worth its weight in gold when producing five days a week.” The potential is enormous if you consider just the quantity of milk processed by the Norwegian dairy cooperative each year: 1.8 billion liters of cow’s milk and 20 million liters of goat’s milk.
MC uses the CL03 valve terminal system in all its packing lines and thus eliminates large control cabinets and long actuator cables.
A view from afar
Built into these packing lines is a whole series of components that Rexroth developed especially for use in the food processing industry. These include pneumatic valve terminal systems with integrated DeviceNet bus protocols, rugged twin-action guide cylinders from the GPC series, corrosion-resistant pneumatic cylinders from the ISO Clean Line series, and maintenance units to prepare compressed air for use.
The configuration selected to drive the AMC lines includes an intelligent combination of ball-screw drives and ball-mounted rail guides with MSK servomotors featuring quick acceleration characteristics. These are augmented with IndraDrive C servo amplifiers. The modular concept offers a further advantage: The servo amplifier with its integrated controller can be linked directly to the dairy plant’s DeviceNet—and in this way can also be accessed from a remote point.
Clean and lightweight
A further Rexroth development intended for use in sensitive settings like the food industry was appealing to Hals: the Clean Line concept.
“Although our machinery makes no direct contact with milk, it does have to comply with stringent requirements. That means withstanding countless cleaning cycles,” he said.
That is why consistent use of stainless steel and components meeting hygienic requirements is important. Even cleaning with a jet of steam at 100°C will not affect the equipment.
The Clean Line concept joins uncomplicated care, simple cleaning and ease of maintenance with mature technology. For example, the compact, modular CL03 valve terminal system, which features an IP69K protection rating, cuts costs.
Tore Enes, sales engineer at Rexroth in Norway, and AMC CEO are happy with their collaboration.
“A decentralized valve operating system eliminates long feed lines with their typical pressure losses; neither do we have to install any expensive control cabinets,” said Hals. “All that, of course, speeds assembly of the packing lines on site and makes maintenance faster, easier and thus more economical.”
AMC uses two such valve terminal systems for each packing line, populates them with 16 valves each and connects their integrated bus with the DeviceNet protocol directly to the dairy plant’s bus system. The solenoid valves in the valve terminal system are used to control the built-in GPC and ICL cylinders. The PPC stainless steel guide unit is resistant to transverse and torsional forces. Cleaning and maintaining the cylinders are made simple, thanks to a practical sensor attachment concept and the Clean Line design, aligned specifically with hygiene needs.
In his office on the shores of Lake Eiker, Hals is already planning future projects. As though just in passing he calls up, via the Internet, a user’s control panel in his own display. In just an instant he can determine whether recently installed packing lines—500 km away—are working properly.
Pneumatic Valve Manifold System Features Uniform Interface
Series HF02-LG pneumatic valve system from Rexroth with uniform interface
Thanks to its high level of modularity, the new HF02-LG can be integrated in a wide variety of automation concepts.
The HF02-LG series from Rexroth rounds out its standardized range of HF valve manifold systems with a weight-optimized base plate valve featuring high flow rates. The dependable HF family is now available with flow rates of 0.4Cv, 0.7Cv, and 1.4Cv and can be actuated with just one bus connection for all series.
The uniform connection technology for Rexroth valve manifold systems simplifies integration of pneumatics in a wide variety of automation concepts. Thanks to its modular design, the system enables use of multiple plugs and connections for all common field buses, with and without I/O signal processing and supports an integrated Drive & Diagnostic Link. The uniform interface for common field bus control (B-design) permits a simple and clear combination of various valve manifold systems, as well as standardized programming.
The new HF02-LG valve manifold system benefits from a free selection of connection technology. With a flow rate of 0.4Cv with a valve width of 20 mm, the system can accommodate up to 16 valve positions in one unit. An exceptionally modular design makes it possible to change the electrical controller without having to disassemble the valve manifolds. Electrical linking with other valve manifold systems, such as the HF03-LG and the HF04-XF, or individual valves, is simple using Rexroth’s module extension.
Robust parallel plug connectors in the base plates facilitate conversion of an HF02-LG valve unit and the plug-in valve makes it possible to exchange valve functions quickly and easily. Another special feature is that the customer can convert the pilot from an internal pilot control to an external pilot control directly on the left end plate.
The HF02-LG provides all valve functions: 2 x 3/2, 5/2, and 5/3. Dual-pressure operation is possible using separate exhaust connections for channels 3 and 5. Pressure zones can be limited to one valve. In principle, the valve manifold system has been designed for an internal working pressure of 36 to 145 psi and can be operated in a temperature range of 32 to 122°F. Up to 32 coils can be actuated with the 44-pin D-Sub high-density plug.
Rexroth provides a user-friendly configurator to assist designers who would like to integrate this valve manifold system in their installation. This online tool lets you easily configure valve units with all their accessories and displays them with a pneumatic circuit diagram or dimensional drawing. The latest enhancement: The user can download the configured unit as a 3-D PDF in which the unit can be rotated on the screen and viewed from all sides.
The HF02-LG valve manifold system is ideal for applications requiring a high level of modularity, such as in machine tools, special-purpose machines, welding technology, or polymer processing.
Modular Flow Diverters for Harsh Environments
February 11, 2009 by R. Nelson Parrish
Filed under Valves
Bethlehem, PA – Bosch Rexroth has introduced a complete line of flow diverter valves with flows up to 60 gpm and pressures up to 5000 psi. The flow diverters are modular, allowing up to 5 additional circuits with minimal pressure drop. Zinc-plated steel bodies and IP69 rated coils withstand the most severe operating conditions, making them ideally suited to mobile applications in mining and heavy industry environments.
Rexroth’s flow diverter valves are available as 3- or 6-way single valves, with the option of creating up to 14-way flows using modular diverters. Standard ports allow for electric, manual, or pilot pressure operation, and flow diverters can be positioned next to the control cylinders, making pipe connections easier and more cost-effective. Diverters provide an economical means of “multiplying” hydraulic controls by allowing an operator to select from two distinct operations under control of one directional valve.
Operators also benefit from single-hand operation thanks to push-button control placed on the handle of the directional valve lever. The push-button handle connects to the solenoid, allowing precise control of the required cylinder.
For more information on Flow Diverters from Rexroth, visit www.boschrexroth-us.com/brh-m.
Rexroth Releases New Oil Control Cartridge Program Catalog
February 10, 2009 by R. Nelson Parrish
Filed under Equipment, Fittings, Valves
Bethlehem, PA - Bosch Rexroth’s Oil Control division, which manufactures a wide range of Compact Hydraulic products, has released a new 300-page catalog detailing its Cartridge Valve Program for the North American Market. The catalog provides engineering details on a complete range of screw-in type cartridges designed by Bosch Rexroth Oil Control to meet the needs of virtually any component or manifold application in hydraulic systems for mobile and industrial machinery.
The new Cartridge Program catalog, which can be downloaded from the Bosch Rexroth website, offers a product selection guide and comprehensive technical, dimensional and performance data.
Rated to 5000 psi (350 bar), Bosch Rexroth Oil Control’s cartridge valves feature compact design with optimized flow, pressure drop and leakage characteristics. All valves are precision-manufactured from high quality steel and are trivalent zinc-plated for RoHS compliant corrosion protection.
For more information, and to download the catalog visit www.boschrexroth-us.com/brh-m and in the Products section, select “Compact Hydraulics” followed by “Cartridge Valves” or click here.
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