OFTERING, Austria—Elmet GmbH offers the capability to connect its multi-component dosing system Top 5000 P to an injection molding machine using an OPC-UA protocol.
The "open platform communication" protocol enables automated information exchange from machine to machine in real time, according to an Elmet news release.
The capability allows customers to integrate the dosing system into the production control system without the need for a license, along with simplified operation of the dosing system from the injection molding machine, Elmet said.
The technology is operational with Engel machines, with others in preparation.
With the new OPC-UA connection, processors can store recipes and parameters together with the machine data, and enter parameters for the dosing system directly into the control unit of the injection molding machine, Elmet Sales Manager Mark Ostermann said in a statement. The data of the dosing system can be implemented into the production control system, and an additional license is unnecessary because the injection molding machine is established in the control system. This improves user friendliness and reduces risk of error.
The Top 5000 P is designed for large-series production of parts, suitable for shot weights in a range of less than 0.003 ounces to several pounds, and can manage containers with a capacity of between 5.28 and 52.8 gallons and material viscosities from 9,000 mPas to 3 million mPas, with large viscosity differences between the components, Elmet said.
The Top 5000 P is equipped with two separately functioning control circuits, one of which ensures more than 99 percent emptying of containers, while the other makes sure that volumes fed into the process correspond exactly to the target figure, said Ostermann. With an additional additives control solution, it achieves constant, highly accurate dosage regardless of sediments, wear and tear and viscosity differences.
For more information, contact Mark Ostermann by phone at 43 (0) 7221 / 745 77-160, or by email at [email protected].
The New Products blog showcases innovations suppliers are introducing to the rubber industry. It focuses on new materials, machinery, molds, testing equipment, software, and other goods and services that are intended to help manufacturers of finished rubber products. The blog will appear on Tuesdays and Thursdays. To have your product considered for the blog, contact Online Content Editor Erin Pustay Beaven at [email protected] or Editor Bruce Meyer at [email protected].