« Back To Motion Control & Motors News
Rockwell Automation Logo

Member Since 2006

LEARN MORE

Rockwell Automation is a global leader in industrial automation and digital transformation. We connect the imaginations of people with the potential of technology to expand what is humanly possible, making the world more productive and more sustainable.

Content Filed Under:

Industry:
Motion Control Component Manufacturing Motion Control Component Manufacturing

Application:
N/A

Rockwell Automation Showcases “Right-sized” Control Capabilities at PACK EXPO 2011

POSTED 09/20/2011

At PACK EXPO 2011, Rockwell Automation will demonstrate the latest scalable, multidisciplined control and information technology to help machine builders lower their cost to design, develop and deliver packaging machinery. Featuring new, cost-effective control for small, standalone machine applications, the Rockwell Automation controller portfolio scales from 12 to 10,000 I/O, giving machine builders the ability to mirror each manufacturer’s needs at any given time.

“Machine builders can improve their design flexibility by standardizing on a single control supplier, regardless of the types of applications they need to manage or the complexity of machines they build,” said Mike Wagner, manager, Global Packaging Business, Rockwell Automation. “This standardization allows them to scale the control system up, down or across applications to help manufacturers quickly adapt to market demands.”

The Rockwell Automation booth (S-5417) at PACK EXPO will feature several additions to its control and information platform:

  • Simple Control Solutions for Standalone Machines: â?¦Allen-Bradley Micro800 component-class micro programmable logic controllers provide a cost-effective control solution for small, standalone machine applications. Designed to be used with other Allen-Bradley component-class products, such as drives, motion control and operator-interface products, the controllers are part of a solution bundle that offers machine builders easy selection, installation and commissioning. The Micro800 controllers offer a wide range of plug-in modules for analog/digital I/O, communications and expanded memory. Plug-in modules and removable terminal blocks enable machine builders to personalize the controllers to specific application needs. Additionally, the new controller family offers simplified communication via point-to-point data exchange. Connected Components Workbench software is a free, downloadable software package that programs the Allen-Bradley Micro800 family of controllers and configures other devices in the system, including Allen-Bradley PowerFlex drives and Allen-Bradley PanelView component human-machine interface (HMI) products. The software follows established IEC 61131 standards.
  • Midrange Machine Control Solutions: â?¦Allen-Bradley Compact GuardLogix Programmable Automation Controllers provide integrated safety, motion, discrete and drive control capabilities in a single control platform to help machine builders reduce hardware, development and integration costs. Featuring a 1oo2 safety architecture, the controllers are rated up to Safety Integrity Level 3 (SIL 3). As part of the Rockwell Automation Integrated Architecture system, the controllers use the same configuration, networking and visualization environment as the company’s larger-scale systems. This helps provide machine builders with cost-effective integration of a machine or safety application into the end user’s plantwide control system.
    • Allen-Bradley Kinetix Servo Drives are available in a variety of power ranges and allow manufacturers to choose between two networks – SERCOS or EtherNet/IP. The drives provide a scalable, high-performance solution for simple machines and complex applications. They include built-in safety options and support a wide variety of servo motors and actuators.
    • PanelView Plus 6 and PanelView Plus Compact HMI Terminals are cost-effective operator interfaces that provide advanced integration with Logix-based controllers. The new PanelView Plus 6 terminal includes more memory with significantly faster refresh rates and more on-device storage. Every PanelView Plus 6 includes the latest FactoryTalk View Machine Edition and FactoryTalk ViewPoint software running on the Windows CE 6.0 operating system.
      â?¦Stratix Ethernet Switches use the current Cisco Catalyst switch architecture and feature set along with powerful configuration tools to help engineers and IT professionals achieve secure, seamless integration of Ethernet applications while incorporating software and programming tools familiar to IT.
    • Rockwell Software RSLogix 5000 Design and Configuration Software provides a single development environment for the products mentioned above and includes high-integrity, add-on instructions and integrated motion on EtherNet/IP capabilities.

The Rockwell Automation booth will also feature the Mechatronics design portfolio to help machine builders combine mechanical and electrical engineering to achieve greater innovation, more optimized performance, faster time to market and reduced business risk. With this interdisciplinary approach, designers can address configuration and integration issues upfront and minimize the chance of encountering problems in later stages. The Mechatronics portfolio includes:


 

  • Motion Analyzer software to help minimize design risk and speed time to market by providing tools that analyze design alternatives for motion control applications. In addition to its sizing, selection, optimization and simulation capabilities, Motion Analyzer software offers performance evaluation features including ratio, torque and tolerance analysis. Motion Analyzer links 3D mechanical design in Solidworks 3D CAD to a control program in RSLogix 5000.

The Rockwell Automation integrated control and information platform also is featured on numerous machines by a wide variety of machine builders exhibiting at PACK EXPO.

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE: ROK), the world’s largest company dedicated to industrial automation and information, makes its customers more productive and the world more sustainable. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wis., Rockwell Automation employs about 20,000 people serving customers in more than 80 countries.