Folded Flap Control System for a Cardboard Box Forming Machine
In this system, the folding tabs are L-shaped bars connected to a rotating shaft. They rotate in one direction as the cardboard box passes over them. An incremental encoder is attached to the production line, which tracks the position and measures the speed of movement. It is assumed that the box does not slip while moving along the line, meaning the encoder measures the actual position and speed of the box. When the box blocks an optical sensor placed along its path, the control system records its position and after a preset delay set by a distance parameter, the folding tabs rotate in sync with the box's movement by 90 degrees into the working position. In this position, the folding tabs wait for the box to leave the working area and then rotate back 90 degrees to the end position for the next box. A main component in this system is the motion controller TM262M15MESS8T from Schneider Electric. It allows synchronous control of up to 4 axes. The controller has the necessary hardware and software features to process signals from the incremental encoder and sensors that track the position of the boxes for both thumbs independently, and to generate the required commands for the drives of the two thumbs. A 7" touch display, also from Schneider Electric, is provided for entering the necessary setup parameters and showing the current system status, serving as a human-machine interface. About safety, in addition to the standard circuit breakers, a ground fault current protection is pre-installed, as well as the XPSBAT12A1A safety module for achieving a rapid controllable stop of the actuators and securing them in case of an emergency. The actuators are driven by synchronous servo motors from Schneider Electric, with a rated power of 1.3 kW and a rated torque of 3 Nm at 4000 rpm.
