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Hytrol & IBT
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Hytrol®, a major vendor and marketing partner of IBT, has introduced Gen3, the next generation of their EZLogic® Accumulation System for conveying systems. Gen3 features the same principles that have made EZLogic popular, but it also incorporates a series of new technologies.
These technological enhancements increase ease of installation, operation and maintenance. Hytrol reports that they have responded to the voice of their customers. They have made what has been "the most advanced zero-pressure accumulation system in the world" even better.
Electronic Zero-pressure Logic (EZLogic®) is a method of zero-pressure accumulation control that combines the sensing accuracy of photo-electrics with discrete electronic logic control without the use of a PLC or pneumatic logic components. This system provides all the “intelligence” needed to accurately control the various functions of zero-pressure accumulation on a variety of conveyor models.
"One important feature of EZLogic Gen3," IBT's Bruce Loyd observes, "is that it works just as well with pallet conveyors as it does with package conveyors. The control system is ready to regulate and maximize flow with either type of pay load. This simplifies training, installation, spare parts inventory and makes it easier to manage systems regardless of what their main jobs are."
Reduced noise, higher reliability, higher throughputs and ease of maintenance are just some of the advantages of the EZLogic® system. The heart of the EZLogic® Accumulation System is the EZLogic® zone controller.
Each controller is equipped with a photoelectric input device to detect product presence, a microprocessor to evaluate various input signals, and control connections to provide communication of data between zones and to and from outside sources. Two types of product sensing are available: A retro-reflective type which is used in conjunction with a reflector to detect packages by looking across the width of the conveyor, and a diffuse type which is used to detect packages when a reflector cannot be used.
The EZLogic® system has two primary modes of operation: singulation mode and slug mode.
In singulation mode, the product separates while traveling down the conveyor. When it is released from the conveyor, it creates a zone-length gap between packages. Singulation mode may be further configured to operate in fixed zone length mode or dynamic zone allocation mode.
In slug mode, the product does not separate when traveling down the conveyor or when it is released from the conveyor. This allows higher throughput at any given conveyor speed. Product will not separate on the conveyor even when accumulation has been activated at the discharge end.
The system also has a "sleep feature" and "jam protection." With "sleep," conveyor zones that have not had any activity for a selected period of time may be set to “go to sleep,” or stop driving until activity is detected, reducing system noise and component wear as well as reducing energy consumption. With "jam," when the conveyor is set to run in “slug mode” and items become jammed on the conveyor, EZLogic® will detect the jam and accumulate items upstream from the jam. This prevents pile-ups until the jam is cleared.
Significant features that characterize EZLogic Gen3 include: ease of installation and replacement, dynamic zone allocation to provide unprecedented throughput possibilities, ease of configuration, expanded control options, functionality that enhances product flow and greatly simplified field wiring.
Another interesting aspect of Gen3 is Dynamic Zone Allocation. This means that EZLogic can automatically adjust the conveyor’s zone length to accommodate the length of the items being conveyed. As a result, longer pieces are easily and efficiently conveyed in singulation mode. So, overall throughput increases, as does accumulation density, conveyor efficiency and system flexibility.
You can size zones for the smallest items, if desired, which is the most efficient set up. Then, the conveyor runs in singulation mode, providing better control of flow. If you introduce longer pieces after installation, you do not obsolete the system! This can be a big advantage in today's changing world. And finally, the low-usage, long box is no longer a problem.
System components are: EZLogic® Controller, in two physical and two functional variations; three sensing types of transducers (polarized reflex, adjustable diffuse or narrow-beam diffuse); push to connect cordset with different lengths for different zones.
Interfacing is through a pushbutton programmer which plugs into the auxiliary port of any controller. This allows the user to easily configure most features.
Hytrol also offers “Genesis™ Configuration Manager” software. This allows the user to employ a PC for maximum flexibility in programming the system. Genesis™ Configuration Manager also allows the user to save and retrieve configurations, retrieve diagnostic information and access more advanced options. Once a controller is configured, the configuration from that controller may be copied to other controllers in the system by using the clone feature of the controller.
The EZLogic® system has many special functions. Some of these enhance product flow, such as the cascaded release function, while others are designed to reduce the need for external controls, such as the indexing zone stop and loading and unloading functions.
EZLogic Gen3 is the latest advance in conveyor control technology from Hytrol. IBT is fully trained and experienced on this new approach and ready to help you determine how it can be useful to your facility. To find out more, contact IBT.
Published: Aug 1, 2006 - 8:48:58 AM
© Copyright 2006 by IBT PrimeMOVER
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