Come visit our booth at the Congress 2011 show where you will be able to see, touch and use the incredible SHELLSHOCK labeling system from NITA

If you are packaging youir baked goods or ingrdients and spice in clamshells, domes, bowls or trays…  Labels can be added on the top/bottom, top only, bottom only or as a tamper evident seal on 2-3-or even 4 panels..

ADMISSION IS FREE

Register HERE…

baking show in Montreal (laval)

     CHECK THE SHELLSHOCK LOGO TO GET THE INFO  

Read an interesting article in the Baker’s Journal - Buyers Guide (January/February 2011 edition) where an interview was conducted with a very capable man by the name of Stewart Macpherson (owner of  Unifiller Systems)

The top seven Concerns for In-store bakeries were

1. Increasing labor costs

2. Inexperienced staff

3. Escalating ingredients costs

4. Quality control & consistency

5. Staff training

6. New product development

7. Competition

                 HUH… do you agree? 

This was very interesting to me.  As you read on you come to see that there are many ways where the labor costs and inexperienced staff problems can be resolved in big part (one fell swoop)

Using machinery that is extremely easy to use, performs like a work horse and is not overkill for you business, you can definitely get rid of those first 2 thorns (which are the bigger ones anyway).  Stewart says,  ”centralizing production into one facility greatly improves these factors” and I agree,

“Look at the way supermarkets do it, they streamline the large batches and then deliver them” and continues to say… “The result production and labor costs are reduced – quality, portion sizes and production consistency is maintained.”

 This is very true whenever you talk about filling machines, labeling machines or other automation practices…Do not be scared by the word AUTOMATION, some see the work as this great beast that will engulf the entire floor space…That can not be further from the truth. Automation simply allows for the right machine to be in front of a specific need, some big, some small, BUT in fact it simply helps get rid of training multiple people and depending on their high skill level to do the same job.

BTW… The article is available at bakersjournal.com and was written by Laura Aiken and her group at the Baker’s Journal. You can view it here see the link to get the virtual magazine and read on Page 37

 Enjoy and share your agreement or disagreement on LINKEDIN and check our this discussion..

Thanks

Claudio Napoleoni- Nita Labeling Equipment

typical Nita booth setup

As the event grows closer, Nita is hard at work preparing for the baking trade show hosted by the BAC In Laval on May 2011

The Baking association of Canada regroups talents from all walks of life to ensure great visibility for the greatest of the trade. From ingredients, equipment, fillings, baked goods, pans, ovens, recipes, demonstrations and seminars, they are all regrouped under one roof.

Nita will be showcasing its very versatile “Award winning ” Shellshock and Joust SSK Clamshell labelers that allows for a tamper evident seal on calshells BUT also allows for a single top or botom label application …Not to mention a combination of both Top and bottom PLUS a tamper evident C-shaped seal. With minor options,, this labeling marvel can also perform a full 5 panel complete wrap around clamshells and trays.

Please visit us May 1 & 2
Place Forzani
4855, rue Louis-B-Mayer
Montreal (Laval), QC

for information can be found at http://www.nitalabelingequipment.com/products/cshapedclamshelllabeling.html

The campaign is “eat 5-10 portions of fruits or vegetables per day”

This helps Canadians and Americains to be a little more vigilant to healthy eating.  Helpful tips, recipes and more …can be found here…for more information , follow this link www.jaime5a10.ca only the french version is available at this time, But visit often to see if the vesrion has been updated in English

In the past, automatic labeling machines were using counters and timers to indicate where the label was to be positioned on a container, bottle or box surface. A sensor which was placed in a strategic position would give the controller a trigger signal which would then transfer the information to a timer / counter. The counter would then allow a time lapse to occur and apply the label to the container accordingly.

Since companies spend thousands and sometimes millions of dollars on branding certain products or SKUs, no one wants to see their product hit the consumer retail market with an appearance that does not reflect their company’s commitment to quality.

Now, what happens behind the scenes during operation will most often not be reflected to the consumer. Major steps are taken to ensure that the packaging quality is indicative of the product itself, because it comes down to appeal on a shelf.

  There are ways to ensure that this does not happen. Thousands of dollars are invested by corporations to integrate reject stations, vision system as well as adding the human final touches as an inspection. Now rejection systems can be used for many things and they DO ensure our safety when it comes down to detecting impurities and product defectiveness but…

Have you ever seen a product on a shelf with a skewed label anyway?

 What if, instead of all the fancy detection and reject stations, the labeling machinery manufacturers did their jobs adequately and went back to basics to ensure the results of what labelers were intended for?  Applying labels correctly….not just applying labels! 

Every production plant employee, production manager, engineer and plant supervisor has to live with production time failure, product waste and rejects so that the consumer is never the wiser. It is not as translucent as one would think though…

 See, the price of any product is foremost molded by the basic economic principle of supply and demand. The more a product is required, the more the demand, the more the production costs are amortised into each individual product and can be offered at a more reasonable price to the consumer. In times of crises such as a flood, ice-storm, hurricane or earthquake for example, there are always cases seen where a simply 1$ candle will sell for 10$ or a gas operated generator suddenly sky rockets in price to accommodate the highest bidder because demand simply surpasses the supply. 

Now if a labeling machine would perform its job perfectly, it would increase the proficiency of all the prior steps performed in order to “get a product out the door” as they say. No rejects, no labels wasted, no containers thrown away, no product scrapped and no natural resources wasted such as electricity, air, and perhaps even gasses used to ensure a product container is filled, capped and sealed.

Quite frankly, if you are letting through a lesser quality product by not rejecting it because it is deemed borderline or the best your labeller can do, you are hindering your business’ identity in the market place. If you are concerned about your product and company’s identity, you are rejecting some and so would it not make more sense to do the job right…the first time!

 The responsibility on the labeling machine manufacturer is huge, whether they see it or not, it is the final primary packaging step that can drive costs through the roof for the plant operators and owners thus possibly lead to direct price increase to the consumer and may ultimately result in loss of sales per unit. (you can also see the article called “Chain reaction to productivity loss”). Also, the loss of profits, the laying of staff which also leads to moral demise etc…

 So here it is… A proper labeling system should have these 10 key points to ensure positive production proficiency and achieve your sustainability goals.

 Accuracy     - Servo motors. Make sure the labeling system is equipped with servo motors this allows zero maintenance operations and has 100% accuracy at any range of speed from zero to its maximum and this is why it is known as TRUE synchronisation. The reflection of a great product often lies in the appearance of the product and reflection of quality assurance by the production operations staff. 

Synchronization     is the real “key” to a high efficiency labeling machine. It is simply the manner is which all components communicate with each other to follow or compensate for speeds variances extremely rapidly. You must make sure that the system is synchronized so that you can run the initial NEW Product set up at a slow, almost crawl speed (as well as stop on a dime) to ensure accurate position of the label on the product if you are to be efficient (not losing any containers nor labels nor products).

As an operator performs a set up, it is illogical to try to tweak the system at a real production throughput speed. This was done traditionally and should be a thing of the past. It has too great of an impact on reliability and accuracy of the system PLUS it depends on a specialized operator to use his keen eyesight to correct skewing as well as label position on the product. If the system is not synchronized with servo motors, the initial imputed set up, varies and creates errors, skews, misplacement etc. Moreover, it will result in loss of time, production and possibly require an inspector to reject a series of wrongly positioned labels on products that were labeled before being noticed. 

Memorisation    Every time a product changeover is made, In 2010…IT IS NOT NORMAL for product or label gap sensors to be to moved in order for the system to identify the exact location of the label placement on a specific product. Using the memorisation feature ensures the fundamental information transfer between the operator and the system he is using…to the touch of the screen. Choosing the named product in a touch screen (commonly called a HMI) will make sure that the necessary information is immediately saved in each product recipe and makes start ups easy, fast efficient, accurate and sustainable. Moreover, it will automatically tell the operator where every guide should be positioned in true form using real measurements PRIOR to starting up production. It will allow all component such as Top clamp down belts, wrap stations, pathfinder orientation (video link), spacing belt devices to automatically engage at the right speeds every time as it was specified in the product set-up recipe. The operator now does not have to rely on potentiometers for every component and spend countless amounts of time making sure each component is set the for a specific product.

 Truly User friendly      feature as a standard…In order to avoid costly operator salaries, make sure that it is not necessary to have a specifically trained operator for the machine’s operation. The labeler should be able to be understood by anyone, it should have a logical sequence and should clearly indicate (through a touch screen), all the necessary steps to be taken by the operator to obtain fast and efficient results. It’s the old saying KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid). This way a plant operator can minimise operation costs and is never dependant on the specific throughput made by an individual operator but rather can place anyone he wishes to start the machine and forget about it. Technology scares off some users BUT if the system is as easy use as a television remote control, the initial fears disappear quickly as it should guide the person looking at the screen through a compressive step-by-step start up.

Scales     As silly as it may sound, make sure any labeling system you purchase has a TRUE measuring scale system on EVERY possible adjustment. If the operator guesses, the labeling position is also a guess. A person should be able to look directly at the information on screen and follow the same positioning numbers on scales that are comprehensively placed on all adjustments. It is like referencing a GPS point to a specific destination, without the satellite (in this case scales or gradient rulers), you are simply not getting to the targeted point in a fast efficient way.

Scales allow any person to be able to reference a set-up point which again eliminates errors, time loss and errors in positioning. If the operator guesses, the labeling position is also a guess and will result in “misfires”, or “mis-positioned” labels on the product that will require more tweaking and adjusting resulting in sustainability loss. 

Dependability          One way to ensure dependability is to look at the components used throughout the machine. A flimsy component can bring on the death of many other components. (Its like a plague or virus). Great components on the other hand will ensure stability between each other’s interaction. It will ensure longer life of the machine, better accuracy, and less time worrying about where it went wrong.

Maintenance-free components    are the way to go when dealing with any machine. The less human interaction is required, the more the dependability of the component generally is. Seal bearings, servo motors, open-architecture servo drives (that act like a network between all components and are accessible through any programmer and/or any pc) are a great indication of a well made labeling machine. Cheap components as those found in machines from developing countries are very often cheaper to purchase BUT cost more to replace and have proprietary ties. This means that the only people who can provide you with the component, is the manufacturer itself…This always means bad news, more money to spend for the part (since they are the proprietor of it and can be the only ones to provide it), costly delays and more importantly, the replacement of a non-reliable component by an exact copy of another non-reliable component. Less expensive is not better when a production line is at stake. That isn’t to say a component should be expensive…Just well constructed, reliable and should offer the user the possibility to source the component where they see fit.

Non-proprietary components    The components used by the labeler manufacturer should be Non-proprietary, meaning they will be available, without modification in a worldwide manner through any source of mechanical, electrical or electronic outlet you usually use. This is often referred to as catalogue engineering. 

Certification    Another way to make sure that all the components used come from a reliable source is to DEMAND a certification of the entire system that will meet the standards of the industry. Your machine SHOULD be UL, ULC, CSA certified by the Underwriter’s Laboratory, Canadian Standards Association or any certified qualifiers like CRIQ or ETL, in any case the system should clearly bear a distinctive certification label indication the compliance to the specific UL/CSA norms.

Sanitary, GMP design

Any labeller or labeling system should be able to fit in an environment that is susceptible to contamination. Therefore, it should have a sanitary design where the frame work is made of stainless steel with as less welds as possible. Some welds can trap impurities and find a way to seep out after a while, By using systems that use very little welding on their frames, the ROHS (zero welding contamination from lead)  norms to also be observed.

If you liked this article, let me know on twitter… @nita_labeling

Innovative Company of the year AWARD

In October 2010, Nita celebrated its 20^th anniversary and the bells rang yet again yesterday evening (Tuesday November 25th 2010) In the Heart of downtown Montreal as NITA Labeling equipment was awarded the very prestigious award for the Innovative Company of YEAR 2010 at the ADRIQ Gala!

 NITA finds itself, with great pride, amongst the great Quebec trendsetters of the industry who paved the way in their own categories in the past as well. Pionners such as Pfizer, Merck Frosst, Mechtronix Systems, Granutech, Norampac and many others have all been awarded this merit.

“On behalf of all of us at NITA, I  would like to thank the entire team our suppliers, distributors, agents friends and especially our customers and end users who have played a tremendous role in our success and without whom we would not be in such an enviable position tonight!” exclaimed NITA’s Président & CEO, Normand Lord.

Innovative Company Award  The innovative Company Award is remitted to the company showing the most innovative culture, mindset, leadership style and a vision for unifying ideas, methodologies and obtaining a great reception for creativity supported by its employees while praised by its customers and peers.

 THE GALA -ADRIQ     The Gala is recognised as the most prestigious industrial innovation event of its kind across the province of Quebec. It is the focal point for presenting the greatest achievers and bringing their hard work into light. Each year, more than 450 panel judges from all aspects of the technological sectors come together to praise those who have made the biggest impact.

 ADRIQ,  (Industrial Research Association of Quebec) Since 1991, is a proud contributor in the recognition of such companies and their masterful builders who play a lead role at the forefront of technological innovation.

 NITA Labeling Equipment   Established in Terrebonne, Quebec since1990, NITA Labeling Equipment is specialised in engineering and building of automatic pressure sensitive labeling machines. NITA then began an ambitious innovative project targeting developmental and operational diversification on an international market dedicated to the food and beverage as well as household chemical and health & beauty industries.

 Keeping its ear to the ground to better understand its customers, its markets and its employees, Nita began the complete overhauling of its product portfolio. This process was carried through more than 36 months of engineering, and R&D prior to launching a new generation of sustainable labeling machines in New York City’s EAST PACK 2008 show. This complete audacious turnaround has shown significant market share growth and appreciation for the entire industry

ADRIQ – Association de la recherche industrielle du Québec
1155, University street, # 514
Montreal (Quebec) H3B 3A7)
Phone: 514 337-3001                                                                                                   Email : adriq@adriq.com

 Companies spend thousands and sometimes millions of dollars on branding certain products and want to make sure that the products on store shelves reflect their plant’s and employee’s quality and overall company reputation.

 Shelf appeal sells products, millions of advertising dollars, drive the demand BUT ultimately, what a product looks like will incite someone to grab it off the shelf regardless of the ads in magazines, TV, internet, blogs, flyers, word of mouth, trade shows or radio. Quite frankly, if you are letting through a lesser quality product by not rejecting it because it is deemed borderline or the best your labeller can do, you are hindering your business’ identity in the market place. If you are concerned about your product and company’s identity, you are rejecting some and so would it not make more sense to do the job right…the first time!

 Let’s put in perspective the chain reaction of productivity loss to make it as obvious for the student as it is for the veteran engineer of marketer. In this case, let’s take a primary packaging problem that occurs at the labeling machine.

 Let use a product X such as juice, where competition and SKUs are plenty.

 A team of analysts will conduct market research for specific product requirement (possibly to alleviate a specific problem or appeal to certain taste that will be attractive to a mass audience.

Research begins to make the proper composition and formulated into a production setting.

 The product needs to be temperature controlled, cured, boiled, cooled mixed, diluted etc…

 Product is now carried from silos or bulk containers to a dosing or filling line.

The filling line is usually an automated conveyor and an electronically controlled machine with weight ratios, tubes etc that allows the right amount of substance, in this case, it is a viscous juice solution to be deposited into each bottle that has been indexed and stopped for the process. 

 From the filling line, the bottle is then conveyed to an induction sealer where a protective seal can be places on the mouth opening of each bottle ensuring that no contamination or tampering of the juice is possible from this point.

 Of course in this process, the bottle may have gone through a metal detector or impurity detection system ensuring everyone’s consumption safety. Rejected or accepted at this point.

 The product is now conveyed to an automatic (pressure sensitive) label applying machine where a label is peeled off its backing liner automatically and applied to the bottle in various forms, front/back labeling, multiple panel applications or wrap around. 

 Lets just say the labeling machine is not well adjusted and the labels go on the product skewed either top to bottom or back and front, eventually (unless the machine is synchronised) the skew will trigger a double application. Someone will notice this and will stop the system.

 When the labeling machine is stopped, the containers are checked and NOW the operator sees that there are many bottles that are rejected. If this happens often throughout a production day…

THAT IS BAD NEWS…

As production errors such as these occur during a given day, week or month, production has to pick up the slack for defective of rejected products. That results in…

Loss of containers,

Loss of labels,

Loss of production time

Possible overtime to catch up

Electricity air, steam and every other process prior to the labeler, needs to be done again to compensate and therefore, natural energy is also lost.

 The extra 10 rolls of labels purchased to compensate for the loss (in a given time frame)

The trashing of containers, the trashing of the (juice) hence the fruits used as well…. are all net losses!

 Now the shipment of those extra fruits, supplies, bottles etc use up trucks which emit gasses…This is where sustainability is calculated and where so many companies are trying to cut down in order to do their part in reducing the world’s ecological problem.

 Fundamentally through, the costs to all this, is absorbed for a while by the manufacturer but ultimately it is transferred to the cost per unit which the consumer pays at retail stores.

 Now, if the price gets to high, the demand shortens, and so does the production. Now staff reductions are in effect, pay cuts, less workers who are consumers themselves. Less consumers means less producers and so on!

 Where the first consumer of the product sold was not necessarily you, you now have become victim of your own small production problem which seemed to be …perhaps someone else’s problem!?

 So, think about it when a new labeler is in the budget for purchase… will you chose the right one? 10 steps to ensure a labeler’s proficiency can help.

 Plant productivity loss ALSO affects the consumer… and the consumer is also YOU!

 If you liked this article, make sure you click “like”

For more information about this article, call Claudio Napoleoni 450-961-4000 ext 233

At Nita Labeling equipment, this is our philosophy….and this philosophy is gaining ground…FAST !

Operators, production managers and engineers alike rave about this technology and having been the trendsetters on this topic for many years, the technology NITA uses is not only extremely impressive and appreciated it makes the entire system SIMPLY EASY ! The fact that a servo drive (in tandem) with the servo motors are used at NITA, coupled with the voluntary use of non-proprietary electronics is truly revolutionizing the industry.

Those who do not invest in the technological changes will soon die off, and those who are just beginning to use this technology have years of development and tweaking to understand this concept ahead of them.

By this we mean, lets take something truly rudimentary…In the past if the speed of the labeling line needed to be changed, the operator would need to get into this sometimes complicated tug of war-type battle with the system in order to position the label at the precise spot onto the product. Faster speeds meant moving the sensors, sometimes repeatedly to allow for the trigger to be further so that the labeler had enough time to dispense the label at the exact moment. Think of how many, (and most of you who own labelers can relate) labels and containers needed to be wasted, not to mention production time for set ups …JUST for a throughput speed change!

Nita labelers are all encoded, and servo driven as well as digitally synchronized to the entire system which eliminates these complicated steps to moving sensors and wasting money. Simply measure the container, compare to the label position, and enter the value of the label position according to where it must be placed on the product. Press start…there you have it, Oh incidentally, do this at a very low speed (if you want) and crank it up to full speed….nothing changes…product speed (conveyor) labeling dispensing and positioning, as well as all other motorized components such as wrap stations, spacing wheels, and container orientation modules are all synchronized….AH servos and non proprietary electronics… when used properly …They are a beautiful thing AND INCREASE SUSTAINABILITY !

See the video

Here is how it can be defined.

LETS COMPARE LABELER MOTOR TECHNOLOGIES, we’ll leave out the aspect of the actual drive replacing outdated PLCs for another time. 

A labeling applicator head (or labeler) operates by taking a stationary strip of material with labels on it, (referred to as a liner or carrier) accelerating it to a certain speed, and moving it till the edge of the label is detected, and then decelerating to a stop. This acceleration and deceleration sometimes needs to be from zero to 220 feet per minute in a mere 10 milli-seconds. (In comparison, it’s approximately four times faster than a “Formula ONE” car acceleration or the ability to reach 230MPH in a second or a 1000MPH 1/4 mile).

The consistency of a label placement on a moving product is dependent upon how consistently the label accelerates with each label triggering from the labeler. If the acceleration of the label is slightly different each time then the position on the product it then, will be considerably different. It is the first strike point on the product that determines the label position.

Moreover, wipe-on labeling and placement accuracy is irrevocably dependent upon the label’s velocity matching that of the product. A very small amount of slippage between label and product can be tolerated for an inaccuracy to occur. This means that traditional slow speed applicators cannot apply labels to fast products unless certain things are done. If the acceleration of the label time is greater than the length of the label, the label placement accuracy suffers exponentially. The end result is that a short label to be applied to a fast moving product (faster than100 feet per minute) is impossible for most labeling equipment. (These general statements on the labeling head performance of are based on years of usage with multiple labeling systems in existence)

Here are some reason for these problems to exist, we will compare and attempt to clarify them…. 

Labelers’ MOTOR HISTORY

Over the years, labelers have seen many varieties of mechanisms powering a pressure sensitive label. The two older motor styles and most common varieties were:

1. CLUTCH AND CLUTCH/BRAKE
2. STEPPER MOTOR

Clutch/brake systems have maintained the industry for at least the last 30 years. Clutch/brakes are composed of plates and friction surfaces that are pressed together to provide either drive or braking. (On labeling systems, they resemble those found on an automobile and are electro-magnetically controlled). They may be electrically controlled in differing ways but they all operate on the theory of friction between rotating parts being used to create acceleration and deceleration. Mechanical friction is the source of most of the problems with clutch brake systems:

1. Friction creates heat deep inside a housing and does not dissipate well. Testing these systems extensively has manifested discoloration of the internal components which indicated that motor shaft and clutch parts reached between 500 and 570 degrees Fahrenheit; way beyond acceptance points.
2. The amount of friction generated affects acceleration: friction is also affected by temperature, as the temperature changes, the placement accuracy varies and suffers.
3. Friction creates wear on surfaces and therefore any clutch/brake system requires regular and time consuming service, not to mention an experienced mechanical hand. Only a handful of “repairmen” can comprehend how the surface finish of the parts and the air gap between the friction surfaces are critical to the performance on this type of system and so very few can grasp the true repair and maintenance methods to be used.
4. Contamination by oils is often a suspect of many failures on gearboxes and bearings because of the friction observed in these systems.

Also, the clutch/brake parts are moved and held in contact by electro-magnetic coils. There is a time lapse that exist as these coils come up to full strength and then a time for the parts to mechanically move and slip till they are lock together in order to provide either drive or braking. Typically this time is measured as the time to reach 90% of the rated torque. A typical labeler clutch or brake will take 28-30 milliseconds to reach this value. During this slipping phase, the clutch/brake is very susceptible to changes in load. These changes greatly affect the amount of label travel and thus the position on the product or the stopping position of the label in the applicator. 

Ie: The slippage phase of 30 milliseconds at 200 feet per minute. The product will travel 1 1/4″ while the label is trying to accelerate; if the label is only 1″ long it will probably never obtain 200feet per minute. It must then be stopped, so add another 30 milliseconds is added. It quickly becomes apparent that at some point the speed is either not reached, or the response of the system is so slow that only long labels can be used. Furthermore, an extreme limit on speed and cycling rate is reached because of friction VS heat dissipation rate (heat increases with the velocity squared). 

The combination of these issues and high service requirements, have led to industry to seek better alternatives. The costs and simplicity of stepper motor drives has led many labeling equipment manufacturing companies down that path. NITA labeling equipment has not wasted time following this path but instead has gone directly to using servo technology for its driving motors but also for its logic controller instead of traditional old-style PLCs (Programable Logics Controllers) or worse still, proprietary circuit boards. We’ll examine the controllers at a later time.

SERVO vs. STEPPER

Servo

A brushless servo motor is based on the concept that some type of micro processor controller can energize the windings of a motor in the same way as the carbon brushes do to a DC motor (through the copper lands of a commutator). In the DC motor, brushes pass from commutator land to land, sequentially energizing the motor windings.

In the servo, the “commutation” is done by a microprocessor which sequences the energizing of the coils which are in continuous connection with the controller. This continuous connection means servos can run at much higher RPMs than DC motors. Also, higher currents can be used because the breaking contact of a carbon brush on a commutator land arcs when the current is too high. Being an electronic motor, the commutation is done on outside coils. Commutation is the area with the most heat, so it is a much shorter path to dissipate.

To create the “intelligent commutation”, the controller needs to know exactly where the motor armature is in its rotation. For this purpose, an encoder or resolver is built into the motor to provide the feedback on armature position to several thousandths of a revolution or as small as 1/1,000,000 of a rotation.

A signal going into a servo motor looks like a 3 Phase AC motor signal except that the offset between each of the phases is controlled to control the torque and position of the motor and the frequency is changed to control speed.

SERVO

• Capable of high speed (100 – 350fpm) (system inertia 10:1)
• Motors function well when sized to equal load
• Positioning accuracy to minutes or seconds of arc
• Torque substantially constant over operating range
• Resolution and waveform allow smooth motion at all speeds
• Motion maintained over wide speed range
• Systems designed to maintain motion profiles
• Motor maintains desired motion despite changing load
• Active stopping allows very high cycling rates
• Controllers more complicated and larger
• Large number of wires required (encoder – speed matching devices mostly)
• Costs substantially higher than all electric drive units

Stepper

A stepper motor energizes coils to move the armature “step by step”. Most stepper motors are built  with 200 steps per revolution as their norm. By creating a steady train of pulses, the motor turns at a fixed speed. This makes for a very coarse motion so techniques have been developed where more than one set of coils is turned on at a time to create partial steps. The problem is that the creation of the pulses requires considerable current. This current is a strong function of frequency and thus limits stepper motors – one must trade off speed and resolution to keep the current to reasonable levels.

The coil turning off is what stops the armature at the end of the step. The remaining coils brake the armature. If the inertia of the load is too high, the armature overshoots. Similarly, if the load is too high, the motor skips on start-up and locks-up. This translates to an inconsistent start and stop action over a wide speed range. Tuning and maintaining the controller is a constant in order to achieve desired speed ranges. As a rule of thumb a stepper needs to be tuned up to three times the required torque. Tuning of steppers is frequent and demanding

Over-shooting or over-loading easily results in mis-synchronization with the actual armature position.

Furthermore, steppers don’t normally provide feedback to the controller about their positioning or whether they are turning as expected therefore compensation for loads is done blindly. (In contrast, a servo sees miniscule errors and compensates immediately. Stopping is so incredibly active, that if required, the “commutation” or response is observed so quickly that it may be equivalent shifting speeds three times in reverse in order to ensure the correct armature positioning stoppage). 

STEPPER 

Top speed less and top end achievable only at lower resolutions, loss of torque (difficulties begin at 100fpm limit near 200fpm)

• Motor must be sized three time torque required for job
• Accurate to 1.8 degrees or tens of minutes of arc
• Torque drops off with increasing speed
  • Motion is a series of high speed jumps thus tends to be vibratory, smoother with micro-stepping at low speeds but micro-stepping done at expense of torque
  • Certain combinations of load, acceleration and speed create harmonic problems, loss of synchronization and rotor lock-up
  • Designed for accurate point to point movement
  • Motor changes acceleration or locks up under changing load
  • Stopping passive (by lack of signal) limits cycling rate
  • Controllers simpler and smaller
  • Only 3 to 5 leads required
  • Costs only slightly higher than DC PM if not equal  

CLUTCH

100 fpm normal limit but 250 fpm has been reached if one is willing to rebuild clutches every few weeks

• Typically DC brushed motors are used and are actually undersized for the task because of the high rotor inertia of a constantly spinning rotor
• Accuracy a function of speed and consistency of load
• Torque a function of clutch condition
• Motion is a function of clutch response smoothed by slippage
• Motion profile a function of speed and clutch condition
• Motion profile a function of speed and clutch condition
  • Changing load during acceleration and deceleration causes considerable variation. Clutch will maintain drive up to breakaway torque but speed is a function of motor characteristics
  • Active braking but accuracy a function of speed and consistency of load
  • Control can be as simple as a power supply, a latching relay and a motor drive
  • 3 wires for clutch brake plus whatever is required by motor
  • Cost is a function of clutch enclosure design

Gala Night- ADRIQ

At the “Salle des Pas Perdus Windsor Station” in Montreal, some 450 policy makers and guests are expected. The Innovation Awards Gala ADRIQ is unquestionably recognized as the event most prestigious center of industrial innovation in Québec.  This is an opportunity to present the achievements of all finalists and honor the winners.

NITA Labeling is extremely proud to be nominated and recognized by such an admirable panel of experts, the incredible teamwork, efforts and outstanding technology we have accomplished is a great achievement for us. To be a finalists is a double blessing, exclaims President & CEO, Normand, Lord. ”We are looking forward to a great night.”

For Over 30 years, ADRIQ (Quebec’s Industrial Research Association) has been a large Province-wide influential business network supporting industrial innovation and promoting partnerships in Quebec with many categories of awards.