Motion system designed for easy installation
A key component in Rockwell's new Kinetix total motion control solution
package - the Kinetix 6000 multi-axis servo drive - is launched this
month in the UK. Designed to complement Rockwell's existing Logix series
industrial controllers, Kinetix is a five stage system comprising the
Logix control element, the new 6000 series drive, motors and linear
actuators all linked together via a Sercos fibre optic networking system.
The complete package will be available to UK customers by the end of the
year, when ranges of compatible motors and linear actuator elements are
introduced.
An important design consideration in the development of the Kinetix 6000
drive was ease of installation. For example, an eight-axis system
generally requires 32 holes to be marked and drilled for the mounting of
separate units. Only five mounting holes are required for an equivalent
system comprising Kinetix drives. The units simply clip to the rack,
taking their power, control and communication from an integral rail.
Kinetix Beta site user and packaging machine builder, Bradman Lake has
already integrated the system into a food product packaging line.
Comparing the new system with more conventional motion solutions, Bradman
estimates it has saved about one third of the cost of cabling and has
involved considerably less mechanical construction work. Commissioning,
too, has been simplified, down from nine programming points with the
conventional system to just one, thanks to Sercos.
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