trends in automation

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Wernli AG
Egggasse 4
4852 Rothrist
Switzerland
Area of business:
Manufacturer of innovative
bandages and technical dressings
Clever solution: thanks to the fluidic
muscle there is no longer a need for the
weights and the yarn tension can be set
precisely using pressure regulators.
application compared with a conventional
pneumatic cylinder. Since there is no need
for a piston rod, friction and therefore the
stick-slip effect – the jerking motion that
can occur while two solid objects are
rubbing against each other – are not a
problem. This means that, together with
the precise closed-loop control provided
by the fluidic muscle DMSP, the yarns are
now optimally tensioned. This guarantees
the high quality of the finished bandages.
Textile expert Mr Leutert can also see
further optimisation potential for this
solution: the fully automatic closed-loop
control using the proportional valve VPPM
and corresponding sensors could replace
the manual adjustment of the muscle
using a pressure regulator, thus
completely automating the tensioning
process.
Safety in a small space
The force of the fluidic muscle is also
many times greater than that of a
traditional pneumatic cylinder of
comparable size. As a hermetically sealed
tube, the muscle is also insensitive to
particles and dirt, which is important in
the dusty environment of a textile factory.
Without the weights used previously, the
quality of the products is improved and the
risk of accidents is reduced. Employees
no longer have to worry about bumping
into the weights as they walk past them
or injuring themselves as they attach or
remove them. A further advantage is that
the fluidic muscle needs much less
installation space compared with the
weights.
Issue 32 trends in automation
Synergies 30 – 31