Machine control for repetitive machinery operations in industrial environments can be extremely boring for human operators but make ideal tasks for computer control. The following is an example of a custom machine control system developed by Antronics.

A company that produces wood tape products for a variety of applications had one customer that needed strips cut to specific lengths without any seams. The first phase of manufacturing creates large rolls of wide strips with seams throughout the roll. Previously they passed these wide rolls through a spliter that gave them the width they needed. Then they hand cut the strips to the required length and eliminated seams. Their problem was this operation was too labor intensive and they could not keep up with their orders.

Collaborating with a mechanical engineer we designed and built a machine that automated the process completely. The machine included an LCD display and keypad interface that permits an operator to enter the desired length and the number of pieces required for each order. A single axis of motion control advances the material through the machine while measuring the length. At the specified length the advancement of the material is paused long enough to make a cut.

A sensor checks for changes in the amount of reflected light that indicate a seam. Once a seam has been advanced past the cutting mechanism another cut is made. After a seam has been removed the measuring counter is reset to zero to begin measuring for the next piece.

This machine was originally commissioned as a prototype machine to prove the design, but it worked so well it was put to work in production.

Additional Examples of Machine Control

A Testing Machine for measuring the tackiness or adhesiveness of composites used in the aerospace industry.

Dual Axis of Motion Control for automatically duplicating decorations on cakes.

A Mobile Robotic Vehicle for the aerospace industry.