DC drive communicates in many languages
A
Sprint Electric product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team
Feb 20, 2003
Sprint Electric has further enhanced its state of the art PLX digital DC drive with the addition of an Ethernet, CANopen, DeviceNet and Profibus DP communications capability.
Sprint Electric has further enhanced its state of the art PLX digital DC drive with the addition of an Ethernet, CANopen, DeviceNet and Profibus DP communications capability.
With its wide range of programmable functions, the PLX is often used as a systems drive rather than a stand-alone unit, and the ability to communicate with other devices over a plant level network is a significant advantage.
Communications cards for the most widely used open industrial protocols have been developed first and Sprint is looking at adding further options including Ethernet/IP in the future.
The optional cards can be specified at the time of purchase and provide easy connectivity to the network via standard plug-in connectors.
The PLX comes with a wide range of useful peripheral software blocks built-in at no additional cost.
Functions include high performance PID controllers, reel diameter calculator, taper tension calculator, multifunction signal processors, batch counter, spindle orientation and comparators.
The PLX provides a wide range of I/O options, with most of its terminals being universal inputs or outputs, and in all 17 digital inputs, seven digital outputs, eight analogue inputs and four analogue outputs are available.
While not intended to replace a PLC, these attributes enable the drive to perform a range of machinery control functions and now it is also able to provide diagnostic information and exchange control data with other devices and sensors via a factory floor network.
The ability to communicate via Ethernet is also a great benefit to commissioning and maintenance engineers, who can now use the web to interrogate and reconfigure the drive remotely.
Sprint, together with its North American distributor Bardac Drives, has developed Drive.web, a unique software package providing several users with access to multiple PLX drives via the Internet.
Drive.web runs on desktop or laptop PCs, enabling engineers working off site to view and adjust the drive's settings, see data on the operating status of the drive such as current and speed in real time, and diagnose and correct faults.
The Sprint PL/X range is designed to be the most compact, powerful, flexible and easy to program digital DC drive on the market.
The four-quadrant PLX version covers the range 5 to 225kW, and the two-quadrant PL version is available in ratings between 5 and 265kW.
The addition of a communications option makes these drives even more powerful and versatile for today's integrated manufacturing environments.
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