Product category:
Mid-range and Large PLCs
News Release from: Schneider Electric | Subject: PLCs and drives
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 21 February 2001
Control products behind London Eye
revealed
The London Eye, one of the capital's newest and most popular tourist attractions, depends programmable controllers, variable speed drives and supervision products from Schneider Electric
The London Eye, one of the capital's newest and most popular tourist attractions, depends upon sophisticated control systems to ensure that the passenger cabins attached to the big wheel are kept level and stable as the wheel rotates As the basis of these vital systems, the designers of the London Eye's automation installations have chosen programmable controllers, variable speed drives and supervision products from the brands of Schneider Electric
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 27 Feb 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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The construction of the London Eye is totally different from that of a traditional Ferris wheel as, in particular, the passenger cabins are mounted outside the big wheel, so as to give uninterrupted views over London.
Each of the 32 cabins is mounted on two rings which are attached to the rim of the wheel.
A motor controlled by a PLC system rotates the cabin within the rings to ensure that the cabin remains horizontal at all times.
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The London Eye's complete automation installation includes two Modicon Premium PLCs and two Monitor Pro supervisory systems mounted at ground level.
Most of the control equipment, however, is mounted in the cabins themselves, each cabin being equipped with two Premium PLCs and two Altivar 58 variable speed drives.
Data is exchanged between the ground-based and cabin-mounted equipment via a radio link, using the Modbus protocol.
"It may, at first, seem that this control system uses a large number of components," said Marc Bottolier, Commercial Manager of Semer, a subsidiary of the POMA group, the company responsible for the design and installation of the London Eye's automation systems.
"This is, however, a result of our decision to implement a system architecture with built-in redundancy.
Only in this way could we guarantee the highest levels of safety and reliability, which are essential when dealing with the transport of people." In addition to controlling and stabilising the positions of the passenger cabins, products from the brands of Schneider Electric perform a wide range of other functions, all of which are designed to optimise passenger comfort and safety.
The automation system, for example, controls cabin heating, air-conditioning and lighting, which are automatically adjusted as the wheel rotates, and it also provides facilities for language selection on the multi-lingual commentary system.
Since the opening of the London Eye, it has proved to be immensely successful, with demand for tickets regularly outstripping availability.
Products from the brands of Schneider Electric have played no small part in ensuring this success, proving - if proof were required - that they are an excellent choice for even the most unusual and innovative applications.
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