Calling for Parts - Furniture Manufacturer
A furniture manufacturer has four manufacturing lines: red, green, blue, and yellow. When a line is in need of parts, one of the operators flips a switch that turns on that line’s color on a light tower located centrally in the warehouse. One of the two forklift operators notices the signal light tower and retrieves parts for that line. download PDF
Monitoring a Pellet Conveyor
A plastic blown-film extrusion company manufactures wrapping products for the meats and cheeses that you find in the supermarket. Over a ½ mile of various conveyor systems are used to carry and mix the pellet medium for the blown film extrusion process.
For the process to run smoothly, it is important that the conveyors run smoothly. The multiple conveyor systems must remain free of blockages and mechanical failures must be detected quickly to reduce costs from wasted material, ruined batches, and costly down time. download PDF
Zero Defect Standard Achieved Using Wireless Sensor Solution on Industrial Winder
A successful manufacturer of specialty industrial yarns makes fiberglass and glass thread products for applications in the automotive, aerospace, military and composite materials industries. To help maintain their high standards and minimize costly product returns, they established a goal of zero product defects. To meet this goal, the company needed an automated thread inspection system. download PDF
Banner Wireless Reduces Downtime, Saves $100,000 per Month in Lost Productivity
A producer of stainless steel and special alloys supplies billets, blooms and ingots to the metal casting industry. During production, articulating robots are used to handle magnesium billets. Proximity switches located on the end effectors of the tobots communicate status information from the grippers to a control panel. download PDF
Detecting Conveyor Jams using a Node and TL50 Tower Light
Banner’s solution combines a Sure Cross Wireless I/O Network and the Banner TL50 Tower Light indicator to create a Wireless EZ-LIGHT. This Node provides a simple plug-n-play solution for machine status applications. download PDF
Using Wireless Q45 Sensors to Call for Parts
Production operators needed a way to easily call the forklift drivers to deliver additional parts or to remove completed assemblies from the work stations. Because the production area is frequently reconfigured when production requirements change, a wired system would require time-consuming rewiring with every reconfiguration. download PDF
Increasing Production Efficiency with the Wireless Q45 Sensors
Using Wireless Q45 Sensors and EZ-LIGHTs, the customer created a notification system. Each production area has one switch box and one tower light connected to the input on a Wireless Q45 Sensor with dry contact inputs. When a manager or technician is needed on the production line, an employee flips a switch. download PDF
During normal operation, operators load a welding machine with the frame components to be welded. The loaded parts enter a robot welding cell and a completed frame exits. The operators unload the completed frame and load more components in preparation for the next welding cycle.
Production goals were not being met. Operators blamed machine downtime for the failure to meet production goals and maintenance personnel blamed operators for working too slowly. To determine where the problem was, this facility needed to accurately measure and report machine run time back to a control location. download PDF
A cardboard goods printer struggled with an inability to track machine operators’ efficiency and performance as measured against standard production rates. Furthermore, decreases in efficiency and the availability of unused machinery were not accounted for until the end of the month when the operator data was manually entered into a spreadsheet. download PDF
An automation equipment manufacturer uses a DX70 wireless network and a series of tower lights to let managers, technicians, and clerks know when they are needed on the production line. download PDF
An automation equipment manufacturer uses a DX80 wireless network and QT50U Ultrasonic sensors mounted above the loading dock to detect when a delivery truck has arrived at the facility. When the QT50U detects a truck in the loading dock, the wireless network sends a signal that lights up several K50 EZ-LIGHTs® mounted at strategic locations to notify personnel. download PDF
Four lanes of production operators needed a way to easily call the forklift drivers to deliver additional parts or to remove completed assemblies from the work stations.
To improve communication between operators and forklift drivers, unique latching output logic was developed for the K50 EZ-LIGHTs.
Combining Banner’s wireless network products and K50 indicator lights resulted in a complete parts delivery solution. This solution did not require any new cable installation and is easy to rearrange if the plant layout changes. download PDF
An automated guided cart (AGC) delivers needed parts to assembly stations. Using wireless technology to guide the carts eliminates long wiring runs and improves efficiency and safety. download PDF
Throughout an assembly plant, conveyor systems carry subassemblies to the assembly line. For process and control monitoring, sensors need to detect if a carrier is full or empty. Using a wireless sensor network to detect the presense of product makes data gathering and network maintenance easier and loss costly. download PDF
In a number of automotive manufacturing processes, rotary tables are used to index parts into various automatic and manual work stations. In many cases, it is necessary to use sensors to verify that parts are present, properly placed, or correctly processed before the rotary table indexes. download PDF
Applying lean manufacturing principles in existing assembly facilities is increasingly common, with manufacturers looking to speed up production times by eliminating mistakes made when the wrong parts are selected. Using a wireless sensor network and lighted indicators makes picking the correct part faster and improves manufacturing efficiency. download PDF
An automated guided vehicle (AGV) delivers assembly line parts to a workstation when the parts are needed. Remote, self-contained push buttons attached to Sure Cross Wireless Nodes can be placed at assembly line workstations to signal a Wireless Gateway-equipped automated guide vehicle (AGV) for replenishment of assembly parts. download PDF
Sure Cross FlexPower® Nodes and low-power sensors combine to create a portable monitoring system that instantly integrates with existing Automatic Storage and Retrieval System (AS/RS) cranes. Because these require no power cabling, the Nodes and senors are easy to install and maintain. download PDF
Liquid level measurements must be gathered in an industry-certified clean room and retro-fit construction and cabling requires re-certification, resulting in significant down time. Sure Cross Nodes with FlexPower and Banner U-GAGE QT50U analog sensors quickly and easily facilitate these monitoring requirements without new construction and wiring. download PDF
Retrofit: Homerun Cable
Data transfer from a moving robotic arm to a control panel has traditionally been a difficult task. Constant maintenance and costly shut-downs caused by broken cables are currently being eliminated and replaced with more effective communication solutions. download PDF