AT NEXT MONTH’S SPS SHOW in Germany, Trio Motion Technology will unveil a machine controller designed to control up to 128 servodrive and robot axes via high-speed EtherCat. The Flex-7 flexible controller coordinates high-axis counts precisely, while optimising integration with wider automation systems. It aimed at large manufacturing, packaging and material-handling applications. The four-core controller increases machine automation capabilities by expanding network connectivity and data processing power. It has dedicated cores for high-performance communications and motion. The controller uses high-speed Ethernet to give fast, reliable data exchange, optimising communications with wider controllers and networks. It does this via two 1Gbps Ethernet ports that are compatible with protocols such as Ethernet/IP and Modbus TCP. It can control a variety of EtherCat devices, including servodrives and I/O. The DIN-rail-mounting Flex-7 achieves EtherCat update rates as fast as 125μs for up to eight axes. The full 128 axes can be coordinated with update rates as low as 4ms. The controller achieves jitter values of less than 5μs, ensuring consistent synchronisation for large machines, Machine control functions can be added using Trio’s click-in Flexslice I/O modules that communicate via EtherCat. The I/O slices allow machine-builders to add functions, while saving space and costs. The motion synchronisation capability is powered by Trio’s MotioniX motion engine, which is based on a command set for servo and robot axes, including multi-axis coordination in multiple dimensions, as well as numerous kinematic models for robotics. Trio’s Motion Perfect software allows fast set-up of servodrives and robots, and is also the centre of machine control integration, providing easy management of peripheral devices and network connections. “Trio’s machine control approach provides machine-builders with a motion-first automation solution,” says the company’s president, Tom Alexander. “The Flex-7 extends this capability to builders of high-axiscount machines, giving them flexibility over machine control functions, together with fast, powerful data processing and comms.” www.triomotion.com TECHNOLOGY n High-speed controller handles up to 128 servo and robot axes Trio’s Flex-7 motion controller (left) integrates with the company’s click-in Flexslice I/O modules, allowing machine-builders to add the functions they need.
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