________________________________ Continuous Loss-in-Weight Blenders with Allen-Bradley SLC 5/04 Programmable Controller and PanelView 600 Touch Screen Interface Part Number: 882.092698.
Shipping Information Unpacking and Inspection You should inspect your equipment for possible shipping damage. Thoroughly check the equipment for any damage that might have occurred in transit, such as broken or loose wiring and components, loose hardware and mounting screws, etc. In the Event of Shipping Damage According to the contract terms and conditions of the Carrier, the responsibility of the Shipper ends at the time and place of shipment.
Credit Returns Prior to the return of any material, authorization must be given by the manufacturer. A RMA number will be assigned for the equipment to be returned. Reason for requesting the return must be given. ALL returned material purchased from the manufacturer returned is subject to 15% ($75.00 minimum) restocking charge. ALL returns are to be shipped prepaid. The invoice number and date or purchase order number and date must be supplied.
Table of Contents CHAPTER 1: SAFETY ................................................................. 6 1-1 1-2 1-3 How to use this manual ............................................................................................... 6 Safety symbols used in this manual ......................................................................6 Warnings and precautions........................................................................................... 8 Responsibility ..................................
MAINTENANCE.......................................................................... 52 Preventative maintenance schedule .................................................................................... 52 APPENDIX.................................................................................. 54 6-1 Warranty and spare parts ............................................................................................. 54 Annex B information.............................................................
Chapter 1: Safety 1-1 How to Use This Manual Use this manual as a guide and reference for installing, operating, and maintaining your Continuous Loss-in-weight Blender. The purpose is to assist you in applying efficient, proven techniques that enhance equipment productivity. This manual covers only light corrective maintenance. No other maintenance should be undertaken without first contacting a service engineer.
Continuous Loss-in-Weight Blender Safety Tags Tag Description Tag Description Pinch Point - Slide Gate Read Operation & Installation Manual Shear Point - Rotating Mixer or Agitator Earth Ground High Voltage Inside Enclosure PE Shear Hazard Rotating Auger Continuous Loss-in-Weight Blenders Protected Earth Ground Lifting Point Chapter 1: Safety 7
1-2 Warnings and Precautions Our equipment is designed to provide safe and reliable operation when installed and operated within design specifications, following pertinent local and national codes. This may include, but is not limited to OSHA, NEC, NFPA, CSA, UL, CE, SPI, and any other local, national and international regulations.
1-3 Responsibility These machines are constructed for maximum operator safety when used under standard operating conditions and when recommended instructions are followed in the maintenance and operation of the machine. All personnel engaged in the use of the machine should become familiar with its operation as described in this manual. Proper operation of the machine promotes safety for the operator and all workers in its vicinity.
Operator Responsibility The operator’s responsibility does not end with efficient production. The operator usually has the most daily contact with the equipment and intimately knows its capabilities and limitations. Plant and personnel safety is sometimes forgotten in the desire to meet incentive rates, or through a casual attitude toward machinery formed over a period of months or years. Your employer probably has established a set of safety rules in your workplace.
• Clean the blender and surrounding area DAILY, and inspect the machine for loose, missing or broken parts. • Shut off power to the blender when it is not in use. Turn the switch to the OFF position, or unplug it from the power source. Maintenance Responsibility Proper maintenance is essential to safety. If you are a maintenance worker, you must make safety a priority to effectively repair and maintain equipment.
Chapter 2: Functional Description 2-1 Models Covered in This Manual This manual provides operation, installation, and maintenance instructions for continuous loss-in-weight blenders of various blending rates and specifications. See Figure 1 below for a list of available models and specifications. Figure 1: Models Covered by this Manual (√ - Denotes Availability) Model 015 Blending Capability 2 components 3 components 4 components 5 components 6 components Maximum blending rate in lbs./hr (kgs.
2-3 Typical Features & Components Mechanical Features • Blender automatically adjusts individual feeders to match learned extruder rate at the ratio required. • Upper material supply hoppers with conical re-fill valves and dust boots. • Individual ingredient weigh hoppers with clear side walls. • Cast aluminum feeder housings with drains. • Lower mass flow weigh hopper assembly with clear side wall. • Cascading mixing section.
Blender System Component Description This section describes the various components of the continuous blending system.
hoppers are not controlled nor read by the blender. Their existence is solely for the use of a low level alarm to be wired into a separate controller. These would not be present on a standard blender. The hoppers may be equipped with a polycarbonate sight glass. This is mounted in the upper cone section of the hopper. This is useful for a quick reference of the material level in each hopper. The supply/re-fill hoppers should be vented to the atmosphere through the louver located on the lid of each hopper.
Ingredient Metering/Transport Auger Assemblies Each metering auger assembly consists of a: • Cast aluminum motor mount • Cast aluminum feeder body • Aluminum feeder tube • Gearbox • Inverter-duty AC drive motor • Machined metering auger The metering auger assembly accurately meters the material from the ingredient weigh hopper at the calculated rate.
Lower Mass Flow Weigh Hopper Assembly The lower mass flow weigh hopper, otherwise known as the weighed common hopper, is used to determine the actual processing rate of the processing machine so that the blender can be slaved in to run at the learned rate. The hopper is constructed of spun aluminum and is of the mass flow type (See the glossary in the Appendix).
PLC Control Panel The PLC control panel may be mounted on the side of the blender frame, or remote mounted near the blender. It uses an Allen-Bradley SLC 5/04 programmable controller with standard 24 vdc input output cards. This design provides excellent blender performance along with easily replaceable off-the-shelf parts in case of any electronic component failure. Touch Screen Interface The PanelView 600 color touch screen display can be mounted up to 50 feet (15 m) from the PLC control panel.
2-4 Options The following is a list of options, which your blender may have been equipped with: • Mezzanine stand with slide gate and 4” tube stub. • Low-level proximity switches. Detects material supply shortages for each supply hopper before blender runs out (Requires a separate, remote mount alarm panel with its own lights, horn and silence button). • Supply hopper lids for non-ACS supplied vacuum receivers & loaders. • Agitated, straight wall regrind supply & weigh hoppers for regrind material.
2-5 Safety Devices and Interlocks This section includes information on safety devices and procedures that are inherent to the continuous loss-in-weight blender. This manual is not intended to supersede or alter safety standards established by the user of this equipment. Instead, the material contained in this section is recommended to supplement these procedures in order to provide a safer working environment.
Safety Device Lock-Outs Some safety devices disconnect electrical energy from a circuit. The safety devices that are used on the continuous loss-in-weight blenders are primarily concerned with electrical power disconnection and the disabling of moving parts that may need to be accessed during the normal operation of the machine. Some of the safety devices utilize a manual activator. This is the method of initiating the safety lock out. This may be in the form of a plug, disconnect plug, lever or a handle.
Chapter 3: Installation 3-1 Uncrating the Equipment Continuous loss-in-weight blenders are shipped bolted on a skid, enclosed in plastic wrap, and contained in a wood crate. 1. Remove the crate from around blender. 2. Secure strap of proper lifting capacity to the lifting lugs installed in the holes provided. Caution! Use approved safety straps or chains to lift the blender from the eyebolts on the top plate (See figure 6 below for eyebolt positioning).
Site Requirements This section describes site requirements in detail. These requirements are broken down into mechanical mounting, electrical connections and pneumatic connections. Since the continuous loss-in-weight blender is available in several different mounting arrangements, it is necessary for the reader to become familiar with the different arrangements. Mounting Configuration The continuous loss-in-weight blender is available in (3) three basic mounting arrangements.
Note: Never weld on the blender’s frame, machine or mezzanine without first removing the control panel and verifying that the blender’s power is disconnected. Mezzanine Mount In a mezzanine mount application, review the following items before installation begins. First, verify the blender mounting locations match the mezzanine supports. Verify that the mezzanine is capable of supporting the blender with a full load of material and loading equipment installed.
Note: Ensure that the feed tube angle is steep enough (60 degrees is recommended). Note: Some mezzanine mount applications will require the blending system’s lower mass flow hopper be mounted on the extruder throat. The metering section will be mounted on a small stand on the mezzanine directly above the extruder with a 4” tube stub for gravity metered flow. Note: This arrangement will be similar to the floor mounted configuration, discussed in the following section, less the blower assembly.
Figure 8: Typical Layout for a floor mounted blender 3-3 Electrical Installation The continuous loss-in-weight blending system is designed to operate on 115 volt, single phase, 50 or 60 hertz AC power. The power requirements will vary with the blender’s size and throughput rating. For exact current requirements, check the blender serial number tag, located on the blender motor control panel. As an added option, the manufacturer may provide a voltage transformer for special supply voltage.
3-4 Pneumatic Installation The blending system utilizes air pneumatics to perform the re-fill function on the ingredient weigh hoppers. The manufacturer provides all pneumatic plumbing to a single ¼” standard pipe thread fitting. The blender requires a maximum of 60 PSI of compressed air. It is the customer’s responsibility to ensure that the air is CLEAN, DRY & LUBRICATED. Any component failures due to airborne contaminants will not be subject to warranty consideration.
3-5 Overall Installation (Summary) This installation procedure should be used as a general guideline for the proper installation steps required to install the continuous loss-in-weight blending system. 1. Visually inspect the extruder or blender mounting location for obstructions. 2. Remove the material supply hopper on the extruder flange. 3. Carefully lift blender into place above the mounting flange on the extruder and fasten the blender to the flange using the extruder flange bolts.
3-6 Set-up This section will discuss the mechanical setup and control system setup of the continuous loss-in-weight blending system. After reading this section, you should be familiar with the mechanical setup and the electronic control setup of the blending system. Load Cell Adjustment The mechanical setup of the continuous loss-in-weight blending system involves the adjustment of the weigh hopper load cells (Please refer to the figure below).
Final Connections 1. Connect the blender to the appropriate power source. 2. Connect the compressed air piping, ensuring that a 5-micron air filter is installed, along with the proper water trap, and lubrication unit, if required. Verify that 60 psi (4.14 bar) of clean, dry compressed air is supplied to the blender.
Controller Setup This section describes the proper setup of the continuous loss-in-weight blending system control parameters. These parameters are operator changeable; however, these items should only require setup during the initial installation. Only authorized personnel should change them. For security reasons, the menu that is used to access these parameters is password protected. Many of the variables and setup parameters have been preset at the factory and do not need to be changed.
will suffice. The weight will be in pounds, unless the blender is provided for metric display operation (kilograms). Given the two weight points on the load cell scale, the controller will be able to determine any other weight on the load cell span. This is limited to the maximum capacity of the load cell. The standard load cell used on these blenders have a span accuracy of 1/10th %. The maximum capacity of each load cell is clearly marked on the fixed top of the load cell.
Touch the “ACS Group” logo in the upper left hand corner. You will be prompted to enter a password - it is “5413”. You will see the “Password Accepted” screen, now press “OK”. Touch the “Calibration” button.
Touch “Scale” button Find your calibration weight that shipped with the blender and locate the Weight information stamped on the weight proceed as follows. 1. Enter weight value stamped on the weight in Cal Wt Box. 2. Make sure weigh hopper is empty then touch Set Zero. 3. Hang Calibration weight on weigh hopper and touch Set Cal Wt. 4. Repeat for all Hoppers including Mass Flow. 5.
Touch the “ACS Group” Logo. Then enter password “5413”. Touch the “OK” button. Touch the “Calibration” button.
Touch “Feeder” button Feeder Calibration is carried out as follows: 1. Select the feeder you want to calibrate and enter the value in Feeder# by touching the adjacent box. 2. Determine the calibration weight and enter it in the box for Cal Wt. (This should be about 10% of the hopper size.) 3. Enter the Calibration speed by touching the box adjacent to Cal Spd. (This should be 60) 4. Touch the Press Here to Begin Box.
Figure 12: Hopper Sizes Hopper Diameter (inches) 9 12 14 20 24 Approximate Hopper Capacity (@35 lbs. / cu. ft.) 7 14 18 40 60 Above lists standard sizes and can vary depending on the blender requirements and rates to be blended. Larger hopper sizes are available on custom order. Setting hopper size Touch the “ACS Group” logo and enter password “5413”. Touch the "OK” button.
Touch “Hopper Setup” Touch the box next to the hopper number that you want to change and enter weight value. Setting Passwords There are three levels of password security for the control system.
To change a password proceed as follows: Touch the “ACS Group” logo. Enter password and touch “OK”.
-Enter original password. -Touch box next to select operator until you see the level you want to set. (operator, service) -Touch New Password and enter your new password -Touch Verify Password and verify you new password Alarm Setup There are several alarms in the blender control they are as follows: No Flow - No weight loss is being detected on the feeder in question. This would indicate a faulty load cell, a material bridge in the re-fill hopper or something obstructing load cell movement.
First you must get to the Alarm Setup Page. To do this; Touch the “ACS Group” logo. Enter the password and touch “OK” Touch “Alarm Setup”.
All alarm parameters are selectable. If you do not want to use an alarm for a feeder, ensure the corresponding box has an “N” in it. To be enabled, the box must have a “Y” in it. You can also decide to let the Blender continue to Run or Stop if an alarm is active. To do this, select “Stop” or “Run” in the boxes on the right. “Pop-ups enabled” means the alarms will be shown on the screen. Select “Pop-ups disabled” if you don’t want to see the alarms on the screen.
Setting Blender for English or Metric Touch the “ACS Group” logo. Enter the password and touch “OK”. Touch “Units”.
Touch the box that says “English Units” to toggle between English and Metric ****Note, you must re-calibrate the blender and reset the inventory values if you change this value.*** How to use FIFO Diagnostics First you must get to the FIFO screen. Touch the “ACS Group” logo.
Enter the Password and touch “OK” Touch “FIFO Diagnostics” Select “Mass Flow FIFO Data” or “Feeder FIFO Data” Continuous Loss-in-Weight Blenders Chapter 3: Installation 45
The Following screens will appear. This data is provided for trouble shooting blender stability problems. If you are not getting a steady system indication or if you are getting an unstable system alarm you can check here for the problem. This is a first in first in first out table. It takes an average and gives you a percent differential. If the steady flag is a “1”, the hopper is steady. If it is a “0”, it is not steady.
Chapter 4: Operation 4-1 Start-up The objective of this chapter is to familiarize the reader with the blender’s recipe menu, run mode operation and displays. Upon completion of this chapter, the reader will be familiar with the recipe and run mode displays that are available on the continuous blending system.
The blender will blend at a maximum rate when the lower mass flow weigh hopper has a very low weight of material. As the weight of material increases in the mass flow weigh hopper, the controller will adjust the blender feeders output to match the calculated processing machine rate. The blender will adjust in so that it is running a very closely matched rate to the extruder and readjust the ingredient hopper outputs accordingly.
4-2 Controller Description & Operation Display Description The controller on the continuous loss-in-weight blender, utilizes a LCD touch screen display. Figure 14: Typical Controller Display A typical menu entry is shown in the figure above. Please refer to the blender menu structure shown in Figure 13 on the next page. This figure shows a standard menu structure for the blending system.
Figure 15: Blender Menu Structure (Standard Unit) Continuous Loss-in-weight Blender Control System Menu Structure “Inventory” page ¾ Clear Inventory ¾ “Next” returns to “Recipe” “Recipe” Page (Start) ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ Extruder RPM is displayed Extruder throughput is displayed Blender throughput is displayed Blender percentages are displayed Hopper weights are displayed Steady flags are displayed Access “Recipes” Access “Recipe Book” Access “Clean out” Access “Inventory” Page Access “Setup” Page “Nex
Setting a Recipe - To set a recipe, touch the hopper you want to change, a keypad will pop up, enter the desired percentage for the hopper. Clean Out -Touching the “Clean Out” button will take you to the page to manually run the motors.
Chapter 5: 5-1 Maintenance Preventative Maintenance Schedule The mechanical design of the blender is simple and little maintenance is required. The only moving parts are the re-fill valves, optional regrind agitators, metering augers, and optional discharge slide gates. The checklist below contains a list of items which should be inspected and/or replaced to keep your blender operating at peak efficiency. Perform each inspection at the regular intervals listed below.
Note: Other service problems or questions can be answered by contacting the Service Department.
Chapter 6: 6-1 Appendix Spare Parts Typical Blender Parts List # 2 3 4 5 DESCRIPTION Lid (0.2 to 1.6 cu. ft. vacuum receivers) Lid (3.0 and 6.0 cu. ft. vacuum receivers) 1/8” NPT fitting 1/4” NPT fitting Bulkhead Brass elbow 6 24V DC Solenoid 7 8 Dump cone Air cylinder 1 015 08223-1 N/A 060 08278A N/A 35085K and 35086K 35154 and 35155 35146 35118 100 08412-1 A0770325 33128 15370 33126 15237 33073 33011G Typical Weigh Hopper Assembly Parts List Load cells 7 kgs. 10 kgs. 15 kgs. 30 kgs.
Annex B Information The following design information is provided for your reference: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. No modifications are allowed to this equipment that could alter the CE compliance Ambient temperature: 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) – Maximum Humidity range: 50% relative humidity Altitude: Sea level Environment: Clean, dust-free and non-explosive Radiation: None Vibration: Minimal, i.e.
6-2 Addendum (Service Supervisor Information) Note: Personnel not extremely familiar with this blender controller should not use this section of the manual, or program can be compromised! Note: Hidden, programmable features and hidden menu pages should not be made available to floor operators. These pages also include the Service Supervisor Information addendum located in this section.
Once you access the Engineering Menu you will see the following. This is where you make adjustments to fine tune the blender’s performance. You will need to assess the FIFO page previously mentioned in the manually to decide what changes need to be made. The following pages will show you the setup parameters and how to adjust them.
Feed Factor Filter This filter allows you to set the number of snapshots that the FIFO page looks at to find the average deviation. Making this number bigger will cause the feeder to make changes slowly, and decreasing the number will make changes faster. You may want to make this number smaller on a feeder with a low feed rate. Steady Feed Factor This is the parameter that sets the percent deviation allowed for the feeder to give a stable flag. The lower the percentage the more accurate the feed.
Advance PID Options (mass flow setup) Sample Time once in Steady Window for FIFO This is how often the control takes snap shots of the mass flow hopper and enters the number in the FIFO table. For quicker FIFO updates you would decrease this number. For a more stable process you would increase this number. Steady System Limit This is the allowable percent deviation around the median. The median will be half way between the re-fill set point and the hopper size set point.
PID Integral Constant Works the same as the Gain. Feeder Speed Limits This allows you to set the minimum and maximum speed for the motor drives as a percentage. The drives are not supposed to be run at less than 8 hertz and should not be run above 115 hertz. Extruder RPM Options This gives you the option of having no extruder speed input, writing the extruder speed to the blender through the Ethernet, or using a proximity sensor on the end of the extruder screw.
Allowed Extruder RPM Change for Steady Flag This is how much the extruder RPM can vary and still be considered steady. With no extruder measurement the control always assumes a steady RPM. Update Time for Prox Method in seconds This is how often the extruder speed updates from the prox. Extrusion Control Options Feeder Setup This screen allows you to enter the maximum auger speed in Hertz.
Advanced Alarm Options This alarm is for no material flow through a auger, this could be caused by a blockage stopped motor etc. No Flow Timer This is the amount of time used to measure the bit flow (weight loss) through a hopper, to determine if an alarm is warranted. No Flow Bits This is the amount of weight loss in a set amount of time (No Flow Timer) to sound an alarm. Please contact the ACS Service Department with any other questions.
6-3 Technical Assistance Parts Department Call toll-free 7 am–5 pm CST 800.423.3183 or call 262.641.8610 Fax 262.641.8653 The ACS Customer Service Group will provide your company with genuine OEM quality parts manufactured to engineering design specifications, which will maximize your equipment’s performance and efficiency. To assist in expediting your phone or fax order, please have the model and serial number of your unit when you contact us.
