An example of a filling line

HEUFT PROFILER - complete and immediate line analysis

The dynamic response displayed by filling lines makes it extremely difficult to identify the cause of a drop in performance. Even in the preoperational phase of a new line the search for a component or components, which prevent the planned level of efficiency being achieved, can be expensive and time-consuming. Operational data acquisition and control systems are often not working at this point in time or have not yet been optimised or activated for this purpose.

There is often a reduction in output for no apparent reason even after years of production. The HEUFT PROFILER is a tool which considerably simplifies the analysis of the cause and effect for the responsible technician and in many cases only makes it possible for the first time.

The task

In the eighties some attempts were made to centralize the control system for a complete line. The resulting control systems proved to be too complex and thus very difficult to regulate.

Today´s filling lines are dominated by insular solutions. A very high degree of efficiency can be achieved with the clearly defined interfaces of such a system. However if a fault presents itself at one of the stations its effect may only become noticeable later at another station. If, for example, intermittent faults occur in microstops at the decapper these are first noticed at the filler when the integrated buffer areas before and after the washing machine are depleted. This can happen hours later when it may no longer be possible to find the cause because the fault at the decapper only occurs temporarily.

The solution

In order to make it possible to analyse such faults HEUFT has extended the data acquisition function of the HEUFT Gate Server and developed an easy-to-use software tool, the HEUFT PROFILER.

Its purpose is to collect data from the most varied machines, sensors and actuators centrally and to make this available via a network for analysing purposes. The scope of a multichannel oscilloscope is reproduced by the visualization of the data whereby the most varied input signals can be simultaneously presented. A simple-to-operate control system with XML technology was selected as the operating surface for the Internet Explorer.

The success

Whether you are commissioning a new filling line, optimising an existing one or fault finding as a result of a decrease in efficiency, the HEUFT PROFILER provides the data and presentations necessary for a swift and efficient solution to the task. The availability of all the relevant data makes it possible to view the course of production afterwards from different aspects and is therefore the key to optimum efficiency.

The system is available during the particularly important commissioning phase due to extensive automatic commissioning using Plug & Play.
Furthermore the HEUFT Gate Server is part of the HEUFT STRATEGY resource management system and can be linked to the HEUFT STRATEGY Professional without the necessity for further modifications.