More speed, less bulk: ACOPOS P3

Management with up to 3 axes in the space of just 1? That is now possible with the new drive developed by B&R. Here are the options and functions of a highly innovative automation product.

Builders of machines and systems today are getting more requests for greater productivity and availability than ever before. At the same time, the market is imposing reduced production costs. The new servo drive generation by B&R has been designed to meet these requirements. Indeed, by guaranteeing a high level of integration and an extremely low sampling time (50 µs), ACOPOS P3 offers new opportunities for automation solutions, in part thanks to the use of virtual sensors.
Complex production processes require complex machinery and, thus, sophisticated hardware and software. Control boxes for advanced machines and systems occupy additional space in the production facility. The space taken up by installed devices, considering also their maintenance, wiring and cooling, can quickly cause costs to rise.
OEMs are thus forced to take measures to minimize the bulk of the electric box. In this sense it proves crucial to concentrate the space occupied by rescaling devices and enhancing their power density.

The new scale of motion control. ACOPOS P3 is able to control 1, 2 or 3 axes, offering a power density of 4 A per liter, with a power range of 0.6-24 kW or 1.2-48 A, making it one of the most efficient devices with integrated safety functions on the market.
Since the 3 axis unit housing is as compact as a conventional one-axis drive, it is possible to reduce the amount of space required by the electric box by 69%.

Completely compatible. The very short cycle of ACOPOS P3 (50 µs) for control of current, speed and position opens new opportunities for motion control, making possible dynamics never before achieved, along with the high precision necessary for highly dynamic and precise processes such as those in the printing and packaging sectors. These requirements are also easy to reach thanks to bandwidth and precision guaranteed by real-time Ethernet POWERLINK.

Reduced energy consumption and virtual sensors. Standing up to the new market trends of greater productivity with lowered energy consumption entails the use of efficient devices offering the possibility of re-using energy dissipated during braking with regeneration modules. But also – at the level of mechanics – the reduction of the masses and corresponding inertias at play, with a consequently reduced rigidity and greater elasticity.
The use of virtual sensors enables controlling these elastic systems effectively, without resorting to additional position measurements.
A virtual encoder can be used to eliminate from the motor the position transducer (along with its cable and assessment module), enhancing the availability of the servo-drive. ACOPOS P3 also offers optional features: repetitive control, for example, enables detecting and compensating for lag errors.
The result? A more precise control, better performance and greater product quality.

A single cable for ACOPOS P3. The “single cable” solution enables transmitting power, along with the encoder data and digital security information between the drive and the motor, on a single cable, reducing both component costs and startup times. The use of a traditional connection consisting in a motor cable and a separate encoder cable is still possible.

Maximum safety. Safety is a decisive factor: this is illustrated by the laws in force worldwide. ACOPOS P3 offers many functions that meet SIL 3 / PL and / Cat 4 requirements.
A new function is Safety Limited Torque (SLT), which detects when the maximum allowed torque has been exceeded.
SafeMOTION: by combining various safety functions, such as SLS (Safe Limited Speed) and SLT (Safe Limited Torque), it is possible to reduce format changeover times, guaranteeing maximum machine availability.
SafeROBOTICS: the RSP safety function (Remnant Safe Position) is another novelty, enabling identifying and maintaining secure positioning data of the entire kinematic chain for the robots by calculating speed, orientation and workspace. All the 14 safety functions are web-based and thus completely available for control. They can thus be used dynamically thanks to the openSAFETY system.
Also, with integrated safety functions, using the ACOPOS P3 drive enables obtaining a safe automation solution with minimal setup: the SafeLOGIC-X virtual safety controller is managed via a common PLC, guaranteeing the reliability that B&R customers expect without requiring a dedicated safety controller.

Scalable. Along with other components in the B&R product range, it is possible to develop an extremely streamlined, complete and powerful solution: a Power Panel, the ACOPOS P3 and X20 I/O modules are all that is required. Since this type of system is entirely modular and scalable, it can be expanded and enhanced at any time, as needed, also guaranteeing maximum re-usability of the already created software.

Simple and international. Designing machines to be used in different countries around in the world, all with very different electric grids, involves some obstacles for the machine builders, who are often obligated to employ insulation converters in order to adapt to the situation on the ground.
ACOPOS P3 is a formidable simplification, given the fact that it supports all the most common electric grid configurations, such as TN, TT, IT and TN-S grounded corner systems. Furthermore, it meets the machine and system production standards of EN 61000-6-4 (general standard for industrial emissions) and EN 61800-3 (first environment, category C2).

«Compact products are the future of automation» explains Alois Holzleitner, B&R’s technical manager of motion control systems. «It is therefore important to reduce the number of components necessary in order to perform the required functions, their bulk and their overall complexity. This is what we had in mind when we were developing ACOPOS P3». 

Integrated safety functions: STO, SS1, SS2, SLS, SMS, SBC, SDI, SLI, SLP, SMP, SLA, RSP, SBT and SLT.
                                             

Innovations Day 2015 ACOPOS P3 was presented in Italy on 25 February for the occasion of Innovations Day in Parma, an important annual event with B&R’s signature innovation. Among the topics addressed during the encounter, worth mention is mapp Technology (software technology that makes it possible to reduce development times by 67%); compactness with no compromise on performance or human-machine interface; advanced Motion Control and Integrated Safety algorithms. Not long after their official launch in Nuremberg last November, “orange innovations” were then shown and explained to automation engineers during an entire day of presentations and live demos. The event proved to be a unique occasion for a taste of the best B&R solutions, capable of responding to current market demand, but also one for interfacing with all the designers and automation experts who gathered for the event.