Issue 8 Applications › Healthcare positioning › Glass decoration › Cut-to-length News › The Ethernet Revolution MMotionotion IIntelligencentelligence › Stainless steel servos aadvancedd v a n c e d mmotiono t i o n ccontrolo n t r o l ttechnologye c h n o l o g y fforo r mmachinea c h i n e ddesignerse s i g n e r s › Stepper motors/drives › Eurocard drives › AC drives Pin-Point Precision for Protons motion control system capable A of positioning patients to within A Novel Control Solution 0.5mm/0.02inch, is about to enter commercial The novel eight-axis control system inside operation at the Rinecker Proton Therapy the machine has been designed by IPG of Centre in Munich. The system will be used for Switzerland. It is based on motion control As IPG had a considerable experience with proton beam irradiation - a therapy offering components from Baldor, and Baldor’s Mint- Linux, The result gave IPG a very flexible motion considerable advantages over X-rays as it does language motion commands - specially ported software environment, with a library of high-level less collateral damage. to run under Linux for this project to provide an commands providing sophisticated movement open and maintainable system. functions. The proton beam machine consists of a Ultra Smooth Movement large steel cylinder housing a gantry with very Among the advanced features IPG employs large magnets that guide the accelerated proton in the control system are Mint’s BLEND, Take a giant step - with beam. The patient is driven into the path of the CONTOURING and S-RAMP commands. These beam by means of a table with control of X, Y, allow moves to be overlapped with no jerky Z, rotation, pitch and roll axes based on closed- n innovative transitions - in this instance to ensure ultra- loop BSM servo motors. The table itself weighs solution for smooth movement and positioning of the A over 4 tons, to provide the stiffness required for implementing patient. accurate and repeatable positioning. machinery and Continued on page 2 motion control Linux Based Platform systems using At the heart of the control system is a PC fitted the industry- with Baldor’s multi-axis motion controller, › Application Summary standard NextMove-PCI. Control is provided by a Linux- Application: ETHERNET Powerlink (EPL) protocol is now based application written in ‘C’. This issues Precision patient positioning available. Consisting of servo motor drives, a motion commands to NextMove-PCI using Motion controller: full-function machine controller that will also Baldor’s library of ‘C’-compatible Mint functions. NextMove-PCI manage over 200 axes/devices, and a license- IPG needed to use Linux for the project in order FlexDriveII and BSM motors free software environment, it provides machine to obtain open access to the source code Key Design advantages: builders with the platform to make radical - but in order to do this, a new Linux driver for Rich programming language progress. Baldor’s Mint-compatible ‘C’ library had to be simplified the movements required written. See inside for more detail or access - Linux support www.baldormotion.com/epl2 1 MMintint - TThehe CClearlear CChoicehoice computation functions required when changing tools and direction. This software toolkit allowed CADRAM and R&R to add a great deal of versatility into the tape laying process without writing lots of custom software. The same basic machine control subsystem is employed on the variant of the machine for applying Accentrim tape - LYNX 1 - which provides effects such as beveling. Here, operator control is provided by a local HMI connected via CAN. The tape application program is generated following a simple configuration process. The operator selects either a simple frame design for applying tape to the edges of a piece of glass, or a more wo novel machines from partners CADRAM surface and a guillotine that cuts tape from the complex pattern with crossings, and inputs T and R&R Sondermaschinen are providing reel, and a DC motor-based tape feed. the required number of rows and columns. the first automated solutions for applying The control software is written using the Mint The machine will alternatively accept industry- decoration to window glass, using lead or language, which combines a rich choice standard RWB files via USB. prismatic-effect 3M Accentrim tape. They deliver of motion control functionality with general “The engineering support provided by Baldor substantial productivity increases compared machine control features, including a license- allowed us to focus our efforts on the higher with traditional hand-application processes, and free multitasking operating system. level software required, substantially shortening offer great flexibility of patterning thanks to novel The top-of-the-line LYNX-2 machine is time to market.” says Ron Baker of CADRAM. motion control. designed for applying lead tape, and speeds Control for both machines is provided by the creation of Georgian-style doors and *NextMove-ESB is also now offered in an ETHERNET a subsystem engineered by Baldor, based windows. The real-time motion subsystem’s USB Powerlink version, NextMove e100. on the standalone NextMove-ESB controller. interface is employed to interface with a PC This compact host that provides the box controls “NextMove has given us an economic operator interface. a precision platform for this new kind of automation, A key feature is its three-axis servo ability to accept Application Summary and allowed us to introduce more › positioning drawings from features than we originally planned” Application: system that conventional CAD Tape laying machinery drives a gantry incorporating a multi-function programs, and automatically convert these to Motion solutions: toolhead - providing X-Y positioning combined streaming real-time motion commands. NextMove-ESB with a rotational facility for changing direction. This facility relies on MintNC, a PC-based FlexDriveII and BSM motors NextMove-ESB also incorporates the I/O that environment that imports information in controls other accessories required including industry-standard CAD formats and generates Key Design advantages: a ‘pizza knife’ that trims the tape, miniature the required real-time motion commands. MintNC toolkit for interface to CAD packages pneumatics that provide support functions MintNC also automatically manages all such as pressure to bond the tape to the glass the background processing and geometric Simple programming using Mint's multi-tasking features Continued from page 1 Behind this smooth motion, however, is a The motion subsystem consists of a NextMove- Ferro of IPG. “It allowed us to concentrate our complex control program that converts polar PCI card plugged into the PC, connected to efforts on developing coordinates into the Cartesian coordinates six Baldor FlexDrives and BSM servo motors. the application-specific required for the three-dimensional patient Two further axes on the card are also used to algorithms that positioning, and which also corrects for control the linear extension of the proton beam underpin the the non-linearities of the table and the nozzle as it is set up for a treatment session, positioning slight flexing that occurs depending on the and a heavy-duty industrial motor that adjusts movements, extension from its mountings. IPG simplified the magnet gantry. and on the this problem by dividing movements down “Mint’s sophisticated motion functions helped overall control into sequences of smaller steps. simplify this complex project” notes Alexander system”. 2 Take a Giant Step radical new solution for implementing application - even those requiring very large A machinery and motion control systems is numbers of motion axes. now available, thanks to the industry-standard “We are implementing ETHERNET Powerlink ETHERNET Powerlink (EPL) protocol. Consisting in such a way that users can implement hybrid of servo motor drives, a full-function machine systems with a mix of digital and analog drives controller that also manages over 200 axes of if they wish, and continue to exploit low-cost motion, and a license-free software environment, technologies such as CANopen for cost-sensitive the range provides machine builders a platform parts of the machine control system. This to make radical progress. gives OEMs the freedom to exploit Ethernet immediately with migration-friendly technology”, Among a very broad range of gains made says David Greensmith of Baldor. as a fundamental tool for progress: “As with possible by this new Ethernet-friendly machine everyday speech, the degree of articulation that control architecture are the means to provide Bill of Materials Savings a language offers determines how elegantly end users with machinery that will link Greensmith goes on to estimate the hardware and efficiently problems can be solved. We seamlessly into local and wide area networks, savings possible by the reduced wiring believe the incredible richness of motion control and simpler system design, building and requirements of EPL to be as much as 100 functions available in Mint compared with commissioning. These are complemented by the Euros/$130 per axis. However, open industry software, possibility of major hardware system level gains are where gives engineers a real bill-of-materials savings the main benefits lie, and in edge in the new Ethernet from reduced wiring, and this arena Greensmith points to compatible machine the ability to use a single Baldor’s unique Mint language automation development.” controller for almost every › Benefits