B&r Industrial Automation Gmbh

Franz Spanlang

Andreas Weber

Stefan Flixeder

Franz Kaufleitner

Michael Brucker

In order to ensure particularly good protection of individuals in an electromagnetic transport system, a safety area is provided in a transport area. Furthermore, a safety function is provided which, in accordance with a predetermined safety requirement level, ensures that the transport unit reaches the safety area at a speed less than or equal to a safety speed and/or with a transport unit force less than or equal to a safety force and/or a transport unit energy less than or equal to a safety energy, or prevents the transport unit from reaching the safety area.

Safety function

To provide a simple and flexibly usable transport device in the form of a long stator linear motor, which enables a movement of a transport unit of the transport device in several different planes, it is provided according to the invention that a transition segment including a continuous-flow conveyor having a longitudinal axis is provided, adjoining the starting point or the ending point of the transport track in the longitudinal direction, for transporting the transport unit in a direction of movement extending along the longitudinal axis, wherein the continuous-flow conveyor is provided to move the transport unit in the direction of movement at least sectionally in a conveying plane deviating from the movement plane of the transport track.

Transport device in the form of a long stator linear motor

To reduce mechanical loading due to guidance of the transport unit of a conveyor installation in the form of a long stator linear motor and nevertheless ensure safe retention of the transport unit on the conveyor track of the conveyor installation in all operating conditions, the normal force (F) is controlled with a controller (Rk) for controlling the normal force (F). The controller (Rk) determines a normal-force-forming current component (i) of the drive current (i) of the drive coils interacting with the transport unit (Tn) so that a resulting normal force (F) acting on the transport unit (Tn) as the sum of the normal force (F), a magnetic force (F) in the normal direction (N) caused by the drive magnets, and an external force (F) in the normal direction (N) acting on the transport unit (Tn) corresponds at least to a specified retaining force (F) in the normal direction (N).

Growing community of inventors

Linz, Austria

Franz Spanlang