Advancing industrial printing with TSN
EDITOR ’ S CHOICE CUTTING-EDGE MOTION CONTROL
CLPA
Advancing industrial printing with TSN
Developers of printing machines are facing particularly fast-paced and dynamic market conditions . Harnessing the true potential of smart , automated industrial operations is crucial to meeting ever more ambitious customers ’ needs and staying ahead of the competition . As fractions of a second can make a significant difference within advanced printing machines , cutting-edge motion control becomes paramount .
Tom Burke , Global Strategic Advisor at the CC-Link Partner Association ( CLPA ), looks at how Time-Sensitive Networking ( TSN ) can help achieve seamless synchronization , accuracy , and precision within complex , autonomous printing systems .
In many sectors , from publishing to pharmaceutical manufacturing , printing and stamping operations rely on machines that can quickly and reliably add high-quality designs and text with excellent resolution . To this end , the equipment must effectively offer precise positioning capabilities , correctly handle products and have all its axes moving in sync .
State-of-the-art motion control is therefore at the core of such units and their activities . Even more , as printing applications demand higher speed , greater resolutions and accuracies as well as lower tolerances , the need for next-level motion control solutions is evident .
Besides , as Industry 4.0 frameworks become a must to remain competitive , printing machine users are asking for solutions that can communicate with other machines on the shop floor as well as higher enterprise-level systems to support smarter operations . Ultimately , to meet these demands , OEMs need to create highly interoperable setups that are equipped to offer this level of convergence . In this
regard , the selected industrial automation components must be able to leverage a high-performance network technology .
Addressing the needs of competitive industrial printing
Traditionally , standard Ethernet has had limitations in meeting the stringent requirements of motion control , necessitating the setup of isolated networks to reduce latency , avoiding jitter and delay . The advent of Time Sensitive Networking ( TSN ) is providing a breakthrough solution . This technology , defined by IEEE 802.1 standards , is capable of establishing accurate , distributed time synchronization across multiple axes and network nodes .
TSN also enables the prioritization of urgent , time-sensitive traffic , while reserving cycle time for regular control data packets . This ensures deterministic performance even with large volumes of non-transient traffic , eliminating the need for specialized communication infrastructures for motion control . As a result , TSN can support the seamless integration of various message types from both the information technology ( IT ) and operational technology ( OT ) domains , in line with smart manufacturing strategies .
A leading network solution that embraces this technology is CC-Link
IE TSN , the first open industrial Ethernet with TSN functions and gigabit bandwidth . It offers a cycle time of 31.25μs and can synchronize up to 256 axes with accuracies in the order of ± 1μs , therefore helping machine builders and end users with ambitious motion control systems for printing applications .
Case study : TSN advances industrial printing operations
A leading OEM of industrial printing and stamping machines wanted to develop an innovative , highly competitive solution to address its customers ’ needs for increased speed , accuracy and repeatable quality . To deliver a such machine , the company invested in industrial automation technologies compatible with CC- Link IE TSN , namely PLCs and servo drives .
In particular , the resulting machine could combine high-precision screen printing and hot stamping operations by being able to accommodate 90 axes . Through CC-Link IE TSN , these could all be synchronized with limited tolerances to deliver the high level of accuracy that customers would require . As a result , the setup offers a highly integrated and versatile solution that maximizes productivity , cost-effectiveness , flexibility , print quality as well as scalability .
Extremely happy with the capabilities of CC-Link IE TSN compatible devices , the OEM is now using them to upgrade its printing machine portfolio , driving its customers as well as its own competitiveness .
For further information , please visit www . cc-link . org / en / clpa / members / index . html
12 PECM Issue 68