Research On Control System Of Flexible Roll-die Forming Production Line

The technology of flexible roll-die forming is based on the improvement of the original variable cross-section roll forming technology. The technology can form flexible sheet by changing the shape of the mould and greatly reduce the complexity of forming. Based on this technology we developed flexible roll-die forming production line, which is a hydromechatronics line that implements the automatic processing of vehicle parts. The production line includes uncoiling^ straightening> feeding the three-in-one feeding machine, punching unit, leading unit, flexible roll-die forming unit, uniform forming unit, cutting unit and so on. Some technical problems of mass production of complicated cross section parts can be solved successfully by the production line, such as the low stability, the uncontrolled dimensional accuracy and the sheet deformation while a variable cross-section is cut off. Next the paper will do the research on the control system of the production line.The paper consists of three parts. The first part to study the constitution of the whole production line. The control scheme is determined upon its mechanical structure according to the working model of the production line. The second part is to design the control system platform according to the control scheme. Siemens SIMOTION D455-2 motion controller and Siemens CU320 control unit are chosen in this system. Then the motor torque and motor power is calculated according to the maximum forming FEM simulation and the selection of servo motor and motor module is completed. Next the detection means acquisition module, auxiliary components and other hardware are selected according to the control scheme of produced target part. On the basis of former work, the control cabinet and console are designed and the distributed 10 is allocated, all of which are prepared for the software development. The third part is to develop the software of the control system on the basis of the hardware, including upper machine software and lower machine software. The upper machine software is developed by Visual Studio 2010, based on VC++MFC framework and multi-threading technology is used through the designing process. Then a custom protocol and multi-axis coordinated motion control was/are achieved between them. The lower machine software is developed by SIMOTION SCOUT. SCOUT is a SIMOTION debugging software tool. The hardware is configured in SCOUT, and four threads are launched to achieve the target part of the process. Besides, moving control strategies are designed based on the outline of the target part. Finally, experiments are conducted on the production line.The experimental results show that the control system of the production line can realize the production of complex parts. The parts produced can meet the requirements of precision. The whole production line can realize automation control, the equipment can achieve coordination, and the product quality can be guaranteed.