Independent mover transport system and method of extending range of operations in an independent mover transport system

A method to extend range of operations in an independent mover transport system comprising

• a mover having an axis,
• a track comprising a first track segment including a first coil, a second track segment adjacent to the first track segment and including a second coil, and a controller having a memory operative to store a first set of controller gain values and a second set of controller gain values, wherein the controller is operative to drive the first coil to control movement of the mover along the first track segment towards the second track segment, the method comprising:
• moving the mover along the track;
• defining a first zone for the first track segment corresponding to the first set of controller gain values;
• defining a second zone for the first track segment corresponding to the second set of controller gain values;
• generating a current reference with a control module using the first set of controller gains when the location of the axis is in the first zone,
• driving the first coil using the current reference generated by the control module with the first set of controller gains to control movement of the mover when the location of the axis is in the first zone;
• generating the current reference with the control module using the second set of controller gains when the location of the axis is in the second zone;
• and
• driving the first coil using the current reference generated by the control module with the second set of controller gains to control movement of the mover when the location of the axis is in the second zone.