US 5,058,028 AGranted

Activating method and system for controlling multiple electrically-energized factory tools

OwnerGeorge M. Meyerleinventor

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Abstract

The activating method and system control multiple electrically-energized machine tools in a factory, such as electromagnetic punch presses, spot welders, elevator motors or other large motors, etc. for preventing simultaneous actuation for avoiding power surges, thus avoiding peaking of electrical loading on factory facilities. Adequate available electrical power is assured at the instant of actuation of each tool. Each tool has a microprocessor-controlled energizing switch with sensors indicating when the tool is "ready" to be actuated (fired). The microprocessor controllers are connected in a permission-signal-passing ring. The permission signal being passed is a low voltage signal of positive or negative polarity. A prime controller always passes a signal of opposite polarity from that most recently received. Each other controller always passes a signal of the same polarity as most recently received. A tool obtains permission to fire when an input signal is of opposite polarity from the most recently transmitted output signal, thus showing that permission has been passed completely around the ring. During firing of a tool, its controller refrains from passing permission, thus no other tool can receive permission to fire during permitted operation of any tool. If a permitted tool is not "ready" , permission is immediately passed. A machine tool is prioritized relative to other tools by setting numbers of received permissions to fire before being allowed to fire. During counting of received permission signals, a tool continues to pass permission signals without firing, until its prioritized count is reached.

Claims11

Dependent claims

An activating method for controlling the electrical power input to a plural number of electrical tools in a manufacturing plant where such machine tools are of the type having a relatively brief duty cycle involving a large usage of electrical power during the performance of the brief duty cycle and where such tools require an insignificant usage of electrical power during standby while each tool is being readied for performance of its next duty cycle, said method preventing the performance of more than one duty cycle at the same time for limiting peak electrical load demand caused by said tools, said method comprising the steps of:

providing a plurality of controllers equal in number to said plural number of electrical tools, wherein respective controllers monitor and control respective electrical tools and wherein each controller has a pair of input terminals and a pair of output terminals,
connecting the pair of output terminals of each:
respective controller to the pair of input terminals of another controller for arranging said controllers in an electrical permission signal passing ring,
choosing one of said controllers as a first controller with a last controller in said ring having its output terminals connected to the input terminals of said first controller,
transmitting an electrical permission signal of predetermined character from the output terminals of said first controller,
automatically transmitting from the output terminals of any controller in said ring, except said first controller, an electrical permission signal of the same character as received at its input terminals whenever the electrical tool being monitored by that controller is not ready to perform its duty cycle,
automatically transmitting from the output terminals of said first controller an electrical permission signal of character inverted from the character of the electrical permission signal as transmitted from the output terminals of said last controller, whenever the electrical tool being monitored by said first controller is not ready to perform its duty cycle,
shifting a controller into a ready state whenever its controlled electrical tool is ready to perform its duty cycle,
allowing any controller in a ready state to trigger its controlled electrical tool into performance of a duty cycle whenever the character of the electrical permission signal received at its input terminals is inverted in character from the character of the permission signal most recently transmitted from its output terminals,
after an electrical tool has been triggered into performance of a duty cycle by its controller, restraining transmission of a permission signal from the output terminals of said controller until its controlled tool has completed its duty cycle, and
transmitting from the output terminals of any controller except the first controller a permission signal of the same character as received after its controlled tool has completed performance of its duty cycle.

8 more elements

An activating system for controlling the electrical power input to a plural number "N" of electrical tools in a manufacturing plant where such electrical tools are of the type having a relatively brief duty cycle involving a large usage of electrical power during the performance of the brief duty cycle and where such electrical tools require an insignificant usage of electrical power during standby while the electrical tool is being readied for performance of its next duty cycle, said activating system preventing the performance of more than one duty cycle at the same time for thereby limiting peak electrical load demand caused by said electrical tools, said activating system comprising:

a plurality of controllers equal in number to said plural number N, wherein each controller monitors and controls a respective machine tool and wherein each controller has a pair of input terminals and a pair of output terminals,
a ring circuit connecting the pair of output terminals of each respective controller to the pair of input terminals of another controller,
one of said controllers being a first controller,
said first controller being arranged for transmitting an electrical permission signal from the output terminals of said first controller having a characteristic opposite from a characteristic of the permission signal transmitted from the output terminals of the controller in said ring immediately preceding said first controller,
all of the other controllers in said ring except said first controller being arranged for transmitting from their output terminals an electrical permission signal having a characteristic the same as a characteristic of the permission signal transmitted from the output terminals of the respective preceding controllers in said ring,
means for shifting a controller into a ready state whenever its controlled electrical tool is ready to perform its duty cycle,
means for causing said first controller in said ring in said ready state to trigger its controlled electrical tool into performance of a duty cycle whenever the characteristic of the electrical permission signal transmitted from the output terminals of the respective preceding controller in said ring is the same as the characteristic of the permission signal most recently transmitted from the output terminals of the ready-state first controller,
means for causing any controller in said ring in a ready state except said first controller to trigger its controlled machine tool into performance of a duty cycle whenever the characteristic of the electrical permission signal transmitted from the output terminals of the respective preceding controller in said ring is opposite from the characteristic of the permission signal most recently transmitted from the output terminals of such ready-state controller, and
means for causing any such ready-state controller to refrain from transmitting a permission signal from its output terminals until its controlled tool ha completed its duty cycle.

6 more elements

Control apparatus for controlling the operation of an electrically energizable tool comprising:

a pair of input terminals,
a pair of output terminals,
means for responding to status of the electrically energizable tool being controlled by said control apparatus for determining that its controlled tool is ready to be triggered into performance of a duty cycle,
means for automatically transmitting an electrical permission signal from said output terminals upon reception of an electrical permission signal at said input terminals,
means for triggering its controlled tool into performance of a duty cycle when (a) its controlled tool is in a ready state, and (b) a characteristic of a permission signal being received at said input terminals is opposite to a characteristic of a permission signal most recently transmitted from said output terminals, and
means for restraining automatic transmission of a permission signal from said output terminals until its controlled tool has completed performance of a duty cycle.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 07/447,107Filed 6 Dec 1989
Granted: 15 Oct 1991
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

G05B 19/41865
Total factory control, i.e. centrally controlling a plurality of machines, e.g. direct or distributed numerical control [DNC], flexible…:…
G05B 2219/32021
Operator till task planning: energy management, balance and limit power to tools
G05B 2219/34368
Director, elements to supervisory: priority
Y02P 70/10
Climate change mitigation technologies in the production process for final industrial or consumer products: greenhouse gas [GHG] capture, material…