Magyarországi központ
Beckhoff Automation Kft.
A giant leap for efficiency with intelligent automation
Trumpf, USA
Aotto, China
GF Machining Solutions, Switzerland
The pressure to optimize sheet metal working is increasing: fluctuating demand, small batch sizes, the shortage of skilled workers, and ever shorter product life cycles require production solutions that offer a high level of flexibility and economic efficiency. Whether for pressing, cutting, welding, punching, nibbling, or bending – machines that adapt to new requirements quickly and offer maximum efficiency and quality are in demand. You can achieve both with automation and control solutions from Beckhoff. Our fully PC-based platform combines openness, performance, and modularity to create a system that makes your machines and systems fit for the future.
Do you have any questions?
Sheet metal processors are under high competitive pressure. Efficient production solutions are needed so that this challenge can be faced and to elicit growth. PC-based control solutions from Beckhoff provide the key here. The basic concept revolves around using industrial PCs to implement all automation functions centrally on a software-based platform.
There is no need for communication between different hardware systems, and the associated costs and latency are eliminated. This means that consistently optimized control processes that are highly precise, freely scalable, powerful, and variable can be implemented with little engineering effort.
How you benefit from PC-based control:
With EtherCAT, Beckhoff sets the standard in industrial automation technology. Ultra-fast signal transmission and synchronization precision in the nanosecond range make the fieldbus the communication standard for real-time requirements.
EtherCAT is ideal for sheet metal working machines thanks to its performance, high topology flexibility, comprehensive diagnostic functions, simple configuration, and solutions such as eXtreme Fast Control (XFC). With EtherCAT P, you also benefit from genuine One Cable Automation (OCA) and save valuable resources – especially with line systems and modular machine concepts.
How you benefit from EtherCAT:
With TwinCAT, Beckhoff has created the leading ecosystem for automation. The platform offers runtime systems for real-time execution of PLC, HMI, NC, CNC, and robotics applications and serves as a development platform for programming, diagnostics, and configuration. In addition, there are TwinCAT libraries with algorithms for motion control, robot kinematics, IoT, and analytics. This all saves you valuable development time and brings your machines to market faster. TwinCAT CNC also accelerates engineering: for example, with path controls on demand or CNC solutions for the motion requirements of laser cutting systems. TwinCAT CoAgent is extra smart. It uses AI to support you in evaluating system data and optimizing energy efficiency and process technology.
How you benefit from TwinCAT:
With TwinSAFE, Beckhoff has overcome the traditional division between “safety” and “non-safety”. TwinSAFE integrates all the necessary safety functions into any control architecture. You receive a flexible and scalable complete safety package for your requirements – based on the internationally certified Safety over EtherCAT communication protocol.
With Safety over EtherCAT, safety functions can be activated via the machine controller and can also be integrated automatically: via TwinSAFE Logic-capable components. Our component portfolio includes I/O modules in all shapes and designs, all drive systems, and a vast range of tools for engineering. In addition, the TwinCAT Safety Editor is a tool for simple implementation of safety applications.
How you benefit from TwinSAFE:
Sheet metal working demands modular, highly flexible machines with a small footprint. The MX-System from Beckhoff creates space for innovation. It enables completely control cabinet-free automation solutions in machine and system engineering. The combination of baseplate and function modules combines all the tasks and properties of a control cabinet: power supply, fuse protection, power distribution, generation and monitoring of auxiliary voltages, sequence control, control of motors and actuators, and the connection level for the field devices. The coordinated assemblies, certified to international standards, greatly reduce the work required for planning, assembly, installation, and maintenance.
How you benefit from the MX-System:
Hydraulic drive technology impresses with high dynamics in a small installation space, but is associated with higher maintenance and lower efficiency. Servo-hydraulic axes are available as an alternative. These combine the advantages of hydraulics with the strengths of electric drive technology: They are low-maintenance, energy-efficient, and precise. They are perfectly complemented by our servo drive technology with its current controller cycle time of just 16 μs. EtherCAT P eliminates the need for a separate encoder cable, saving space and reducing cabling work. Short cycle times with high precision are made possible by our adaptive parameter switching, which ensures a smooth transition between different feed constants. Another advantage is that all common hybrid axis concepts can be configured with minimal programming effort via the TwinCAT Hydraulic library.
How you benefit from servo drives for hybrid axes:
Bending machines are key stations in the sheet metal working process. With TwinCAT Hydraulic Positioning, Beckhoff offers you its own software library for the development and implementation of hydraulic drive concepts. Manufacturer-independent architecture allows you to remain flexible in your choice of hydraulic components. The software-based solution allows precise motion control with maximum adaptability. There is no need for hardware controllers – the motion controller is integrated into the PLC and contains all functions for valve- or pump-controlled axes and servo pumps. Optimum operation is ensured by setpoint generators, automatic characteristic curve identification, segmented movements, and freely programmable switching between force, pressure, and position control.
How you benefit from TwinCAT Hydraulic Positioning:
With Beckhoff Panel PCs, you can add a custom-designed operator interface to your sheet metal working machines. To achieve this, we combine powerful industrial PCs with the multi-touch technology of an advanced control panel. In its attractive, high-quality housing, the device becomes the central operating and control element on the machine. The portfolio includes panel PCs in a wide range of sizes and formats – in either built-in or portable versions. Good to know: Beckhoff also offers CNC control panels – with a special CNC function design. In addition to further options, such as special equipment with operating elements or visual adaptations in corporate designs, entirely customized designs can also be accommodated.
How you benefit from Beckhoff Panel PCs:
In sheet metal working, machine vision is essential when it comes to process monitoring and quality inspection. With Beckhoff Vision, you can quickly and easily integrate high-performance real-time image processing into your control environment, regardless of whether the system is new or established. As a complete solution comprising hardware and software, Beckhoff Vision can be perfectly synchronized with all machine and system processes. The deep system integration that this enables overcomes the historical division between vision and automation technology. At the same time, our Vision components impress with their robust, attractive design, as well as high scalability and long-term availability.
How you benefit from Vision integration in EtherCAT:
Whether a hydraulic deep drawing press or servo-electric transfer press – Beckhoff’s modular and scalable control technology enables you to automate all press types. Powerful industrial PCs in combination with our EtherCAT fieldbus technology ensure high-performance and highly dynamic processes. Our solutions capture signals in real time and transmit control commands immediately. With fully automated transfer presses or complete press lines, this pays off in terms of a clear increase in productivity.
There are also other advantages: For example, specially optimized gear couplings and pre-controlled pressure regulators are available for the deep drawing process. Combined with PC-based control technology and cycle times of less than 250 µs, short synchronization paths are achieved – even at very high speeds of the upper tool. Our portfolio also covers all control requirements: with I/O systems for all common fieldbuses, TwinCAT automation software for PLC and motion control, a comprehensive range of drive technology components, and the integrated TwinSAFE safety solution.
CNC controllers from Beckhoff are world leaders when it comes to the highly precise cutting and welding of sheet metal – whether in oxy-fuel, plasma, laser, or water jet processing. Two factors are decisive for this competitive strength: the control speed and the scope of the CNC functions. Our technology is impressive in both disciplines. Firstly, EtherCAT ensures high-performance control with cycle times of less than one millisecond. This means that even the fastest cutting and welding processes can be precisely controlled. Secondly, TwinCAT is an integrated component of our control platform that covers the entire range of functions for your CNC requirements with the TwinCAT NC I and TwinCAT CNC software libraries.
Our controller is complemented by a well thought-out product portfolio. It includes compact C60xx series Industrial PCs, which have powerful processors to meet the complex requirements of sheet metal working. All components are designed to be compact. This reduces the space required in the control cabinet; in many cases, the MX-System can replace the cabinet altogether – for an even leaner machine design and the sheet metal working of the future.
PC-based control technology from Beckhoff is perfect for the challenges of punching and nibbling. Highly dynamic axis movements can be realized just as easily as fast control functions. Precisely programmable strokes, automatic tool changes, and the ability to change programs or machine settings even during operation ensure consistently high levels of productivity. Key to this are TwinCAT motion control and the TwinCAT NC I and CNC software libraries.
TwinCAT controls the movements of all servo axes and automatically adjusts the processing parameters to the sheet thickness. Thanks to precisely programmable strokes, even special shapes can be quickly punched into the sheet metal. The combination of powerful industrial PCs and EtherCAT communication enables stroke rates of over 2,000 strokes per minute. Go one step further with our eXtreme Fast Control Technology (XFC). This shortens the cycle times for data transfer to less than 100 µs. The advantage? Information from press force monitoring or tool fastening is recorded almost simultaneously by all sensors and sent to the central controller.
The challenges of folding and bending sheet metal are as varied as your machines and systems. Whether round, pipe, swivel, or die bending machines – our PC-based and open control technology provides you with all the system modules you need for automation. The various function modules can be used in combination or individually. For bending, for example, we provide you with a choice of tailored technology solutions for the press beam or back gauges.
We also offer you ready-made algorithms for calculating the insertion depth and for the exact positioning of the back gauges. Collisions during the folding process are reliably avoided due to the automatic calculation of the bending order. TwinCAT automation software has open interfaces so that you can easily implement individual adaptations and extensions and add your own algorithms at any time. In addition, the entire range of Beckhoff EtherCAT I/O modules and our scalable industrial PCs are available to you. Additional functions such as suitable safety technology or solutions for energy acquisition and condition monitoring round off the portfolio.