Light curtains for automation applications

Paul Boughton

Light curtains are very cost-effective for a variety of industrial sensing applications, including parts detection, picking systems, profile checking, machine protection and presence sensing.

Smartscan's 9000 series range of light curtains is suitable for numerous non-safety industrial and commercial sensing applications.

These include parts detection, picking systems, profile checking, slack monitoring, machine protection, presence sensing, garment counting, product counting, airport baggage counting, goods lifts and automatic shutter doors, loading bays, and many other uses.

The system consists of two slimline brushed aluminium enclosures, a transmitter and receiver, each with a profile of 30mm by 25mm and detection heights between 200mm and 1600mm. The 9000 series light curtains have an object detection characteristic of 30mm and 40mm and a scanning range between 0.5m and 5m. They are very easy to install and align using an adjustable mounting arrangement.

Each system comes with a full one-year warranty.

Product counting can easily be automated with the 9000 series. By mounting the light curtain below an ejection zone, parts can be counted as they pass through the light curtain.

They are also used for presence sensing in the commercial laundry industry. Indeed, with a standard response times of 1ms and 15ms, the system provides the flexibility to be used in a wide range of sensing applications.

Sensing light curtains are also used in non-safety machine applications such as tool protection systems in plastics, brick and concrete block making industries. The light curtain monitors below the tooling to ensure the product has been correctly ejected and that the moulding cycle can continue.

For more information, visit www.smartscan.com

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