Decentralized monitoring of cooling stations with RFID

RFID system and decentralized logic guarantee high production quality of cable harnesses

In the production of automotive cable harnesses, plastic components must first harden for a certain period of time before employees can feed them to further production steps. To ensure that the prescribed cooling times are adhered to, Turck offers an easy-to-install on-site solution. Tower lights provide information about the respective process status via the interaction of the RFID reader and the compact interface – and are not dependent on a higher-level controller for this.

Your Benefits

Simple retrofitting of the control system
On-site information about the respective status of the process
Status display and RFID tracking ensure the quality of manufactured components

With the on-site system, employees maintain an overview of cooling processes
The RFID read/write head reads the tag and triggers a timer in the interface

Set local timers with ARGEE

The cooling stations each have a TBEN-S2 RFID interface. With ARGEE, Turck's free logic software, each compact TBEN-S2 module becomes a Field Logic Controller (FLC). This means: In the TBEN-S2, users can easily configure a timer that is triggered by a newly arrived cable harness stand.

Reader detects RFID tag of production batch

RFID enables the exchange of information between production batch and FLC module. For this purpose, the Q80L400 HF read/write device reads an RFID tag attached to the cable harness stand. Thanks to its oblong design, the reader reliably identifies the tags – regardless of how the rollable cable stands are placed in the cooling station.

When the identification number is detected, the TBEN-S2 starts a timer and activates a signal light. The decentralized management of this task relieves the central control.

Using the unique ID of the RFID tags, higher-level systems can track which batch has completed the intended process and which of them may have been removed from the station too early.

Multi-colored LED display indicates progress of the process

Employees can identify a cooling process in progress, indicated by a yellow TL50 tower light. If a cable harness stand is pulled from the waiting area – and thus under the RFID reader – ahead of schedule, the light changes to red, while a green light indicates that the process is complete.

With the decentralized logic in the RFID interface, manufacturers can set up a system that provides a status display in the direct work area. The RFID solution also takes into account specific quality requirements for suppliers – it enables them to locate production batches in higher-level systems and record process events.

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