Panasonic Industry Europe presented their technology portfolio for the automation sector at SPS 2019. Moritz Cehak, Senior Product Communication Manager, Stefan Klose, Head of Sales & Product Management, and Michael Gartz, General Manager Sales & Product Management Control & Drives at Panasonic Industry Europe showcased some of their latest releases from high-precision sensors to control technology, HMIs and drives and other solutions for fully networked production lines. These releases have a special focus on Industry 4.0. Thanks to newly developed automation products, the networking of production processes and the resulting possibility of automated custom manufacturing up to batch size one is made available. Four solutions were demonstrated.
Servo Drive System and gateway for Industry 4.0 applications
The Minas A6 Multi 400V servo drive system is designed in a slim (50mm) wide book size format. Each drive controller can control two axes. This results in reducing the space requirement in the control cabinet by up to 64% compared to standard drives. Through the EtherCAT interface, network integration is made possible and, with 18 integrated safety functions, this servo drive system complies with SIL3 safety guidelines.
The FP-I4C is the gateway for Industrial 4.0 applications. Thanks to the available interfaces, the data from connected controllers is transmitted to higher-level systems and also enables remote access even for small systems. Made in a compact design, it features comprehensive functions such as web server, FTP client, integrated protocols (OPC-UA and MQTT).
High-end HMI series and IIoT and smart materials
To ensure a smooth interface between human and machine, Panasonic offers the HMx700. The HMx700 panel is a high-end operating device for demanding applications in the IIoT range, which despite its wide range of functions does not compromise robustness. Thanks to the high-resolution display with multitouch function, Panasonic provides new possibilities for designing innovative user interactions. The HMx700 product line fits the use in industrial automation with low energy consumption and a long product life cycle.
Last, Panasonic Industry takes advantage of the IIoT environment by providing a digital solution including the combination of e-label “View” tags and special software, which also supports the production of individualized goods up to batch size one. The relation between smart materials and products and services from Panasonic Systems & Solutions is set up to make intelligent manufacturing possible with opportunities for better efficiency and cost savings.
