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page Take the Pain out of Drive System Design and Start-Up Take the Pain out of Drive System Design and Start-Up
Simplified programming software can erradicate complicated drive-controller integration, and hours of grueling tagging and coding validation.
Drives configuration software that focuses on ease-of-use tools can enhance motor-drive installation and save time and labor during configuration, commissioning and setup. By Greg Mears, Product Manager, Drives Software, Rockwell Automation Inverters, drives, variable-frequency drives (VFDs) or motor drives whatever you call them, engineers understand and accept their performance-enhancing, energy-saving and motor-protection benefits. That acceptance has led to a proliferation of drives offerings, with much of the hardware based on similar technology delivering excellent quality across leading brands. Engineers considering drives options might want to focus on the ease-of-use tools and features provided by the configuration software as much as the actual hardware. By examining the whole drives package, especially the configuration software, engineers can make a more informed decision that saves them time and labor during configuration, commissioning and start-up.
Drives configuration software is experiencing rapid evolution, making it more powerful and easier to use. The most profound advancements involve integrating the controller and drive. For networked drives, integration capabilities help lower programming, installation and overall ownership costs by minimizing the software tools required. This helps users gain faster start-ups, improved accuracy and easier drive-system maintenance. Traditionally, adding a drive to a control system meant learning to work with a new software tool and managing separate drive configuration files. By using programming software that integrates the drives and the controller, users have a shorter learning curve and can manage the drive and the control system more easily because there is only one software package to purchase and learn. With integrated drive configuration software, users can reduce the chance of mismatched I/O, streamline data, remove cryptic parameters and simplify coding.
Simplify Coding
A common problem in many drives installation projects is that multiple engineers develop different versions of the same code. With numerous code variations, installation and startup become more tedious and complex. Thats because engineers must check and verify each version and the specific set of errors used with each code to confirm a smooth installation. Programming software capabilities, such as user-defined add-on instruction, encapsulate drive-specific operations into a reusable module of code. This reduces the development and validation effort, and promotes consistency among projects because theres no need to constantly reinvent commonly used control algorithms. Some software packages further simplify the programming of networked drives with tag generator tools. Users no longer have to worry about I/O mapping and correlating the I/O image with device user manuals. Tag generating tools help save users a significant amount of programming time per device, depending on the devices complexity. Startup wizards for drive commissioning are another key advancement. Instead of using a linear list editor to navigate through hundreds of parameters, startup wizards provide a simple step-by-step process. Graphs, images and descriptive text assist the user
through the remaining commissioning process. Besides dramatically reducing drive startup and commissioning time, wizards can improve set-up accuracy by significantly reducing manual configuration with the end device. Engineers can also enjoy the benefits that device configuration software can offer to simple, hardwired or stand-alone applications. Drives are just one of many components in a system. For these applications, device configuration software can take what once required several different software configuration tools, and wrap it into a single software package with a simple catalogue of devices available at the engineers fingertips.
Make it Painless
Combining a controller with a full suite of compatible components and application development tools application profile, quick starts, wiring diagrams and predeveloped HMI screens can provide engineers with a simplified way to implement common control tasks as part of the machine design. This improves user experience and reduces the risk of potential engineering programming, training and maintenance nightmares. Clearly, its not just about the hardware anymore. With simplified programming software, engineers can say goodbye to the complicated world of drive-controller integration and hours of grueling tagging and coding validation. Advancements in programming software capabilities are just the start of integration and interconnectivity capabilities to come. Rockwell Automation Integrated Configuration Tools DeviceLogix-Enabled Products for Drives Configuration
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