Standardized plugin IE4 drives for baggage handling systems | The Machine Maker

1. Standardized plugin IE4 drives for baggage handling systems
Onebaggagehandling systemOEMcameto greatly appreciate certain features of the NORD
DRIVESYSTEMSproducts they had chosento include: encoder connectivity, positioning capability, and
plug-in connectors that ensure fast and safeinstallation and commissioning.In addition, versatile
interfaces enable efficient networking and remote monitoring of the devicesin the field aswell asthe
useof drives asdistributed I/O nodes.On top of that, they were able to benefit from a variant reduction
that greatly simplified spare partsmanagement.
Thoughpassengernumbers and luggagevolume at Victoria Airport in British Columbia, Canada,are
nowhere near the numbers at large international hubs, it was exactly for this reason that the baggage
handling system(BHS)posed major challengesto the handling system OEM.Thisairport did not have a
lot of room to accommodateall the usual modules – from check-inthrough security screening to sorting.
Theairport company commissioned Glidepath, amanufacturer specializing in baggageconveying, parcel
sorting, and freight logisticstechnology.

2. Lots of technology in littlespace
Thenew handling system hasacapacity of 750 piecesof luggageper hour. "The baggagehandling
system is made up of 85 conveyors with atotal length of some250 m," saysJasonWilliams, project
engineer at Glidepath. "It comprises two in-line screening CTmachines. It has two decision points for
sortation, and it hastwo separate infeed lines. It hasfour-way sorters, spiral power curves, bag
alignment devices, aluffing conveyor, and Glidepath’s proprietary ploughs and powercurves."
All inone
All drive tasksare carried out by IE4ACvector drives from NORDDRIVESYSTEMS.Eachdrive unit
consists of an IE4permanent-magnet synchronous motor, amotor-mounted NORDACFLEXfrequency
inverter, and atwo-stage gearbox. Thehollow shaft gearboxes are securedon the drive axis with a
Gripmaxx bushing. Thisattachment ensuressafe,easy-maintenance fitting without keys.Thedrive
systemsachieve excellent efficiencies even in the partial load range and at low speeds. Theytherefore
pay for their initial cost within afew years or even only months, and total expenses over the product
lifespan are significantly reduced. Thefrequency inverters are configured exactly to Glidepath’s
specifications – with plug-in connectors for power, communications, encoders, and sensors.They
featurean internal EtherNet/IP interface andare designed for easyfeed-through installation.
Easy, intelligentnetworking
Thepluggable drives saved Glidepath alot of time during installation and commissioning. Thecoded
connectors enable speedy,error-free networking. Williams appreciates the versatile interfaces: "Thanks
to the field I/O capability of the NORDdrives, we were able to connect the majority of our field devices
directly to the frequency inverters." Featuring Industrial Ethernet communications, the drives enable
not only remote monitoring and control of all drive axes, but also seamless monitoring of connected
sensors and actuators.ForWilliams, this was a crucial factor: "The real advantage here is, the drives
support high-speed Ethernet, which allows for reliable bagtracking on oursystem."
Positioning function a welcomebonus
Thedrive systemstake on various tasksat the conveyor modules. Theymove luggageat different speeds
from one belt to the next. Theyensure accurate height adjustment when conveying diagonally.
Glidepathonly came to realize the full potential of the integrated positioning function of NORDACFLEX
inverters once the drives were commissioned.Asthey gathered parameters for variousapplications,
NORDengineers soon found that the positioning function was the optimal solution for the luggage
sorters. "On our four-way sorters,we took advantage of the NORDpositioning system.Weare very
happy with theresult."
Great serviceensures smoothprocesses
Glidepathproject engineer Williams is more than satisfied with the professional service. ANORD
specialist for their industrial sector provided significant support to Glidepath through efficient
standardization. "On this project, we have just five different gear ratios for ajob that has90-odd motors
in total and three different motor sizes", Williams says."That is ahugeadvantage. Asaconsequence,we
need only one spare drive per geartype and engine size." Thehigh service level was maintained
throughout the project. "We did not have any issues with commissioning NORDproducts. Theywere
probably the best thing to commission on the whole job, to be honest. Wedid pre-commissioning on

3. our own, but we also had the benefit of getting aNORDcommissioning engineer on-site with us over the
four-day commissioning phase,and he was just fantastic. Hewas very knowledgeable and very happy to
share information, teaching ushow to usethe NORDCONsoftware and the hand-held programmers. In
particular, he helped uswith setting up the position control with which we were not yet familiar. All of
that was sovaluable… it was really good. And the service did not ceasewith installation and
commissioning.I know NORDis just aphone call away, and they have folks close-by in Seattle who can
come to the airport quickly when we askthem to." After several months, Williams expanded on the
drive performance in regular operation: "We are very happy with the NORDproducts. There is nothing I
cansay that is negative about them. Everything is running. Wehave not had any problems with drives.
Wehave not had to replace anything. It has been a very good project, showing proof of a great
collaboration between Glidepath andNORD."
NORDDRIVESYSTEMSdevelops, produces and sells drive technologies with around 3.600 employees,
and is one of the international leaders in the industry. In addition to standard drives, NORDsupplies
application-specific concepts and solutions, even for special applications, for example with energy-
savingdrives or explosion-protected systems.Grosssalesamounted to approx. EUR630 mn in the 2017
business year. Thecompany founded in 1965 now hasover 36 subsidiaries worldwide. Theclosely
meshedsales and service network ensuresoptimum availability for short delivery times and customer-
oriented services. NORDproduces awide variety of drive units for torques from 10 to 200,000 Nm,
electric motors with powers from 0.12 kW to 1,000 kW aswell asthe necessary power electronics in the
form of frequency inverters and servo controllers. Inverter solutions are available for classical
installations in the switch cabinet and for decentralised and fully integrated drive units.
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