Trade fairs - Lenze

systems. As a result, the Caviflex family
of machines has a wide range of uses.
The machines are characterised by high
processing speeds, reliable operation,
quick installation and commissioning,
and ease of maintenance.
Lenze servo technology plays an
important role in all of this. It is used to
drive the various processes with the
necessary accuracy and synchronicity. In
its Caviflex series, Santex makes use of
MCS servo motors combined with the
ECS servo system manufactured by the
Hameln-based drive specialists. These
controllers cover a power range of
between 1.1 and 13.8 kW, and can be
overloaded by a factor of 3.2. Lenze
supplies the ECS drive system with four
different software versions covering
commonly occurring applications –
almost the entire spectrum from the
simple servo controller all the way to
complex Cam functions. The ECS axis
modules can, however, be used to fulfil
very specific requirements, since it is
possible to program the axis yourself.
The program and control structures are
written in the languages of IEC 61131-3.
Santex chose this option in order to
ensure that the axis modules for all of
its machine models were perfectly suited
to the application.
To Carmelo Nastasi, Director of
Electrical Engineering at Santex, the
advantages of this approach are clear to
see: “Having complete freedom of programming
in the axis controllers was
the only way of satisfying our very particular
requirements with a minimum of
hardware and engineering.” The flexibility
of these drive controllers was a major
factor in helping Santex optimise the
cost side of its Caviflex laminating and
Professional footballers wear functional
fabrics.
coating systems without placing limitations
on their performance or ease of
use.
The result is a system in which users
have access to all four currently used
coating processes in one machine without
time-consuming conversion work.
The time which would otherwise be
used to refit and then restart the
machine can now be used to continue
production. This reduces production
costs. Since all of the ECS axis modules
come with a “Safely deactivated torque”
(safe standstill) function as standard
without additional external components,
maintenance staff can perform their
servicing work on the machine at short
notice without a need for time-consuming
shutdown and switching-off processes.
As well as the high level of flexibility
offered by the drive controllers, the comprehensive
communications support
incorporated into the ECS servo system
enables users to make use of three bus
systems working in parallel. A Caviflex
machine may have up to 22 ECS axis
controllers depending on the version,
and these are supplied with all of the
Sporting textiles
In action
During hard training sessions and while
competing, the clothing of a sportsperson
wicks between 1.5 and 2.5 litres of liquid.
How comfortable the clothing is to wear
from a physiological point of view – which
means the material’s breathability, dampness
and ability to manage heat – plays a
major role in supporting an athlete’s performance.
Traditional clothing made from cotton
absorbs sweat well but does not release
it again effectively. It is for this reason
that functional textiles were developed
from man-made fibres around 25 years
ago.
Optimum comfort and the wicking away
of body moisture can only be achieved if
the various items of clothing complement
one another. The first layer, directly next to
the body, should draw sweat and moisture
away from the skin. The surface area of the
fibres, and thus the fabric’s wicking capacity,
can be increased by changing the fineness
and profile of the fibres. Graduating the
fineness of fibres and threads from the
inside to the outside of the fabric’s crosssection
allows moisture to evaporate even
more effectively.
The functional clothing worn near to the
body is supplemented by weatherproof
jackets. These must of course be breathable,
which is achieved using membrane
systems made up of a range of chemical
fibres. The pores in the material are smaller
than the smallest water drop but larger
than a water molecule, which means that
sweat can pass through to the outside as
vapour. The jackets are made waterproof
by a laminating process in which the membrane
is bonded to the fabric layer. During
the coating process, a thin layer of plastic
(usually polyurethane) is applied in liquid
form straight onto the fabric, where it
hardens. This makes the jacket completely
watertight, but without allowing sweat to
make the inside damp.
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