Intelligent Material Handling
Walk-Through Conveyor Section
A casting conveyor flips every part 180° and swings a section open so team members can pass safely on request.
CLIENT
INDUSTRY
SOLUTION
DURATION
The Challenge
The customer needed to move castings from one process to the next without permanently blocking a team member walkway. Additionally every part had to be flipped 180° along the way. Because this area of the plant runs unattended, the conveyor also had to be highly reliable: no one is standing by to clear a jam or restart the line.
Key Requirements
- 18-second cycle time
- Flip every casting 180° in line
- Swing-out section for team member egress
- Unlock only on team member request, with the conveyor in a safe state
- Run unattended with high reliability
- Handshake with upstream and downstream equipment
- Part-present and cycle-time monitoring on every transfer
The ICR Solution
ICR designed and built a four-section walk-through conveyor with an integrated 180° rollover. Castings from the upstream process move through VFD-driven conveyor zones, each with its own photo eye, onto a rollover powered by a braked 2 HP motor on a two-speed VFD; proximity sensors slow and stop it at each end of travel for a smooth 18-second cycle. The overhanging first section rides on a bearing-supported shaft and swings open: when a team member presses the request button, the PLC brings the line to a safe stop and unlocks the section, and the conveyor restarts only after the gate switch confirms it is closed and the release is pressed. A fixed archway carries conduit, wiring and air across the opening. A dual-channel safety relay monitors the e-stops, and the PLC trades ready/receive signals with the machines on both ends.
Equipment & Technology
- PLC with 64 discrete I/O
- Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 523 VFDs (2): conveyor zones and rollover
- 2 HP braked rollover motor, two-speed
- Allen-Bradley Guardmaster MSR126 safety relay, dual-channel e-stops
- Keyence photo eyes on every conveyor zone
- Omron proximity sensors for rollover slow and stop positions
- Omron limit switch on the swing-out gate
- Walk-through request and release push buttons with indicator
- 208 VAC panel, 10 kA SCCR
Scope of Work
- Up-Front Engineering
- Mechanical Design
- Controls Design
- Fabrication and Assembly
- Panel Build
- PLC Programming
- Installation
- Commissioning
Results
Every casting is flipped and transferred on an 18-second cycle, 24/7 and unattended, with no manual handling, while team members keep a clear egress path through the line. The swing-out section unlocks only when the conveyor is in a safe state, so access never depends on someone remembering to stop the line. Part-present sensing and cycle-time monitoring on every transfer pinpoint any jam, keeping operational availability (OA) high in high-volume automotive production.