Pallet Control Line

Automatic machine for checking the integrity of empty pallets: brushing, nail-flattening, board/tenon control, colour, dimensions and forkability checks.

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Overview

The control station is an automatic machine that uses several devices to check the integrity of empty pallets. The system is made up of several control groups that can be combined according to needs:

Control groups

Brushing of the lower and upper pallet surfaces

The single empty pallet is conveyed by the transporter, integrated into the machine, through a set of brushes that clean its lower and upper surfaces of impurities. The lower brushes are fixed while the upper brush is motorised to ensure more effective cleaning. Completing the group, a manually extractable lower drawer collects the dirt.

Nail-flattening and load-capacity check

As the pallet passes, a motorised roller, with a pneumatically-controlled tilting up/down movement, applies a crushing pressure on the upper boards so as to ensure the reseating or flattening of any protruding nails. The nail-flattening operation is usually used to guarantee the stability of precarious loads during automatic palletising. The option of automatic pressure adjustment can be used to check load capacity according to how the pallet is used in downstream processes.

Block and board integrity check

The overall integrity of the pallet is checked by means of probing cylinders that apply an adequate pressure on all the pallet components: upper boards, lower boards, side blocks, centre blocks. Each component is probed by one or more PLC-controlled cylinders, which detect any inconsistencies and command the rejection of the pallet as non-compliant. The upper set of probing cylinders is fixed to a removable frame via a tilting movement operated by a pneumatic cylinder, to help operators during ordinary and/or extraordinary maintenance operations. This station too has a removable drawer for collecting any debris.

Colour and brand control

By means of a high-definition camera system it is possible to detect the different pallet colours (e.g. red, blue, green, etc.) and/or brand marks impressed on the external blocks. The parametric software installed on the supplied PC allows the operator to make certain variations of the adjustment parameters, in more or less detail, both on the chromatic values and on the reconstruction of the detected lettering.

Pallet length control

The PLC logic handles the compliance of the result with the machine settings.

Pallet flatness and height control

This control detects any variation in the height of the pallet surface. By setting the tolerance values on the machine panel it is possible to distinguish compliant pallets from non-compliant ones. The control, set in advance, can check the flatness of the surfaces, the height of the pallet or any differing board heights that could cause stability problems when palletising certain products (e.g. crates).

Forkability control

This control takes place as the pallet passes and detects the presence of any obstacles that could cause problems for fork insertion into the pallet.

Electrical system and safety

The machine is complete with an electrical command and control panel with a Siemens PLC, an operator panel and a light tower for a visual check of the plant status. The pallet control area is safely segregated by panels and/or photoelectric barriers but accessible to operators for maintenance operations or emergency interventions.