WAREHOUSING & LOGISTICS INDUSTRY FOCUS Reliable detection
The limited space at the Rauch chipboard factory in Germany means that code reading had to be performed extremely close to the barcode. Furthermore, the position of the code labels on the chipboard stacks vary depending on the height of the chipboard stack. Here a stationary barcode reader from Leuze with oscillating mirror provided the solution
A
t Rauch Spanplattenwerk in Markt Bibart, wood-based panels are manufactured using
fully automated production systems which are among the most modern in Europe. “In total, the factory produces over 500,000m3
of high quality
wood-based panels per year. The panels are further processed predominantly at Rauch’s own furniture manufacturing facility”, commented Reiner Maier, master electrician at the Markt Bibart factory. Following the environment friendly final manufacturing process, the wood chipboard is cut to size and packed in stacks and then labelled at the end of the production lines with a so-called ‘stack note’. Over 13,000 trucks loaded with stacks leave the factory each year. To ensure that the information on the stack note is always and immediately available to the forklift driver when unloading the many chipboard stacks, the stack notes must be attached on both sides of the stack. Maier explained this requirement, “During unloading, the stack note could happen to be located on the rear side of the board stack and therefore at a position that was not visible to the forklift driver.” An inexpensive solution was therefore needed which would also allow the product number relevant for the forklift driver to be attached to the opposite side of the stack.
SCANNER PLUS PRINTER An REA JET system from REA Elektronik in Mühltal (Germany) provided the solution in the form of a large character inkjet printer. The completely autonomous system was installed at the end of the conveyor lines where the individual board stacks await shipping i.e. loading onto the delivery trucks. The printer receives the data from the Leuze
electronic BCL 500i barcode reader mounted opposite. This is a line scanner which, owing to its beam spread of ±30°, has a large reading field at short range. The scanner reads the labels on the other side of the stacks and passes on the information to the REA JET system. The REA JET system then prints the product numbers in large and clearly legible characters on the chipboard stack. The stack then has a label on both sides.
OSCILLATING MIRRORS At Rauch, the conveyor line is extremely close to one of the building’s walls. The previously mentioned BCL 500i barcode reader is attached to this wall. Owing to the proximity of the reader, the reading distance is very small and - despite the large beam spread - the overall reading field is therefore extremely narrow. In addition, not all board stacks are the same height and the stack notes may also be at different heights. However, with the so-called ‘oscillating mirror attachment’ the BCL 500i is also able to scan larger surfaces and spatial areas for barcodes. The oscillating mirror guides the scan line up and down at an adjustable frequency. It is mainly used in cases where the position of the label is variable, the bars of the barcode are printed at a right angle to the conveying direction (‘picket fence arrangement’) or the barcodes are rotated so that they are no longer in a horizontal position. At Rauch, the oscillating mirror version of the BCL 500i scanner provides an adequately sized reading field despite the small distance to the variably positioned labels.
CODE RECONSTRUCTION Code reconstruction technology (CRT) from Leuze electronic ensures additional reading reliability. Whereas in simple reading systems the barcodes are detected entirely using a continuous scan line, code reconstruction technology enables offset and repeated reading of individual fragments of codes. The device then reconstructs these fragments to form an overall result. This technology enables the reliable decoding of labels which are not printed
precisely or are difficult to read
due to, for example, wood dust. Another advantage is that the user is able to
configure the devices. The integrated ‘webConfig’ configuration tool allows communication with any browser. Separate configuration software does not therefore need to be installed on a service laptop. This means that the device can be adjusted extremely easily from a distance.
Leuze electronic
www.leuze.com T: +49 8141 5350 123 /AUTOMATION Enter 203 Enter 9
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