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December, 2020
VMek High-Speed Vision Sorting Sees Rapid Improvement with Beckhoff EtherCAT
By James Figy, Senior Content Specialist, Beckhoff Automation
design and perfect his own high-speed vision systems. “I wanted to specialize in some segment of high-speed ma- chine vision,” says Lovvorn, general manager of VMek™ Sorting Technolo- gy based in Midlothian, Virginia. Founded in 2014, VMek offers
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numerous software and hardware so- lutions for vision sorting. The compa- ny’s sorting machines, including the Metrix Analytic Lab Color Sorter™ and Element Analytic Production Color Sorter™, leverage new tech- nologies to meet the needs of cus- tomers in the agriculture industry, including the top three seed produc- ers in the U.S. The Metrix uses two full-color
GigE cameras and offers a through- put of 600 seeds per second, while the Element has four full-color GigE cameras with a remarkable through- put of 12,000 seeds per second. The ability to provide valuable
data on every seed in real-time differ- entiates VMek systems from other col- or sorters that only separate parts.
VMek general manager Kent Lovvorn (left) and Beckhoff regional sales engineer Chuck Padvorac, P.E., (right) collaborated closely on selection of EtherCAT solutions (image credit: Kevin Blackburn).
“VMek software performs composite analysis using the front and back im- ages of each item. The software iso- lates each part and mates them to- gether to complete a 360-degree full-
part analysis,” Lovvorn says. This data allows manufacturers
and producers to analyze why indi- vidual parts were rejected and com- pare lab results with plant floor real-
ent Lovvorn left his previous job in 2012 with a clear vision: to work as hard as possible to
ities. They can also use insights to plan for the future. “The seed compa- nies can plan accordingly for the next grow cycle to either enhance or elim- inate specific traits,” says Lovvorn.
Continuous Improvement for I/O Despite the company’s accom-
plishments, VMek continues to re- fine its systems to provide more granular data and transmit them easily and securely using OPC UA — all without increasing machine foot- print. From the beginning, Lovvorn believed that continuous improve- ment of these systems would only be possible by partnering with top-tier vendors.
“When I started to lay the foun-
dations for VMek, I searched for hardware and software partners that developed quality components the right way. That’s when I found Beck- hoff Automation,” he says. During a presentation on the
EtherCAT industrial Ethernet proto- col, Lovvorn learned about the net- work’s ability to use PCs as real-time machine controllers. He decided then
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