Vacuum valve with implosion
Granules
METROFLOW
With the METROFLOW gravimetric material loader, plastic processors can automate important areas of the production process cost-effectively and efficiently. The METROFLOW weighs every single load and evaluates the results, with a guaranteed precision of <1%. Gravimetric throughput control greatly improves the entire material management process and allows for full traceability.
A known quantity of virgin and regrind material is conveyed quickly and cleanly to the hopper of a processing machine or a drying bin. The material loaders come in 6, 10 and 30 liter volumes. The METROFLOW series is part of the motan range of products and systems for all stages of management, conditioning and preparation of plastic granules. The design quality, plus the engineering, ensures high performance and reliable operation.
The METROFLOW material loader sits on a robust but extremely precise loadcell mounted in a sturdy steel frame. The material and vacuum hoses are mechanically decoupled from the loader. Through this hose decoupling, the forces occurring on the vacuum and material lines are eliminated, so that extremely accurate weighing results can be achieved.
The digital load cell guarantees high accuracy with every single weighing. This guarantees a weighing accuracy with a very small deviation of under 1%. Any vibrations or oscillations caused by the processing machine are compensated for by the highly accurate control, which uses proprietary software to filter out any disturbances.
METROFLOW loaders are of modular design and are constructed from electro-polished stainless steel. Guaranteeing you contamination-free operation and easy clean down due to the high-quality surface finish.
The mesh filter is automatically cleaned by implosion after each loading. This guarantees constant and reliable material conveying and reduces maintenance costs for the loader. Because the material loader is air-tight, the conveying performance remains stable and there is no dust around the unit.
When equipped with a standard implosion vacuum valve, the material loader lid is free from any attachments such as hoses and valves. This allows you to safely and easily gain access to the unit, which saves time when cleaning the loader.
A spring-loaded damper on the discharge flap prevents the flap from completely closing when not under vacuum. During pneumatic conveying, any granules left lying on the discharge flap which might get trapped are first sucked away. With increasing vacuum, the flap is then pressed against the spring and will close completely.
Because the large material outlet has a discharge flap which is made of stainless steel, it is abrasion resistant and meets all requirements for medical or food packaging applications. The angled design increases the outlet area and helps with materials which may bridge.
The counterweight of the discharge flap is mounted on the outside of the loader discharge module. This means that the actual status of the loading cycle is always visible. Service work can be easily and quickly carried out, because of easy accessibility.
After each conveying cycle, the vacuum used for conveying is released and the weight of the material would normally cause the discharge flap to open. But - due to the newly developed magnetically operated discharge flap - the flap remains firmly closed. Only after the material in the loader has been weighed, is the holding magnet deactivated and the material is discharged.
An additional advantage compared to a pneumatic discharge flap: no sensor is required below the hopper loader. The material request takes place via the initiator at the counterweight of the outlet flap.
The optional hinged frame, which is available when mounting the METROFLOW on a mezzanine or large material bin, allows easy cleaning of the discharge flap module.
All METROFLOW loaders are equipped with the C box: our most advanced control box with alarm and status indication, on/off and other functions located directly at the loader. In addition, the integrated CAN Bus node contains all the electronics for control of the loadcell.
Several different levels of automation are available for controlling the METROFLOW loaders.
METROnet AE and AN: the ultimate networkable system toolkit for complex conveying systems with either a soft PLC or Siemens S7 PLC with WEBpanel and decentralised CAN Bus nodes for the connection of peripheral equipment.
All METROnet controls are totally integrated in the CONTROLnet platform and can be linked to other controls via Ethernet.
