The new controller combines multi-axis motion control and IEC language programming with Trio’s new MS I/O system for flexible I/O expansion. The first appearance of Motion-PLC is taking place at the SPS exhibition, Hall 1-Stand 360, 12-14 November 2024.

Motion-PLC is available in six models to control a range of stand-alone machines, from two to 16 axes, including robotics integration. The Motion-PLC range is for applications that need motion control and machine logic, such as gantries, packaging, and glue laying. To achieve a complete machine automation solution, control engineers can integrate Trio drives, motors, HMI, and SCARA robots, as well as Modbus TCP, PROFINET, and Ethernet/IP devices.

All Motion-PLC models include Trio’s new MS I/O system, providing compact and robust I/O expansion through a slice interface. MS I/O slices connect directly to all Motion-PLC controllers, allowing up to 16 I/O slices that combine digital and analogue inputs and outputs. The MS I/O system can be extended further with Trio’s MSEC EtherCAT coupler, allowing additional banks of MS I/O to be connected via EtherCAT.

Motion-PLC performs motion and logic control in parallel thanks to a multi-tasking operating system. This optimises machine control performance by improving data sharing between applications and removing latency of fieldbus communications. Combining motion and logic functions within a single controller also minimises the requirement for hardware and cabling, reducing cost and footprint while improving reliability.

The controller’s motion capability is built on Trio’s motion-first automation platform, Motion-iX. Motion-iX includes a variety of pre-programmed motion features, from simple point-to-point motion through to complex kinematics and robot control. Motion-PLC also includes a PLCopen motion library, and motion can be programmed in familiar PLC languages based on the IEC 61131-3 standard.

Motion-PLC achieves extensive device integration and control with an EtherCAT port, supporting up to 96 EtherCAT devices. Motion-PLC also offers up to two Ethernet ports supported by an Ethernet switch, enabling application programming plus HMI and PLC protocol support via Modbus TCP, PROFINET IO, and Ethernet/IP. Application development and device integration is managed through Trio’s license-free Motion Perfect software, a single tool for programming and diagnostics.

Motion-PLC removes the footprint required for a separate motion controller or PLC and has also been designed for minimal dimensions. The controller modules measure from just 100mm high, 23mm wide, and 75mm deep, while I/O slices are just 12mm wide. The controllers are DIN rail-mounted, and the I/O slices feature forward insertion for easy access, and their connections enable easy wiring with spring clamp connectors.

“Combining motion coordination with the functionality and simplicity of a PLC, Trio’s Motion-PLC is a true paradigm shift in the world of motion and factory automation,” says Trio’s President, Tom Alexander. “Based on Trio’s advanced motion platform, Motion-PLC can increase machine performance, but as it replaces the need for a separate motion controller or PLC, this single controller can improve machine reliability and enhance design simplicity, while reducing cost.”

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The new quad-core Flex-7 Flexible Machine Controller also increases machine automation capabilities by expanding network connectivity and data processing power, combining control flexibility and compact dimensions. Flex-7 features dedicated cores for high performance communications and motion.

Trio will launch the Flex-7 Flexible Machine Controller at the SPS exhibition, Hall 1-Stand 360, taking place in Nuremberg from 12-14 November 2024.

The new Flex-7, a single controller for machine, motion and robotics, precisely coordinates high axis counts while optimising control and integration with expanded automation systems. The multi-axis machine controller is designed for large applications in manufacturing automation, packaging, and material handling.

Providing powerful machine control, Flex-7 features high speed Ethernet to give fast, reliable data exchange, optimising communications with wider controllers and networks. This is achieved with two, 1Gbps Ethernet ports, compatible with Industrial Ethernet protocols including Ethernet/IP and Modbus TCP.

The Flex-7 increases control to 128 servo or robot axes and provides the high precision motion coordination that Trio is renowned for. Flex-7 achieves EtherCAT update rates as fast as 125µs for up to eight axes, and the full 128 axes are coordinated with update rates down to 4ms. Ensuring consistent motion synchronisation for large machines, Flex-7 features better than 5usec jitter and can control a wide variety of EtherCAT devices including servo drives and I/O.

A theme of Trio’s Flex controller range is compact size, and this is continued with the Flex-7. Just 51mm wide, 147mm high, and 107mm deep, the DIN rail-mounted machine controller enables simple design integration and installation. Machine control functionality can be added directly with Trio’s range of click-in Flexslice I/O modules that communicate with the Flex-7 using EtherCAT via the Ebus interface.  Flexslice I/O slices give machine builders flexibility in adding required functionality while minimising space and cost.

Flex-7′s motion synchronisation capability is powered by Trio’s Motion-iX motion engine. Motion-iX is based on a command set for servo and robot axes, including multi-axis coordination in multiple dimensions, as well as numerous kinematic models for robotics. The motion engine is accessed through Trio’s Motion Perfect software interface, and programming can be achieved with Trio Basic, designed to speed-up development through its English language-based approach, as well as IEC languages including ST and LD, as well as PLCopen.

Trio’s Motion Perfect software enables fast set-up of servo drives and robots, and the software is also the centre of machine control integration, providing easy management of peripheral devices and network connections. As well as designing a range of controllers, servo drives and motors, and I/O systems, Trio can also support machine builders with turn-key automation solutions, including HMI and SCARA robots.

“Trio’s machine control approach provides machine builders with a motion-first automation solution. The Flex-7 extends this capability to builders of high axis count machines, giving them flexibility over machine control functionality, together with fast, powerful data processing and communications,” says Trio’s President, Tom Alexander.

“To create Flex-7, we’ve built on the popularity of Trio’s pocket-sized, flexible controllers by extending motion coordination up to 128 axes and boosting processing power to enhance machine control. Supported by Trio’s extensive motion library, the new Flex-7 will enable machine builders to quickly develop large, motion-first machines, with the machine control integration of their choice,” adds Tom.

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Located in Cardano al Campo near Milan, Trio Italy comprises a Motion Applications Development facility and product support team, as well as a Sales Centre for the country’s technical sales engineers.

Trio Italy will serve distribution partners, OEM machine builders, and systems integrators in the Italian market, developing motion-first machine automation solutions in sectors including packaging, food and beverage, and 2.5D.

The team will develop motion control applications based on Trio’s automation portfolio, including high speed motion control for up to 128 axes, servo drives and motors, I/O systems, HMI, and SCARA robots. Trio Italy will also be supported in its domestic market by motion developer R.T.A.

“Opening the new Trio Italy Application Development Centre will provide additional support to our customer base of machine builders in the country,” says Trio Motion Technology’s President, Tom Alexander. “Italy is an important market for Trio, and the country is a centre for sectors including packaging that demand high performance motion control systems. Our new Application Development Centre, under the management of Mauro Lavatelli, will help Trio grow in Italy.”

“Launching Trio Italy is an exciting opportunity,” says Mauro Lavatelli. “Our engineering team is highly experienced in motion control, drives and motors, and robotics applications development. The Italian machine build market remains strong, and we’ll be supporting our OEMs to create more productive and efficient machines.”

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With an employment rate of around 96.3% in the US, the effects of the Great Resignation are still being felt across various American industries, including food processing. In this sector, the demand for workers is high, with an average annual workforce growth reported as high as 27% between 2014 and 2021. Instead of having to rely on manual sorting, and the challenges that brings in workforce recruitment and retention, integrating robotics is helping the nut processing facility increase production.

A rise in robotics is also extending the potential to improve working conditions. At the plant, baked or shelled nuts are fed onto a conveyor, where operatives positioned along the line look for, and then remove, sub-quality produce. The conveyor is constantly moving for relatively long periods, while workers have to focus their eyes and repeatedly pick defective nuts. The new SCARA conveyor is in addition to the existing manual lines and has increased capacity at the facility. But, in future, replacing the manual lines with SCARA automation can enable workforce redeployment into less physically taxing, and more cognitively involved tasks.

SCARA increases productivity

Automating nut processing at the facility is not only increasing throughput, but is also improving product quality and consistency too, compared to traditional sorting. With the manual approach, defining a defective item can be subjective from person to person, and so can the ability to spot an unwanted nut, so consistency can vary. To ensure productivity, the conveyor is relatively fast moving, so the manual process also has to be completed at speed, balancing throughput with accuracy.

But substituting humans for robots on the nut sorting line requires seamless integration within the automated system, combined with high robotic motion coordination. First, the robot has to spot a defective nut, then it has to be able to quickly pick it with the necessary dexterity to grip and hold very small, non-uniform items.

On the new conveyor line, each SCARA robot pair connects to a camera vision system that plots precise coordinates to sub-millimetre accuracy. The vision system identifies defective nuts, and the SCARA pair then guides their gripper to pick and remove the unwanted produce.

A SCARA robot is ideal for this process thanks to its compact footprint, enabling the integration of multiple ‘pickers’ along the conveyor line. Rigid in their vertical axis but with freedom on the horizontal plane, SCARAs are designed for operation over a controlled path and can optimise productivity thanks to their speed and precision. Crucial to the intricacy of picking a small nut at speed is the robot’s end effector, which features a three-pronged gripper.

Speed and precision in SCARA control

Responsible for coordinating both SCARA pair, as well as the camera vision system, is a single Trio Flex-X Nano motion controller. The Trio Flex-X Nano also controls the motion of the grippers. XYZ-Theta axis control of the grippers gives three-dimensional motion, plus rotation, and also controls their opening/closing movement.

The Trio controller features deterministic, real-time EtherCAT communications down to 125µsec, with an execution benchmark of 125 lines/ms. This gives high speed commands to the robots, while Trio’s SCARAs achieve repeatability down to ±0.1mm and ±0.01°. This combination of speed and precision ensures high speed identification and picking, while optimising quality through consistency.

The 50 robot pairs cover a conveyor system around 50m long. This extended length and high concentration of robots ensures a refined level of sorting, giving the highest quality end produce. A single controller for each robot pair, instead of a typical approach of one controller for each robot, has also reduced the total cost in hardware, including cabling.

IoT integration

While the controllers coordinate the motion of each tandem of SCARAs, they also need to coordinate with the motion of the conveyor. Integration with the plant’s existing control architecture means that the Trio controllers connect to the hierarchy via Modbus. The automated line is also enabling IoT efficiency gains through real-time data management, combined with remote monitoring.

Trio developed the motion profiles and automation programming in IEC languages, and the company’s U.S. team is supporting the plant’s automation engineers. Though the new conveyor has only recently gone live, as a result of the increased productivity and quality gains that are already evident, the plant is now planning the introduction of further automated SCARA processing lines.

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Based on Trio’s Motion First Automation approach to machine control, the PC-MCAT-2 starts with motion. Building on a motion heritage with success stories in numerous industrial machine types, the PC-MCAT-2 is the latest addition to the Trio range. Trio’s focus on ‘motion first’ targets the number one factor in machine efficiency and production throughput.

The new motion controller is powered by an Intel processor and combines support for Windows programming languages with Trio’s renowned motion control performance. This provides a software integration platform together with high speed EtherCAT coordination for up to 64 servo and robot axes.

Machine control and IoT integration

Trio’s PC-MCAT-2 motion controller with software integration provides powerful execution of Windows applications for enhanced machine control. The motion controller runs Microsoft Windows 10 with a choice of four processors, from Celeron through to a Core i7, as well as up to 256GB solid-state drive memory. To increase machine functionality, PC-MCAT-2 can integrate and control virtually any peripheral device, such as camera vision systems or sensors, via its extensive communication port array. Ports include HDMI, USB, serial ports, and general-purpose digital I/O.

The motion controller also enables IoT connectivity, providing a high-speed link from the host machine to a wider factory network, thanks to three Ethernet ports. To enhance network segmentation and bandwidth, each Ethernet port has a separate IP address.

Trio’s PC-MCAT-2 allows a more flexible programming approach by suppling an API library that can be used in Windows applications, communicating to Trio’s advanced Motion-iX core of motion control functionality via a shared memory interface.  This provides a high-speed link to the motion engine and offers flexibility in programming language choice, allowing integration of third-party SDKs and motion for advanced machine control from a single application.

Motion performance

To increase machine productivity and performance, PC-MCAT-2 coordinates up to 64 servo or robot axes with Trio’s recognised high speed and precision. This is achieved with EtherCAT cycle times down to 125μs, 64-bit maths precision, and a motion command execution benchmark of up to 500 lines/ms. This capability executes Trio’s extensive motion command set, including multi-axis coordination in multiple dimensions as well as numerous kinematic models, developed over 30 years of field experience by Trio’s engineers.

For maximum motion performance, PC-MCAT-2 applications can be written in Trio’s original programming language, TrioBASIC, or IEC61131 languages with PLCopen. These languages execute on the advanced Motion-iX core, independently of Windows. Using TrioBASIC or IEC61131 allows programmes developed on other Trio controllers to be executed on PC-MCAT-2.

Integrating Windows-based machine control and motion coordination within the same device optimises performance by removing the lag created by an Ethernet connection to a separate PC.

OEMs can speed up development time with PC-MCAT-2 by removing the integration and debugging required with separate hardware. As a single, compact device, PC-MCAT-2 can reduce total machine footprint and hardware cost.

Enhancing productivity and performance

Relying on a single controller improves reliability for the end user as well, taking away any communication challenges that may develop following commissioning. To ensure durability in the field, the motion controller is protected by a rugged metal casing that improves heat dissipation, and the fanless design removes audible noise and maintenance requirements.

“The PC-MCAT-2 motion controller is an advantage for machine builders who need to deploy Windows-based machine control applications and establish IoT connectivity, alongside high-performance servo or robotic motion control,” says Trio Motion Technology’s president, Tom Alexander. “Combining PC-MCAT-2 with our portfolio of controllers, servo drives and motors, I/O, HMIs and SCARA robots, we present machine builders with an automation solution that offers the highest performance motion control, with support from a single vendor.”

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To create skilled developers of tomorrow, engineering department professors at the university, which is among the most prestigious technology institutions in India, require students to create bespoke 6-axis articulated robot applications.

The university selected Trio for its open robot control platform that enables students to develop bespoke mathematical models and mechanical movements, instead of being restricted to the pre-programmed functionality of a typical teach pendant.

“Trio’s robot is user friendly, which is helping the students to have industrial environment exposure and it enables students to develop their own robot programmes quite quickly,” says Professor Rageshri Bakare, of the electronics and communications engineering department at MIT School of Engineering.

“So far in this collaboration between MIT Art, Design and Technology Pune and Trio, two professors and six students have been trained and are currently developing pick and place applications with the robot control platform. In future, professors intend to open development to over 20 students from wider departments, including Electronics and Communication Engineering and Mechanical Engineering departments, to create their own robotic programmes.”

To help students speed up development, Trio’s real-text motion commands are fast and intuitive to deploy compared to PLC-based logic.

“With many robot controllers, their pre-programmed robotic models are restrictive, meaning students are unable to develop their own robotic paths. Instead, Trio’s system means that students can learn by quickly creating their own robot applications from scratch, writing their own mathematical models. They can even develop their own teach pendants using an HMI or laptop,” says Trio India’s general manager, Upendra Vanarase.

Trio has provided MIT ADT Pune with a 6-axis robot from Trio’s parent brand, Estun Automation, which is controlled by a Trio MC664 controller. Students are programming the controller with Trio’s intuitive MotionPerfect software, running on Trio’s powerful Motion-iX motion engine.

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The Flex-X Nano can simultaneously control machines, robots, and motion axes. The advantages of integrating a single controller, instead of using a PLC plus an additional robot controller or motion controller, include faster set up, reduced space, and increased reliability for the end user.

Powered by a 1.2GHz, 64-bit Dual Core ARM Cortex Processor, Flex-X Nano runs EtherCAT cycle times down to 125μs. Just 147mm high and 17mm wide, the new pocket-sized Flex-X Nano Motion Coordinator fits within an extremely compact footprint.

The new motion controller has been designed for applications that demand multi-axis servo control performance, including packaging, manufacturing automation, material handling, pick-and-place, CNC cutting machines, and gantries.

The Flex-X Nano Motion Coordinator advances on Trio’s existing Flex-6 Nano controller to further enhance machine productivity and quality. Adding a 64-bit chip, the new Flex-X Nano increases processor speed by 20%, raises Ethernet TCP communications speed by 10%, and boosts programme execution speed by 25%. The new controller also features 1.2GHz clock frequency, IEEE 457 Double maths precision, and a motion command execution benchmark of 125lines/ms. These advances achieve faster multi-axis motion coordination, from 2 to 64 axes, with EtherCAT cycle times down to 125μs.

Complex programs can run from Flex-X Nano’s 1GBit DDR3 memory and 1GBit fast serial flash memory, and a Micro SD card slot further extends this capability. OEMs can also add functionality including I/O and device integration via Trio Flexslice modules that communicate over EtherCAT. These slices ‘plug’ straight into Flex-X Nano, and up to 16 I/O slices can be connected to enable complete machine control. Further I/O slices can also be directly connected with a Trio EtherCAT I/O coupler.

The controller can be programmed via Trio’s easy to use, Windows-based Motion Perfect software with either IEC 61131-3 languages, PLCopen, or Trio’s core programming option. Trio’s programming option uses native English language commands that help to speed up development. Flex-X Nano is based on Trio’s Motion-iX motion engine that includes an extensive command set developed over 30 years of field experience by Trio’s engineers. These range from single axis moves, through to multi-axis coordination in multiple dimensions, as well as numerous kinematic models.

Along with the Flex-X Nano controller, Trio offers a complete automation solution, including servo drives and motors. The brand also provides SCARA robots, and ease of control can be enhanced with its range of HMI.

“With a pocket-sized footprint and motion control for up to 64 axes, the original Flex-6 Nano Motion Coordinator has successfully provided OEMs with the speed, accuracy, and precision they need to develop high performance machines,” says Trio’s president, Tom Alexander.

“Launching the new Flex-X Nano, we’ve retained this format and have enhanced motion coordination performance, giving an interchangeable upgrade benefit to existing users of the Flex-6 Nano Motion Coordinator. For OEMs new to Trio, Flex-X Nano provides an easy integration pathway to increase the productivity and reliability of their machines.”

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The final steps in the packaging operation of a pharmaceutical manufacturer includes cartoning, stacking, and palletising. With the need to increase productivity while maintaining hygiene and strict pharmaceutical sector compliance, this process can be optimised with a conveyor and robot as part of a pick-and-place application.

The advantage of a robotic pick-and-place application is that reducing reliance on human labour can enhance efficiency. Crucially for the pharmaceutical sector, as well as other sectors that demand hygiene such as food and beverage industries, minimising human intervention also reduces the risk of contamination, especially in a cleanroom environment. An automated, robotic system also prevents human error and instead can ensure end-to-end traceability.

Vision inspection is fundamental to optimise accuracy as part of a traceable packaging process, with systems including checkweigher, track and trace, and print and apply solutions. Specialising in this field, Shubham Automation has partnered with Estun brand, Trio Motion Technology, a motion specialist that provides control automation, including robotics. Together, this partnership has provided end-of-line solutions for a range of pharmaceutical manufacturers.

“Pick-and-place robots have gained popularity due to their adaptability and excellent return on investment, thanks to the productivity increases they provide. User convenience is a fundamental factor in the success of any packaging solution, and the pharmaceutical industry has embraced robotics due to the fact that it makes its production process more effective and streamlined,” says Prashant Patel, managing director of Shubham Automation.

Accurate solution

“One of our well known pharmaceutical clients needed to transfer packaged bottles from a conveyor into cartons that would then be stacked, ready for shipping. The company was handling the process manually, but we could provide them with a comprehensive and highly accurate solution with Trio Motion Technology,” says Prashant.

The pharmaceutical manufacturer needed to increase the speed and efficiency of the packaging process while maintaining critical standards in hygiene and traceability. This was achieved with the integration of a robot provided by Trio in support with parent brand, Estun Automation, one of the largest robot manufacturers in China.

The 6-axis robot achieves pick and place throughput of 60 bottles per minute. The easy-to-use system also gives the pharma manufacturer flexibility over packaging options, and the machine enables packaging in a matrix of 4×2, 5×2, 6×5, and 6×6 at the robot infeed.

The machine includes two additional axes, the first responsible for controlling the infeed of bottles into the line, and the second managing the outfeed of the conveyor. A key benefit of the Trio system is that a single controller manages both robot and conveyor axes. This not only reduces the development time required to establish handshaking between the two controllers, but it also provides greater reliability in the field for the pharmaceutical manufacturer, minimising the potential of downtime.

Implementing the motion solution

“A single controller controls the infeed, outfeed, and robotic systems. Typically, these systems require multiple controllers and HMIs for the robot and machine, making the system complex and expensive,” says Chirag Bhatt, application manager at Trio Motion Technology. “Using our technology, Shubham was able to provide a complete, accurate, and precise solution. With this completely integrated design, Shubham could increase efficiency and output for the pharmaceutical manufacturer, while helping to decrease their total cost of ownership.”

Trio’s robot motion and conveyor coordination is based on high speed EtherCAT communications for real-time motion control. Meanwhile, Trio’s Motion Perfect application development software enables programming via Trio’s motion-centric, easy to use multitasking programming language, as well as industry standard IEC 61131-3 languages. Applications can also be developed and performed on Windows using a shared memory API to interface with Trio’s sophisticated Motion-iX motion core, allowing maximum application development flexibility.

“Our latest end-of-line automation (EOLA) provides a complete solution to expedite and streamline the entire packaging process for our customer,” says Prashant. “Our smart track and trace technology solution tracks products across the entire supply chain. The packaging solution offers zero human intervention and is fully compliant with 21CFR Part 11.”

Providing they are correctly deployed to ensure seamless coordination with the host machine, robotics can increase the productivity and efficiency of a packaging system.

“Integrating robot, motion, and machine automation into a single controller allows system integrators and OEMs to design and commission machines more quickly and easily,” says Chirag. “A single controller means less downtime for the end user, which ultimately increases machine productivity. As a result, deploying a single controller to manage the robot, motion, and machine axes, results in a cost-effective, high performance solution.”

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The benefit of introducing SCARA (selective compliance assembly robot arm) technology to a machine process is an increase in throughput and precision, leading to higher productivity and quality. Typically including four axes of movement and able to lift around 20kg, a SCARA robot adds dexterity to applications such as pick and place for manufacturing assembly.  SCARA can also reduce machine complexity, achieving motion paths that would otherwise require additional mechanical hardware, development time, and cost, to achieve.

At the same, the perception of difficulty in establishing communication between a machine and its robots can be a barrier to introducing SCARA technology. As most PLCs don’t include integrated robot control, a separate controller provided by the robot manufacturer is usually required to manage the robot path planner.

“This presents a challenge for engineers because it creates two distinct development environments,” says Trio Motion Technology’s president, Tom Alexander. “It means that you need to establish an interface method between the machine and robot. This can take a long time to achieve, and it might have to be repeated for each new design.”

Interfacing a PLC and robot controller

For many PLC engineers, a robot controller is a separate field of expertise. As a result, the machine builder has to either recruit robot developers, or they have to rely on the robot provider for commissioning support. Whichever way it’s achieved, it means an additional system for the OEM to maintain.

Issues in handshaking between the robot and machine not only impact OEM development but can also extend to the machine end user. Challenges in reliability can arise out of production changes, resulting in a less stable and less flexible machine.

“Separate, individual vendor-managed environments can make responsibility for resolving inevitable issues more difficult to establish, and it also places increased reliance on a third-party,” says Tom. “Typically, this results in more downtime for the machine user and demands excessive support resource from the machine builder.”

The extra hardware requirement for the dual environment approach can also impact bottom line finance. “Perhaps the most significant challenge to machine design when interfacing a PLC with a robot, is cost,” adds Tom. “This approach means two distinct controllers to procure – or more if the application requires more than one SCARA – and extra hardware such as an encoder is also generally needed for a PLC and robot controller to synchronise.”

Integrating a machine and robots

Instead, Trio’s approach uses a single, motion-centric controller that includes robotic kinematic control as well as IEC programming of logic functions. This means coordination of the machine cycle, all motion axes, and robots, in one development environment.

“A single controller for a machine and robots ensures true integration,” says Tom. “This removes the potential of communication issues, dramatically speeding up machine development time. This approach also eliminates handshaking problems for the end user, not only meaning a more reliable system, but making production changes faster and simpler to achieve in the real world.”

Motion-centric control has been Trio’s primary focus since the company’s inception over 30 years ago. The basis of motion coordination, including the synchronisation of multiple axes across multiple dimensions, are characteristics that are also central to robot control, hence a shared path of development at the company. The UK automation manufacturer first added elements of robot control within its motion coordinator range in 1995.

Since then, Trio has released the Robot Programming System that controls Cartesian and Delta robots, as well as SCARA, and last year launched its own range of SCARA robots. As Trio controllers include the option of IEC language programming for logic functions, as well as scalable I/O extension, they can also handle many applications typically assigned to PLCs.

Faster development and improved reliability

In real world use cases, Trio’s integrated machine and SCARA system has been deployed on applications ranging from lithium battery production to bottling lines in pharmaceutical packaging. Recently in India, with a material handling application for the transfer of die tooling at a furnace, the integrated approach doubled the amount of machine cycles completed per minute compared to the incumbent PLC and robot vendors, thanks to the simplicity in communication of the single environment. Most significantly, project development time for the OEM dropped from an average of three months down to two weeks.

“The OEM was able to develop the solution with just a single engineer, where previously they required expertise for a PLC and a separate robot controller,” says Tom. “The solution was less expensive overall because of a reduced hardware requirement, and their customer is benefitting from a more reliable, easier to use system.”

Within the single development environment, it’s also possible to integrate vision systems via Trio’s motion and PC solution where third-party cameras can be connected through an API library. In a typical pick and place conveyor application, a SCARA provides conveyor tracking via an encoder, and when the object passes below the camera, its position and orientation is communicated to the SCARA that will then pick the object and rotate or change its position accordingly.

“Robot vendors typically charge a premium for camera and additional axis integration, so the ability to coordinate vision within a single system is another benefit,” says Tom.

Trio’s development is supported by Estun, China’s largest home-grown robot manufacturer. The decision to acquire Trio in 2017 was a result of the UK brand’s market share of machine controllers used within electronic device manufacturing machines in China. This is also a sector where Estun’s robots are heavily used and, combining Estun’s robot expertise in support, Trio’s SCARA development has taken place at the company’s Gloucestershire HQ.

“Some applications with a very heavy reliance on logic might benefit from traditional PLC and robot interfacing,” says Tom. “But for many OEMs, integrating machine and robot coordination is a superior approach.”

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The announcement follows Trio’s October 2020 launch of its full OEM machine solution, adding servo drives and motors to its longstanding range of motion controllers and I/O. Trio has an established presence in North America, India, China and Asia, and partnership with Micromech is a commitment to grow and support OEMs in the home market.

Developing systems for OEMs and machine builders with precision motion control requirements, Micromech has primarily focused on solutions for the medical, life sciences, packaging, and food processing sectors. Established in 1982, Micromech provides UK-wide systems development and support with a team of 22, mainly featuring development and application engineers.

The systems build integrator has partnered with Trio since the 1990s as its preferred supplier of controllers as a result of Trio’s high precision in motion control. As Trio now provides a full machine solution, additional benefits include assured compatibility and ease of integration that will improve time to market as well as providing a cost-competitive package.

From panel building and full system design, Micromech now supports machine builders and OEMs with Trio’s full product range that includes up to 128 axis control and, later this year, a range of SCARA robots. Micromech adds value by writing software for OEMs and spending time with their customers’ engineers to optimise machines from outset. Post installation, Micromech provides engineering support remotely and on-site.

“Other controllers can’t do what Trio’s controller can: this is why we’ve stayed with them. Now Trio has a servo drive and motor, it provides the full package,” says Micromech managing director, Mark Hall.

“Trio has always been our controller of choice and as a result, our engineers have a great deal of experience with them for programming and commissioning. As Trio’s controllers can handle both servo and stepper motors, they’re also very versatile. We have a strong growth plan for this year and Trio is an integral part of that,” says Mark.

“With significant in-house expertise in motion, drives and motors, and over 30 years’ system build experience, we’re very happy to confirm Micromech as our UK Solutions Partner,” adds Mark MacDonell, UK and Ireland national sales manager at Trio. “As Trio’s home market, the UK is extremely important for us. With Micromech, we will provide OEMs with the motion control capability to increase the productivity and performance of their machines.”

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