Material Handling Station Status

TL50 Pro Select and PTL110 on bin station

Challenge: Manual Indication of Station Status

The material handling industry requires immediate responses to changing conditions. Effectively communicating equipment functionality and operator status have become critical elements to maintaining smooth operations in a complex environment. Businesses continue to find ways to meet the demands of an industry in which goods must be moved more reliably, accurately, and faster.

A facility manager in a recent material handling application needed to transport packages from the receiving end of the facility to the shipping end in an efficient manner. Their manual setup lacked communication of non-critical equipment states, made workers wait for materials, and slowed production when troubleshooting issues. Operators had to stand at stations to sort packages and when they ran out of material, or if a piece of equipment failed to work properly, the process was slowed significantly.

Solution: Andon Solution for Operator Guidance

The facility installed TL50 Pro Select tower lights as part of an Andon solution to keep their operation running smoothly. The tower lights were easily configured with Pro Editor software and the supervisor used Pro ID to create unique identifiers for each of their tower lights. This was especially useful because it allowed the production facility to standardize on a single model and customize for each process and status. This customization was an effective way to communicate to operators which tower light was indicating the issue, therefore minimizing downtime. Lighted segments quickly notified maintenance and supervisors of a quality, processing, or material shortage problem. Operators also utilized the omni-directional audible element for additional operator guidance. These statuses were usually initiated with manual switches or a nearby equipment interface. By notifying supervisors quickly, operators effectively met production goals and—particularly important for critical processes—continued without interruptions.

Key Benefits

BENEFITS OF PRO EDITOR INCLUDE:

Color, wiring, and animation options allow for more intuitive indication in the visual factory
Gain control of your supply chain and delivery through model standardization
Display advanced functions like level, time, and count without advanced programming

Intuitive indication with advanced capabilities

Banner Engineering’s TL50 Pro Select tower lights utilize bright, multicolor RGB LEDs that enable customized indication possibilities, including color, flash, and light intensity. With the free Pro Editor software users can access up to fourteen different colors and unique animations that attract attention and effectively communicate status. Pro Editor compatible models utilize an intuitive software interface to enable hundreds of unique colors and wiring variations, for control via discrete inputs. Communication is easy-to-see and understand, even in busy industrial environments. From simple to complex indication requirements, the vast color and animation capabilities offered by these tower lights provide users with an almost limitless range of display options to solve almost any application.

Pro Editor with Pro ID

Tower light devices have been a traditionally reliable way to communicate machine and process statuses. With conditions in the factory becoming more complex the need to support many variations of tower lights to effectively communicate information intuitively has become more important than ever. The Pro Editor software with Pro ID is a way to easily simplify these variations by enabling users to create unique identifiers for each device configuration. The Pro ID from Pro Editor allows for universal identification, device labeling, easier tracking, and simple replacement all from a short list of readily available models. Take advantage of a device that is as versatile as the TL50 Pro Select, with the power of the Pro ID from Pro Editor.

Dynamic communication for seamless control

IO-Link models allow for dynamic control and have additional capabilities that discrete units do not. IO-Link enables users to change device parameters from the control system as needed, such as during product changeover, which reduces downtime and allows machines to accommodate greater product diversity. These models offer unique LED color control to provide advanced users with total control. Take advantage of standardized and reduced wiring, increased data availability, remote configuration and monitoring, simple device replacement, and advanced diagnostics with the TL50 Pro Select with IO-Link.

Applications:

Intuitive material handling equipment status
Operator guidance and indication
At-a-glance material level
Supply chain simplification
Display critical process statuses
Show time elapsed, level, temperature, position, angle, or other “analog” type signals

Learn More

TL50 Pro Select Series 50 mm Programmable Tower Light

The TL50 Pro Select 3 or 4 segment tower lights are rugged, cost-effective, easy-to-install; they enable easy configuration with the Pro Editor software or IO-Link compatibility. Illuminated segments stand out to provide easy-to-see operator guidance and indication of equipment status. For additional annunciation, select models are available with omni-directional audible element.

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