Individually tailored automation solutions implemented in collaboration with the customer using state-of-the-art tools.
We are proficient in the methods of modelling, simulation and control unit design, and we have state-of-the-art tools at our disposal. This means we are able to develop individually tailored automation solutions and collaborate with our customers to apply these in practice.
We possess in-depth knowledge of fast FPGA-implemented algorithms for signal processing and control, the programming environment LabVIEW (as a National Instruments alliance partner), SPS and PC-based control technology, MATLAB/Simulink, FEM and Multi Body Dynamics (MBD), wireless (Bluetooth, ZigBEE), microcontrollers, FPGA, BACNet, OPC.
We also have an ample lab infrastructure at our disposal which enables projects to be carried out at low cost.
Laboratory for regulation technology
Laboratory for control technology
Laboratory for electronics
Laboratory for electrical engineering
Laboratory for industrial image processing
Laboratory for microsystems technology
Laboratory for industrial communication technology
Many products have to be wound/unwound during processing. Here, the tensile force in the product to be processed has an important influence on production quality and is therefore maintained at a constant level by means of a control system. During winding or unwinding, the weight of the rollers changes by a factor of between 10 and 100. This changes the dynamic of the systems, posing a very challenging control problem.
The control parameters have to be determined for each product to be processed on the machine, requiring elaborate tests that are both time-consuming and material-intensive. What is more, the controller has to be stable across the entire operating range, yet also quick enough to be able to respond to disruptions.
Result
A CTI project was carried out to develop a controller able to determine the control parameters itself from the start of production (auto tuning) and adapt them during production to changing conditions.
The control algorithm was applied to a company's controller series and is now sold as part of the product range. The controller is currently being used successfully in three systems.
Background
There’s flour – and there’s flour. Croissants require a different flour mixture from whole grain bread or Swiss-style bread. The head miller thus has the problem of having to mix different flour quantities in such a way as to create the desired product combinations while also maximising profits.
Result
A tool was developed to cope with this far from insignificant problem that would allow the head miller to achieve optimum interactive planning of different flour types. For a large mill in China, the tool was shown to improve yield by 2%. Financially speaking, this means that development costs are recovered within a few months.
sonic emotion is a company that develops professional sound systems and 3D audio technology for consumer products. It has been involved in supplying professional sound systems for years, having developed, patented and implemented novel audio concepts including concentrated arrays of speakers based on wave field synthesis.
Result
In collaboration with the Institute of Microelectronics, with the support of the Institute of Automation and funded by the CTI, a project was carried out to implement an FPGA-based prototype for a new ambient sound system with concentrated speakers. Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) allow signal processing algorithms to be parallelised while at the same time “rolling out” sequential processes in the form of processing chains (pipelines) in hardware. In this way, the data throughput and processing power is increased as compared to purely sequentially operating processors.
Where processors are no longer sufficient in terms of their performance capacity, programmable logic is used in the form of FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Arrays). This allows hundreds of computing operations to be performed in two or three clock cycles. Typical applications are to be found in image processing, communication and transmission technology, fast control algorithms and signal analysis. In the latter area, it is mainly broadband spectral analysis that is applied in research fields such as atmospheric physics or radio astronomy.
Result
A CTI project was carried out to achieve peak capability of FPGA-based spectral analysis in terms of function and performance. The functional range in 1 and 2-channel operation was significantly expanded and can be configured on the fly. This opens up new possibilities for a wide range of applications, in particular in radio astronomy and atmospheric physics.
