Futura and Omron Collaborate to Develop Paper Converting Process Solutions for Tissue

Giovacchino Giurlani, chief technology officer of Futura, noted: "The development of automation is the key to the future of tissue production. For Futura, however, automation is merely an instrument at the service of our people. Human ability and intuition will always be the driving forces behind any innovation. This is what we call MANCHINE, the perfect synergy between human talent and complete production process control."

K.Tateishi, founder of Omron, added: "To the machine, the work of the machine. To man the thrill of further creation."

It is this shared vision of the role of industrial automation which provided the impetus for a collaboration between Omron and Futura centred around the development of innovative solutions in the tissue sector.

It is a partnership which has led to the study and consequent development of "Smart View", an intelligent monitoring system used in the paper converting process.

Presented at this year’s "iT’s Tissue", the event which brings together OEMs, end users and system integrators from the tissue industry throughout the world, the monitoring system was developed by Futura using Omron FH series visual and tele-camera systems. It affords operators a live visual overview of every critical zone of a machine and enables them to instantly check performance against production data directly from inside the Control Room.

Any defective or non-compliant material passing through the machine is immediately identified, allowing the operator to intervene promptly and restore normal production activity swiftly, thus reducing both wastage and downtime.

The videos recorded in Live View are automatically archived on the local server and filed by date and time, making them easily accessible for later viewing if required. This allows Futura to monitor every single phase of production, including those before or after any incident requiring a review.

The Omron FH series vision systems also enable checks on the position of a machine’s components to be made. This function not only guarantees more accurate and reliable production performance, but also provides valuable input into planning preventative maintenance by helping to detect potential wear and tear.

The Smart View supervision system was developed with the aim of meeting any production requirement and being completely adaptable across all machines types.