Computer Back Up Tape Assembly Machine
Base plates are fed down a precision link indexer through multiple pin insertion stations. Pins are fed and pressed into the plates with precision location accuracy and parallelism.
This machine is used to assemble all of the Pins in a Baseplate for backup tape cassettes. These include the tapes that are typically used in PC tape backup drives from Colorado and Conner (DC 2120, 3 1/2″) as well as 5 1/4″ tapes used for larger backups. The Baseplates are loaded in a rotary magazine offloader in stacks approximately 18″ high. The stack of Baseplates in the magazine that is currently being unloaded is elevated by a motor driven screw so that the top part in the stack can be picked up and placed onto a conveyor that transports it into the machine. The Pin insertion stations hold each Pin in a near perfect vertical orientation and presses them down into the plate.
- Machine Number: 5217
- Machine Controls: This machine is controlled by a Mitsubishi A2S PLC using remote I/O modules located along the machine, 1 for each pair of stations. The operator interface is provided by a Cincinnati Touch Screen panel and all machine functions can be manually controlled. The screen also displays a real-time view of the status of all of the Baseplates in the machine. It can also display production and fault data for each status well as the whole process
- Cycle Rate: This machine can produce 20 completed Baseplate/Pin assemblies per minute