CDU V3 Improvements
After monitoring the CDU V1 for millions of coupling cycles and talking with our customers about the performance of the system, we identified several areas that we believed could be improved.
Abrasive Wheel Life
The CDU V1 was able to deburr approximately 30 couplings per abrasive deburr wheel. With two wheels on each
CDU, and over 800 couplings per shift, this led to a big expense for our customers.
After working with 3M, and months of trial and error, we are proud to announce that the CDU V3 wheel life has
been improved over 250%. We now expect an average of 200 couplings per abrasive wheel.
Abrasive Wheel Monitoring
We have added a set of ToF laser sensors that monitor the presence and size of the deburring wheels. With this
information the CDU can maximize the number of couplings that can be deburred per wheel, as well as alert an operator immediately if there is a problem with the current wheels.
Maintenance / Service
Things break in pipe mills. The stress of running three shifts 24 hours / day takes its toll on the people and the equipment. We provide value to our customers by making it as easy as possible to service our systems.
All of the CDU’s sensors, solenoids, and regulators now share a common interface to the CDU PLC via IOLink.
IOLink allows for failed components to be quickly replaced without the need to reconfigure them. The IOLink Master device detects that a new device has been connected and immediately configures it to match the previous device.
Additional service improvements include an easily removable dust catch basin under the machine, a reduction in horizontal surfaces in the system that can catch dust, and improved wire management which provides additional environmental protections.