Human-Machine Interaction passes SICK's "˜Safety IQ' test at MACH

SICK's machinery safety experts will be on hand on stand H18-421 to discuss SafetyIQ, a full suite of safety products, services and systems underpinned by networking and integration that enables customers to achieve Industry 4.0-ready functional safety in automated production.

Safe human-machine collaboration will take centre stage on SICK's stand with an Industry 4.0 robot exhibit. Visitors will be able to personally interact with the robot, demonstrating a range of SICK products including robot guidance, RFID and 2D LiDAR scanning technologies as well as showing how SICK's safety light curtain and laser scanning technologies can be successfully integrated with the SICK FlexiSoft safety controller.

Seb Strutt, SICK UK's machinery safety specialist says: "Visitors to the MACH show are the engineers and production managers working right on the front line of human-machine interaction. They need to ensure compliant functional safety for operations such as metal forming and machining where operator safety is always the first priority but where flexibility in production is increasingly demanded.

"As the inventors of the safety light curtain, SICK has led the way in machinery safety for more than 40 years. SafetyIQ will ensure SICK continues to partner productively with customers, helping them to develop safety concepts they can rely on to meet all relevant regulations, while still achieving cost-efficient solutions that minimise downtime."

Among the highlights on the SICK stand will be the SICK microScan3 safety laser scanner with recently-added EtherNet/IPTM and PROFINET compatibility to enable easy integration of safety laser scanners into a safe network. This also facilitates simultaneous field evaluation of up to four fields, instead of the single field offered by standard I/O scanners.

The stand will also demonstrate a range of SICK's positioning encoders including the DFS60S Pro incremental encoder which enables motion to be safely controlled in automated guided vehicles or machinery requiring frequent operator interaction. The DFS60S Pro enables safe operator interaction at slow speeds without the need to stop the machine.

Especially when teamed with the Flexi Soft FX3-MOC Drive Monitor, the DFS60S Pro permits safe working without loss of productivity during routine operations, such as piece part loading, magazine replacement, adjustment on machining centres or splicing of material on reel-fed machinery.

SICK's manufacturing technical sales staff will be on hand to answer questions about SICK's industrial instrumentation products including for fluid sensing, and Industry 4.0-ready smart photoelectric sensors.

For more information on the SICK range of products, please go to www.sick.co.uk, or visit the company at the 2018 MACH Show on stand H18-421.