Power supply directly in the field

Even with your system, you no longer need a control cabinet to power it!

As the number of I/O and sensor components, controllers and HMIs that can be mounted in the field has surged in the last years, larger and larger parts of the overall controller architecture can be directly mounted on the machine. Until now however, the power supply equipment always needed to be safely placed in a central but often remotely located control cabinet. Disadvantage: The distribution of supply voltages as low as 24 V over large distances requires high currents in order to provide loads with the power they need. This leads to high losses and requires large conductor cross sections.

Decentrally distribute 24 volts, centrally monitor power supplies with IO-Link
ifm’s IP67 power supplies, which can be mounted directly in the field, enable decentralised power supply. This means that large distances can be realised with a higher voltage, which requires smaller currents for the same amount of power, leading to lower losses. Moreover, the IO-Link-capable on-site 24 V power supplies allow computer-aided monitoring, configuration and diagnostics. Thus, faults that need to be fixed can be solved quickly and from a central location. This leads to increased uptimes; the overall efficiency of the system goes up.

The intelligent power supply in detail

Product advantages

What are the advantages of the intelligent power supply?

Robust IP65/IP67 housing for installation without control cabinet
A robust IP65/IP67 housing ensures protection against electrical and mechanical hazards. Moreover, the integrated surge protection eliminates the need for external circuit protection.

Supply and output connectors in accordance with industry standards
The supply of sensors and actuators via a single cable enables a separately protected current distribution with less loss both for sensors (Us) as well as for actuators (Ua), or simply two supplies to be split by means of a T splitter.

Supply diagnostics and load display on the device
A 12-segment LED bar graph displays the current demand of the overall system as well as the current demand of each channel as a percentage of the protection configured for each single output circuit.

Configurable voltage and electronic circuit breakers for each supply channel
For every output circuit, the integrated output protection with pre-alarm and usage diagnostics can be configured in real time. The integrated circuit breakers protect your system against overload and short circuits and can each be separately configured between 1 and 12 amperes.

Allowance for the voltage drop
To ensure that sufficiently high voltages are provided where they are needed, the cable resistance can be taken into account when configuring the system. The operating voltage of the system can be set in the configuration menu to values between 24 and 28 V. Calculation of the voltage drop for any system installed is recommended.

Typical applications

Robotics

The robotics industry relies on independent on-site control systems that either work without a specific control cabinet or with one offering only limited space. Reliable power supplies suitable for industrial-grade applications ensure that the robot cells work at the highest level of efficiency; moreover, they eliminate or at least reduce the need for control cabinets; the weight and footprint of the control system as a whole are improved.
The flexibility in the configuration of electronic circuit breakers and loads enables the devices to be standardised and helps reduce overall operating costs.

Product tracking and logistics

The success of an intralogistics or logistics tracking system depends on how easy its configuration and set-up are. As the need for control cabinets is eliminated, tracking systems can be installed anywhere in the system with no conventional installation needed.
Regardless of whether we consider the installation of one single UHF reader for access control to closed forklift areas, gantry loading solutions for perimeter control and the tracking of reusable objects, or outdoor tracking in agriculture or mining: Quick and easy installation is crucial, and remote diagnostics and control are a necessity.

Real time maintenance

Often, vibration and temperature sensors are retrofitted to simple machines in order to help with the early detection of damage. These sensors as well as the components needed to transmit the data do not require a control cabinet. But where does the supply voltage come from? The simple answer to this question lies in the power supplies that can be mounted directly in the field.

Assembly cells

Assembly cells are used for cost-efficient automation of routine tasks. Regarding those applications, the boundaries concerning size and performance are continuously expanded. Eliminating the need for control cabinets saves time here, both during initial equipping and during the service life of the machine, and helps increase productivity considerably over the entire service life of the cell.
The integrated electronic circuit breakers allow real-time load feedback and quick fault diagnostics, which enables the machine to be up and running again in no time – all of this without a control cabinet. Two separate output circuits in one single cable make virtually independent operation and the separation of sensors (Us) and actuators (Ua) possible with one single cable strand.