Market demands and production technology

ITM developed the Solaris to accommodate three main industry requirements that could not be fulfilled until now. The filter combiners on the market show insufficient flexibility in filter material handling due to the existing drum technology. Secondly the current filter combiners are too rigidly constructed, resulting in a lot of unnecessary parts changes. Last but not least, the industry requires solutions to place very small plugs in the centre, or in any other position, within the combined filter. By combining new concepts in the machine’s construction, transport and assembly of plugs, ITM created the Solaris, a truly modular machine for flexible combined filter production.

Wide variety of materials

Plug transport in the Solaris is suctionless. This means that a wide variety of plug types can be processed, including highly porous, non-wrapped, high- and low-density materials. With the in-line transport of the plugs on the Solaris, even hollow elements can be used. Recesses as well as cavities can be created as easily as any other filter composition. At the same time, the in-line transport method allows for more tolerance in the plug materials used.

Unique filter patterns

The in-line transport of filter plugs, in combination with the Advanced Plug Module (APM), allows asymmetrical multi filter segment patterns. For the first time, plugs as short as 6mm can be placed in the centre or any other position within the combined filter. Moreover, changing the segment patterns is easily done on the touch screen, often without requiring any mechanical changes to the machine. As each plug feeder module is driven by its own servo motors, the order in which the plugs are inserted in the in-line transport chain is completely configurable.

True modularity

The Solaris is designed as a truly modular machine. Each plug feeder module in the Solaris is fully self-sufficient and contains all necessary controls and supporting equipment. The Solaris can be equipped with two types of plug modules. The Standard Plug Module (SPM) can handle plugs of 12mm or longer. The Advanced Plug Module (APM) can handle plugs as small as 6mm and position them in asymmetrical patterns. Any combination of these modules can be created without changing anything to the standard Transfer Module (TM) and Rod Maker Module (RMM).

Replacing a module merely requires linking it up to the in-line transport, connecting the cables and resuming production. Extending a dual filter combiner to a triple filter combiner is just as easy.

With the options for off-line configuration of a plug module and the automatic teach-in method in the control software of the Solaris, performing a module replacement can be done within one hour. This is the true time required from stopping production with one specification to resuming production with the new specification. No other system today offers this level of true modularity.

Another aspect that follows from the modular design and in-line transport method is the option to interchange the plugs from two modules without physically moving the modules. Simply move the destination of the plugs from the modules to another location in the combined filter rod and run a teach-in procedure. The work is done completely from the touch screen and only takes minutes.

Standardization of base rods

A major characteristic of the Solaris is that it can handle base rods from 60mm to 150mm and divide these base rods in up to 20 individual plugs. This feature is a major step forward in the combined filter rod production, as it allows for a reduction in the amount of different base rods that are required. This means that the Solaris helps to increase the uptime of the machines that produce the base rods, because they need to be converted less frequently.

Maximum ROI by minimizing downtime

The Solaris modules are driven by separate servo motors via the Siemens Simotion D control system. This enables precise control of all machine parts while at the same time ensuring high flexibility. All production-related parameters are stored in recipes, making it possible to change between different filter configurations in minutes. This leads to minimized downtime of the machine, even when production changes are performed.

Another aspect in efficiency is the reduction of rejected materials. The Solaris is fitted with various checking mechanisms that allow automatic removal of sub-prime filters without stopping production. With the in-line transport technology of the Solaris, a missing plug in one filter does not cause problems for subsequent filters and does not require a restart of production to re-align the plugs. The filter segment with the missing plug is automatically ejected, without disrupting the production run.

Conclusion

With the Solaris filter combiner, precision and flexibility in combined filter production is brought to a level that was never reached before. The unsurpassed flexibility in filter composition allows high efficiency and uptime, even when you are producing a wide variety of products. With Solaris, ITM is redefining the art of multi-segment filter production.