Transport Mgmt, Czech Republic

Highlights

• RipEX, 400 MHz
• Overhead transport management
• Moving Installation
• TCP/IP
• Base Driven Protocol
• FEC
• Flexible rod antennas

The ZPSV s.r.o. company, based in the Czech Republic, manufactures concrete products for the building industry, specialising in transport structures for railways and other ground works. The company started producing the first reinforced concrete sleepers, now used globally, as far back as 1955.

Their plant in Uhersky Ostroh, Czech Republic has three manufacturing halls. During the manufacturing process, equipment is transported between the halls using carts on an overhead transport system. Movement of the carts is managed by communication between the carts and a central control system.

With the introduction of new powerful engines to the manufacturing processes over time, interference levels increased substantially. As a result the original Power Line Communication became unreliable and a replacement needed to be found. The search was on to find a communication system that could withstand the high levels of interference and ensure reliable and efficient management of the carts’ movements between the manufacturing halls.

RipEX was selected for tests and was set up using TCP/IP with Base Driven Protocol managing the communications. FEC was also switched on to achieve optimal, error free communication. Initial tests used a dipole antenna. Unfortunately this did not fit in the passage so was replaced by flexible rod antennas in the final configuration without having any negative affect on communications.

The entire test took place during the quarantine period of Covid 19 with RACOM support engineers able to assist remotely to configure the entire installation. This consists of one fixed central radio near to the control room and three on the wagons in a moving installation.

The customer is very satisfied with the solution and has already ordered equipment to expand the network to cover the remaining manufacturing hall.