AEC OS Series Gravimetric Batch Blenders - Manual (Page 65)

Page 64 of 118
5-8-12 Feeder Alarm Status Flags
If a feeder encounters an error while metering material during normal
operation of the OS/OA blender, an alarm signal is indicated to the
operator. (This is not active until the cycle time is learned
material must
be present in hoppers.) This feeder alarm occurs when the feeder has
been metering but no material is being dispensed. When this condition
occurs, one of three conditions can occur in the blender operation
depending on how each feeder flag is programmed in this menu. Feeders
are factory defaulted to (ACK) mode in Version 7.00 & newer software.
1. (STP) Mode In the stop (STP) mode, the blending system will
continue to try to meter material to the weigh hopper and wait for
the proper weight increase in the weigh hopper. During this time,
the blending cycle is interrupted until the target weight is seen in
the weigh hopper, and an alarm is turned on by the controller
indicating there is a problem. This mode will ensure that an
incorrect batch is not dumped into the mixer automatically by the
blender due to lack of an ingredient. If the batch is manually
dumped by the operator, it is the operator’s decision whether to
keep the partial batch or to dump it out.
2. (RUN) Mode If the alarm flag for the feeder is set to the run
(RUN) mode, and no material is being dispensed during a
metering cycle the blender will indicate a blending fault. The
display will indicate the feeding error and the number of the
feeding unit that is at fault. After the learned feeder time is
elapsed, the feeder will turn off, and the rest of the ingredients in
the recipe will continue to batch. Once the balance of materials
has been metered into the weigh hopper, the incomplete batch of
material will then be dumped into the weigh hopper, and the alarm
is reset. This mode of operation is useful when blending regrind
materials that are not always present during the blending cycle.
This flag should only be used for non-essential ingredients that will
not cause a product rejection if not present.
3. ( OFF) Mode If the alarm flag for the feeder is in the off (OFF)
mode, the blending system will not indicate a blending fault. If a
feeder is metering with no material being dispensed, it will shut off
and continue the batch with the rest of the ingredients. This mode
can also be used for feeding intermittent supplied regrind
materials, where an alarm is not wanted.
4. (ACK) Mode This mode operates similar to the STP mode
above with the difference that it will require manual intervention
(keypress) before it retries and continues to try to meter material to
the weigh hopper. The metering gate also remains closed until the
problem is resolved.
To toggle a specific flag when in the Alarm Status Flag Menu, simply
toggle the mode by pressing the feeder key number. Press the
key to save the setup and exit the menu.