Roll-fed labeller

The Marathon SLA combines the field-proven Marathon SL technology with a complete Allen-Bradley drive-train and controls platform consisting of servo drives, servomotors, programmable logic controller (PLC) and human machine interface (HMI), as well as reconfigured electrical control cabinets.

The system is designed for easy operation and maintenance suitable for low- to mid-speed operations, it handles containers from 230 mL to 3 L at speeds of 50 to 250 containers/min and is capable of speeds up to 450 containers/min with added options.

Featuring Smartdrive, a 4-axis servomotor drive-train with automatic label registration and timing, the system maintains positional accuracy over its lifetime. With four independent servomotors communicating on a high-speed digital bus to synchronise labelling operations, Smartdrive eliminates the gears, belts and chains found in traditional labellers.

All electrical components reside in a single cabinet, which can be mounted to the side of the labeller or placed remotely, up to 24 m away from the labeller, to accommodate tight floor space as well as wet or caustic environments. Removing the electrical components from the labeller’s undercarriage has improved access to key machine components, such as servomotors, while also improving access to the electrical components.

The system features a 10" colour touch screen operator interface with intuitive drop-down menus, graphics and navigation bars. Security access levels for displays, data entry and system operations are configurable on a site-by-site basis by the system administrator.

Key operating parameter are stored in a recipe database and downloaded for each container and label combination. Eliminating time-consuming mechanical adjustments after replacing changeparts, changeover time is less than 15 mins from one full production speed to the next.