Cut and strip machines automate measurements

Komax Kappa 330 benchtop cut and strip machines perform all the wire outside diameter and inside conductor diameter measuring automatically, offering very rapid setup and changeover.

Contax has released Komax Kappa 330 benchtop cut and strip machines.

The restyled, Kappa 330 is the first machine of its kind to provide fully automatic set-up.

Built on a host of new technological advancements, it provides greater flexibility coupled with faster and more powerful performance.

Compared to the current Kappa 235, the new Kappa 330 is able to process a larger range of sizes and variety of different materials.

As all the wire outside diameter and inside conductor diameter measuring is done automatically it offers very rapid setup and changeover, as well as higher throughput and more economical use of the product.

At the heart of the Kappa 330 are intelligent sensors for the automatic detection of the conductor diameter.

Until now, benchtop cut and strip machines have relied on accurate measurement of the wires.

The machine would then be programmed and set-up to cut the insulation without damaging the conductor.

However, using the new Kappa 330 series machines, any gauge of wire from 0.22 to 35mm2 with an outside diameter of up to 16mm, can be automatically measured by the sensor.

New motor and power control systems ensure acceleration of up to 4.0m/s.

The Kappa 330 uses a scanning laser to measure the outside diameter of the insulation.

This avoids the problem of any mechanical system that might distort soft materials and provides a contact-free, highly accurate, measurement.

To measure the conductor inside the insulation, the wire is passed through an induction coil.

As the conductor is insulated, the high-frequency signal is induced onto the conductor inside the wire.

The wire passes through a wire guide-tube, where a second coil de-couples the signal.

As the cutting blades are connected to the earth, as soon as they make electrical contact with the inner conductor the induced signal is grounded.

Thus, at the precise moment the signal disappears, the machine records the position of the blades.

An offset is then automatically added so that material tolerances are taken into account.

In this way the machine knows how deeply it can cut in to the insulation without touching the conductor when in its production mode.

This complete process is performed during the 'zero cut' function.

This is the process of 'trimming' the end of the wire to provide a clean 90 degree cut and confirm the exact position of the wires end cut.

The outside of the machine has been restyled to provide a more contemporary look and feel.

The display and keypad have been replaced with a larger, high-resolution touch screen that has been ergonomically positioned for easy use, improving the user interface and making operation easier.

The drive roller opening/closing system has been replaced with powerful 'snap open/closed' pneumatics, with the option of either drive rollers or belts to move the material through the machine.

The new Kappa is fully Ethernet-compatible, with a USB socket for Flash memory sticks or other USB devices.

"This is a real leap forward in wire processing", said Phil Shorten, Wire Processing Machine Group Director at Contax.

"Any gauge of wire can now simply be put into the machine and processed perfectly first time".

"No data is required and no special training needed".

"The machine simply does the whole job".

"To anyone experienced in traditional benchtop cut and strip technology this would seem to be impossible".

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