New Schuler presses have been successfully using ServoDirect Technology for several years, and now, with the aid of Schuler’s patented Dualdrive technology, it is possible to retrofit conventional flywheel presses. Modernizing existing presses can boost their productivity by as much as 50 percent.
During the retrofit, Schuler’s service experts mount a servo motor directly onto the driveshaft. The flywheel and existing drive unit remain in place and unchanged – as do all performance features of the press, such as its press force before bottom dead centre and rated capacity. There is also no need to adjust the existing gear drives.
What does change is the performance: The servo drive enables users to freely program the slide speed before and after the forming phase. The slide is only moved by the existing flywheel drive during the forming phase. This shortens cycle times while also expanding the range of possible product variants. In order to fully utilize this increased performance, the machine’s peripheral equipment can also be adapted and modernized.
Despite the additional servo motor, the modernized press boasts improved energy efficiency compared to its previous generation, with the rapid increase in productivity reducing energy consumption per part produced.
Because the flywheel drive is still used for the forming operation, existing dies and tooling can continue to be used without adjustment – as can the control system to a large extent. Schuler’s service experts simply enhance the system with the addition of a servo module and adapt the drive control and feed. The investment quickly pays for itself.