Vertical energy supply has proven itself in storage and retrieval units from SIVAplan

• What was needed: The guide system for vertical energy supply: guidelok slimeline P; e-chain® and chainflex® cable, supplied ready assembled as a readychain® system
• Requirements: Vertical cable routing for RBGs, with high dynamic behavior. Even at high speeds and abrupt braking, the cable routing must be kept safely on track.
• Industry: Storage and retrieval machines, material handling
• Success for the customer: Thanks to the automatically actuated rocker, the guidelok guidance system guarantees a secure hold for hanging energy chains. And the pre-assembled readychain® supplied saves assembly time when setting up the stacker crane.

SIVAplan GmbH & Co. KG specializes in automated bearing and conveyor technology throughout the food industry, as well as in other sectors. The company mainly works for customers who see a perfect logistics chain as a success factor.

SIVAplan has been working with some customers for many decades and, in addition to new buildings, also plans expansions and modernizations of their bearings as a general contractor. The control technology, conveyor technology and storage and retrieval machines (SRMs) are always developed and manufactured in-house.

In every SRM project, the electrical design department is responsible for designing the energy supply to the load handling device. The energy supply houses cables for power and signals as well as bus systems, potential equalization and, in most cases, data cables for video or image processing systems. This is a challenge because the SRMs are highly dynamic when travelling. The suspended chain must therefore be guided in such a way where it can move freely vertically while remaining on track even when accelerating or decelerating in two axes.

However, as the energy supply has to be laboriously installed before it can function properly, a simple solution needed to be found for the assembly. In the past, the energy chain and cable were ordered separately, which meant that the chain had to be fitted with the cable on site. The subsequent testing also took time.

SIVAplan found the solution for energy supply in igus® guide system guidelok slimline-P (GLSL-P), a special guide trough that guarantees a secure hold for hanging energy chains. In each guidelok segment, an automatically actuated rocker ensures that the chain is securely positioned and prevents unwanted swinging, rocking and banging. If the chain passes through the segment in the radius, the rocker is unlocked and the energy chain can move freely. When the chain leaves the radius of the segment, the rocker locks and secures the energy chain again. 

Because the guide rail and holder are made of plastic, the entire system is lighter and cheaper, while the plug-in glass-fiber reinforced plastic guide rails drastically reduce installation time. Another advantage of the new plastic is that vibrations and noise are absorbed even better.

The glass-fiber reinforced plastic brackets are also highly resistant to deformation and cold. Impacts against the rail have no effect compared to metal gutters, which would immediately show dents or other deformations. Even in deep-freeze warehouses at temperatures as low as -35 degrees Celsius, the guide rails are tough enough to withstand shocks and impacts.

Tests in the igus in-house laboratory also confirmed the durability of the guidelok system. In simulations prior to the series launch, the glass-fiber reinforced plastic material of the guidance showed no wear even after 1.5 million cycles on a vertical axis.

However, SIVAplan's design engineers have been relying on our energy chain and chainflex® cable, which run in the guidelok guidance system, for even longer. To be more precise, the energy chain and cable are supplied together and completely pre-assembled as a readychain® system. This also saves assembly time and complexity when setting up the SRM.