This heater was reconstructed for the Škoda Auto Mladá Boleslav Company (cell #0) and is designed for the induction heating of cross-sectionally round billets up to forging temperatures. During its reconstruction, pneumatic, cooling and electrical components were all completely upgraded. The new heater is controlled by a Siemens programmable logic controller (PLC). The original gravitional chute was replaced with an angled stepping conveyor. These allows for the operator to add billets to the conveyor at the ground level, after which the billets are carried up to the inductor trac based on the selected cycle time. The temperature of each heated piece is measured with a non-contact pyrometer and the time/date stamp and temperature value can be saved to the PLC memory. Furthermore, the heater is installed with a hot billet sorter that re-directs improperly heated pieces (overheated or underheated) to prevent them from continuing on to the press. The operator interfaces with the induction heater using the control panel which includes push-buttons and an interactive PLC display. The heater parameters (desired temperature, power level, temperature ranges, employee login, etc) are all set on the PLC display. This same display also communicates any faults in the induction heating system to the operator.
Heated Material | magnetic steel | |
Billet Dimensions | Ø D, [mm] | 50 - 80 |
Length l [mm] | 95 - 200 | |
Power [kW] | 400 | |
Frequency [kHz] | 1,3 - 4 | |
Maximum Process Capacity [kg/h] | 800 | |
Billet Delivery Temperature [°C] | max. 1250 |