Virtually any type of machine or equipment that uses the material on a roll or manufactures material that is wound or unwound will need to have very specific tension control throughout the process.
This tension control is essential to ensure a uniform quality in the material, the packaging process or for coating or winding. Without accuracy in the tension throughout the process quality control would be an impossibility.
Maintaining and monitoring that tension is the responsibility of the web tension control system. These types of systems are most commonly found in processing industries for paper and different types of films used in packaging. They are also found in textile industries, steel production, wire manufacturing and in virtually any other type of protection where the material is wound or coiled as part of the process.
Open or Closed Loop
There are many different options in the various components that make up a web tension control system. One of the important factors to consider is if the process requires an open or closed loop process.
The closed loop web tension control system uses a controller to automatically control the tension as provided by the load cell and the transducer in the system. This is used to eliminate the need for manual adjustments on the equipment to maintain the tension within the pre-set operational range. The adjustment is instantaneous when there is a variation in the tension as measured by the load cell.
An open loop system provides information to the indicator, but it will be up to the operator to make the adjustment. This manual adjustment, which changes the voltage or output of the system to change how an actuation device engages or disengages to change the torque. This, in turn, changes the tension and the system is brought back into the desired operating tension range.
