Extrusion International 3-2024-USA

39 Extrusion International 3/2024 ProfilControl 7 Roughness Checks Quality of Rubber Compounds A perfect rubber profile starts with a perfect compound. With the ProfilControl 7 Roughness inspection system from PIXARGUS it is possible to check the quality of rubber compounds in a straightforward, time-saving and efficient way. T he transformation of the rubber industry is in full swing. Companies have to become greener and strive to enhance the already high efficiency levels of their processes even further. The requirements on the raw materials and additions used in the produc- tion processes become more exacting every time. New types of fillers and additives have been appearing on the market. All this is happening in an environment of constantly rising cost pressure. With ProfilControl 7 Roughness from PIXARGUS, quality control of rubber compounds can be automated and integrated within the data network of the production facilities. As soon as the system says that the quality is good, the batch can be released for production. No chance for defects and poorly mixed blends The ProfilControl 7 Roughness system checks the quality by measuring the particle size distribution in the compound. The system features a special LED unit that illuminates the test specimen of typically one meter length in such a way that the integrated high- resolution line scan camera can capture every detail of its entire surface. The images taken by the camera are evaluated by dedicated software in real time at a rate of approximately 100,000 particles per minute. The sys- tem triggers an alarm signal as soon as the size distri- bution is not as specified. Thus, it can reliably detect minute flaws down to just 20 µm in size. Successfully in operation at HF Mixing Group Mixing equipment specialist HF Mixing Group uses the ProfilControl 7 Roughness system in its Technical Center, the group’s central technology lab, where they develop and test new machinery and automation solutions for The Technical Center of the HF Mixing Group features two larger lab-scale mixing lines. For quality control, the compound mixing experts use inspection technology from PIXARGUS (Photos: HF Mixing Group) The PIXARGUS inspection system ProfilControl 7 Roughness checks the quality of rubber compounds by measuring the particle size distribution. It detects even extremely small flaws down to 20 µm in size. PIXARGUS’ proprietary software evaluates the camera images in real time. From this evaluation, highly valuable quality data can be derived for the production process MEASUREMENT AND INSPECTION TECHNOLOGY