Automatic coolant management

Despite manufacturing’s continual drive to boost productivity through advanced technology, one aspect of shopfloor operation has experienced only halting steps toward full autonomy. The missing element is integrated metalcutting coolant management and maintenance, but that’s changed.

There’s an option to fill this gap with the Will-Fill Premium Coolant Controller that manages every aspect of coolant use. It automatically measures and analyzes a machine’s coolant mix, determining coolant tank level, and refilling with the proper coolant concentration if necessary.

In addition to eliminating nearly all manual steps in the coolant management process, Will-Fill enables users to take action proactively before coolant problems occur. Even when a machine isn’t running, the system monitors coolant characteristics including tank level, pH, oil/water mix concentration, water hardness (EC), temperature, and oil and water usage.

Using that data, the system performs automatic topping up and refilling and adjusts the coolant mix to the desired concentration. An automatic proportional- integral-derivative (PID) controller adjusts the oil dosing process. Based on coolant condition data that may vary depending on the shop temperature, for example, the system will mix an emulsion that best supports the operation.

Developed by Dierickx Tools, a manufacturer of fully automatic coolant monitoring and managing systems, the Will-Fill unit is engineered to be a reliable monitor of coolant condition and can perform between 400 and 1,000 measurements before manual cleaning of the sensors may be required.

Design of the system is also aimed at efficiency. When water and oil are added in combination, the system mixes them before they’re added to the coolant tank to ensure emulsion is homogeneous. This same circulation and mixing is also used for regular conditioning of the coolant. By moving coolant around, it has no time to settle and anaerobe bacteria can’t grow.

The Will-Fill system unit is mounted on the top of a machine tool coolant tank, requiring a 180mm opening on the coolant tank. The actual unit is 200mm x 200mm x 500mm. Eight different Will-Fill models detect level fluctuations from 120mm to 820mm, depending on the depth of the machine’s sump.

Implementation of the Will-Fill system requires a water source. Another hose from the unit feeds a shop’s standard coolant from a barrel located near the machine.

Will-Fill has Wi-Fi and LAN connections to provide real-time information and traceability. Data is routed to a cloud server for storage or for a graphical dashboard for online monitoring, including collected data on actual water and oil consumption.

Will-Fill’s automation and connectivity facilitate implementation of lights-out machining. Automatic monitoring of the factors in coolant application are accompanied by instant cloud notifications of anomalies that can interrupt untended production. Additionally, because Will-Fill data management is a cloud solution, users can immediately send emails to staff members when unexpected events such as a dirty sensor, an empty oil barrel, or an unexpectedly closed water tap occur.

Automated coolant management can use supplementary coolant-related systems including the PermaClean filtration system from Will-Fill’s partner and U.S distributor Jorgensen Conveyors and Filtration Systems.

Will-Fill also enables a shop to reduce health risks associated with coolant handling and to apply its labor force more efficiently. If coolant maintenance tasks for a machine require three employee hours a week, that’s time an operator won’t be machining parts. Adding up the hours of manual labor saved, improvements in machine efficiency, and reduction in scrap parts, a Will-Fill system can pay for itself in 12 to 18 months, depending on machining situations.

Jorgensen Conveyors and Filtration Systems, U.S. distributor of Will-Fill
https://www.jorgensenconveyors.com