ABB PFSA107-Z42 DTU Stressometer Digital Transmission Unit

ABB PFSA107-Z42 DTU Stressometer ®： The core digital transmission equipment for measuring the shape of rolling mill plates

Product positioning and system background

ABB PFSA107-Z42 DTU (Digital Transmission Unit) is an ABB Stressometer ® The key signal transmission equipment in the flatness measurement system. Since its first launch in 1967, the Stressometer system has undergone over 50 years of continuous innovation and has now achieved online measurement and control of plate shape on more than 1200 rolling mills worldwide. The emergence of ABB PFSA107 DTU marks a significant upgrade in the transmission of flatness measurement signals from traditional contact slip rings to fully digital, non-contact fiber optic transmission, completely solving the pain points of unstable signals and frequent maintenance in old rolling mills.

As part of the Stressometer system, ABB PFSA107-Z42 DTU is dedicated to providing excitation power to rotating measuring rollers and high-speed bidirectional transmission of measurement signals. It is installed at the end of the measuring roll and integrated into the automation system of the rolling mill along with ABB's circular (PFVL 141C), rectangular (PFVL 141V), circular (PFVL 141R), and small circular (QGPR 104/102) rolling force sensors, forming a complete data link from physical force perception, signal conditioning to closed-loop control decision-making.

The core technical principle of non-contact transmission

The core technological highlight of ABB PFSA107-Z42 DTU lies in its non-contact signal transmission architecture. The device integrates a non-contact rotating transformer internally to provide stable excitation current to the rotating measuring roller, thereby achieving wear-resistant transmission of sensor power supply; In addition, a non-contact capacitive coupling link is used to receive the induced voltage signal on the measuring roller.

Unlike traditional optical transmission schemes that are susceptible to lens contamination and air impurities, capacitive coupling links are completely insensitive to the surrounding air quality. The following diagram shows the signal transmission path of ABB PFSA107 DTU in the rolling mill:

[Measurement roller sensor] → [Rotary transformer power supply] → [PFSA107 DTU] → [Capacitive coupling link] → [Fiber optic cable] → [Control cabinet]

↑                    ↑                   ↑                  ↑                ↑

(Plate shaped signal) (Non contact power supply) (Signal conditioning) (High speed fiber optic transmission) (Stressometer controller)

After the measurement signal undergoes conditioning and analog-to-digital conversion inside the DTU, it is transmitted to the Stressometer controller in the control room through fiber optic cables, completely eliminating electromagnetic interference problems during long-distance signal transmission. Combined with ABB's unique parallel measurement architecture, all measurement channels are sampled simultaneously at the same time, and the measured voltage signals are directly converted into plate shape values in real time and participate in closed-loop control of actuators such as air pressure, tilt rollers, and bending rollers.

High speed and high-precision signal performance

The ABB PFSA107-Z42 DTU supports measuring roll speeds up to 4000 rpm and a fully enclosed protection level of up to IP65. Paired with SKF hybrid deep groove ball bearings, the bearing life exceeds 4.5 million hours, meeting the needs of maintenance free continuous operation of rolling mills for many years. In order to achieve the fastest system response speed, the Stressometer system achieved 4 measurements per revolution on a measuring roller with a diameter of 313 mm, with a total scanning point of 256 points per meter and a maximum parallel transmission of 80 measurement signals.

The high-density and highly synchronized shape data transmitted by ABB PFSA107 DTU, combined with ABB's patented Extended Singular Value Decomposition (ESVD) algorithm and Automatic Shape Control (AFC) model, significantly improves the shape control level of ultra-thin metal foil materials. Especially in the new generation Stressometer low force plate forming system, its resolution can be precise to within a few grams of force range, effectively controlling the thickness of ultra-thin aluminum foil, copper foil, and steel foil down to 5 microns. ABB has recently launched a Stressometer 9.2 system upgrade, adding advanced features such as 2D/3D visualization tools, one click actuator modeling, and predictive controllers, further helping users improve the efficiency and quality of rolling mill operation.

Actual engineering benefits

The most intuitive benefits for rolling mill users who have introduced ABB PFSA107-Z42 DTU come from precise control of plate shape quality, significant improvement in production efficiency, and significant reduction in downtime risk. In the actual production case of Gr ä ges Aluminum Company, the application of ABB Stressometer system has improved the quality of its plate shape by 40%. The ABB Stressometer system can help users achieve higher rolling speeds, lower scrap rates, lower production costs, and more optimized full process logistics control, thereby creating significant economic benefits.