Introduction to the Material Feed System

Before You Begin

Safety: Stop the machine, follow the site lockout/tagout procedure, verify that hazardous energy is controlled, and release or secure stored mechanical and pneumatic energy before opening a panel, removing a guard, or adjusting components. Electrical work must be performed by a qualified technician.

Description

The material feed system consists of the conveyors that move material through the saw. The conveyors use custom #120 chains to support the material. Software synchronizes the two sides, so there is no mechanical connection between them. From time to time, the material feed conveyors must be homed to correct their alignment.

Material feed speeds

The material feed conveyor has three automatic speeds.

1. Feeding speed which occurs while the operator is feeding lumber into the saw.
   • The feeding speed is either controlled by the manual conveyor speed or the automatic speed controls.
2. Cutting speed which is the speed in which the lumber can be cut. This is normally faster than the feeding speed and is calculated by the length of cut and the quantity of cuts which directly relates to the recovery time of the blade.
   • Can be overridden when in manual mode by adjusting the conveyor speed. In automatic mode it can’t be overridden.
3. Empty saw speed which is always 100% and is the speed in which the lumber goes after the lumber has cleared the blades and has been cut.
   • Empty saw speed can be disabled by the disable auto speed up after the cut.

Troubleshooting

The two most common problems are a stall on one side and a loss of synchronization.

Conveyor Stalls

1. Check the Check screen that everything is green and there are no issues. If there are issues fix those first.
2. Check chain tightness if the chain is loose or tight it can cause it to stall. The correct tension is the chain should lift ~ 1/4″ on the incline of the conveyor off of the roller guide.
3. Move the movement independent of each other. Verify that the encoder is counting on each and make sure that the load is not over 100%. If the load is over 100% then there is most likely something mechanical obstructing the conveyor.
4. If the load is below 100% and both sides are counting. We need to run the conveyor as normal and look for “Lost Synchronization” error.
5. If lost synchronization error then we need to check both of the encoders to make sure that the set screws are secure.
6. If lost synchronization error continues to occur replace the encoder on the side that keeps throwing the error.
7. Normally one of the above steps will fix the issues. Call for more information if this doesn’t fix the issue.

Confirm the Result

After restoring the machine through the approved startup procedure, confirm that the position or count changes in the correct direction, returns consistently, and reaches the commanded value without an encoder, calibration, or overrun warning.

If the issue remains, record the exact on-screen message, affected component, indicator-light state, and the last change made. Provide those details to Enventek Technical Support; do not repeatedly recalibrate or replace parts without identifying the cause.