NexPlate Daily Operation and Bin Workflow

Overview

NexPlate ejects plates from its racks onto a belt, lays them out one truss at a time (a layer), lifts each layer into a bin with the carousel magnets, and moves finished bins out on the bin system. The operator stacks the bins on a cart for one station, and the cart goes to the station by NexBot robot or by hand.

This article is the normal sequence for a shift: start the machine, load work, run, handle bins and carts, and shut down. For what each part of the machine does, see NexPlate System Overview and Screen Map.

Before You Begin

• Only trained personnel should operate NexPlate or clear jams.
• NexPlate moves without warning once you press Start or Clear Fault. Keep hands, hair, loose clothing and tools away from the racks, belt, carousel, magnets and bin system whenever the machine is powered, even when it looks stopped.
• Never reach into the machine while it is powered and not locked out. Pressing the E-stop is not a lockout.
• Do not bypass guards, sensors or safety devices.
• Know where every E-stop is. The Check tab lists each emergency-stop input on your machine by name.

Daily Startup

1. Walk around the machine. Check that the area is clear of people, tools and loose plates, that nothing is left on the belt, the carousel or the bin system, and that every E-stop is released.
2. Check that the racks you need have plates and that empty bins are stocked at the loader. Check that the air supply is on.
3. Turn on the machine power in the order your plant procedure sets. The machine computer starts NexPlate by itself and opens it full screen on the Pick tab. The window title reads NEXPLATE followed by the version and your machine’s name.
4. Leave the machine alone while it starts. NexPlate loads the work it saved last time (jobs, station queues, carts, belt work, bin and carousel records) and checks that it matches what it finds on the machine. The machine always starts paused.
5. Wait about 30 seconds. If anything blocks Start, the Startup recovery screen opens by itself. Work down its cards from the top until the header reads RECOVERY COMPLETE – press Start. See The NexPlate Startup Recovery Screen.
6. Open the Check tab. The drive lines, every E-stop input, and the memory, system and network lines should be healthy. The Backup band at the bottom should read Backup: Good. Backup: Pending is normal for a short while. If it reads Backup: Bad, tell your supervisor before you run the machine.

Load the Work

Jobs must be in a station’s queue before NexPlate can build a cart for that station.

1. Open the Work tab, then Station.
2. Open the job file in the work list.
3. Choose the station, the Scheme and the plate order.
4. Tap Add Batch, or Add Partial Batch for part of the job.
5. Check the queue on the left. Use Up, Down and Remove Selected to change the order.

Supervisors can also drop .tps files onto stations from the Station Upload web page (Job Management menu).

Start the Machine

1. Look at the machine. Make sure everyone is clear.
2. On the Pick tab, read the status bar. It should be green with no fault.
3. Press Start. The button changes to Stop and the status bar reads Belt: Running and similar messages.
4. If the station has already asked for a cart, the machine starts loading. If not, tap that station’s colored button (for example Station 3: 9 bins / 5 trusses) to load its next cart’s work.

If Start does not run the machine, the status bar tells you why:

Message	What to do
START BLOCKED – physical E-stop is active.	Release the E-stop, look at the machine, then press Start again.
START BLOCKED – startup recovery has not finished.	Use the Startup recovery screen.
START BLOCKED – carousel position is untrusted and requires verification.	Confirm the carousel side on Repair > Carousel, or from the recovery screen.
RUN waiting – …	Wait a few seconds. Parts of the machine are still starting.
RUN waiting – no physical bin is present at the carousel unloading position.	Put a bin on the bin system.
RUNNING – … but nothing moves	There is probably no work loaded for any station. Load work and tap a station button.

While the Machine Runs

• Watch the status bar. Green is fine. If it turns red, read the message, fix the cause, keep everyone clear, then press Clear Fault. Clear Fault clears the fault and starts the machine again, so look first.
• Watch the racks on the Pick tab. Green means plenty of plates. Yellow (LOW) means the rack is counting down; refill it before it turns red (OUT). A red Rack N jammed banner means the rack ejector did not finish; make the machine safe, clear the jam, then tap the rack and choose Clear Fault.
• Watch the bin system. When a bin is ejected the status bar shows Eject Bin. If it shows Bin Conveyor Full. Please remove bin to continue., take a finished bin off. This is not a fault.
• Do not leave the machine paused with a layer on a magnet. Each magnet switches itself off after 3 minutes to protect the coil, and the layer it holds falls. Either press Start to finish the move or shut the machine down properly.

Bins and Carts

The order of the bins on a cart matters: the station crew works from the top of the cart down, so NexPlate makes you complete the bins of a cart in order.

For each finished bin:

1. Take the bin off the end of the bin system.
2. Check its label. Add any Unhandled plates (plates no rack could supply) and any From station box plates by hand.
3. Stack it on the cart named in the first row of Pending Bins on the Operator Display (Displays menu on the web). Check the Station and Cart numbers on the row.
4. Press Complete on that row. A green Bin N completed message appears. Only press Complete after the bin is physically on the cart.

When the last bin for a cart is completed, the cart becomes Ready. On machines with NexBot, a robot collects it. Otherwise wheel it to the station and press Arrived on the Operator Display. See Move Carts by Hand: NexPlate Manual Cart Delivery.

When the station crew finishes a cart, they press Request Cart on their station tablet. See Request Cart From a Station Display.

End of Shift

1. Tap Auto Layers so it is pressed in. The belt starts no new layers; the layers already on it finish.
2. If you can, let the belt run down and let the carousel finish the layer and bin it is working on. An empty belt makes the next startup simpler.
3. Remove and process every finished bin from the bin system.
4. Press Stop to pause the machine. Make sure everyone is clear.
5. Open the Repair tab, Manual Controls, and press Shutdown Machine (bottom row). Answer Yes to Shutdown system safely?
6. Wait while the full-screen message moves through Pausing system…, Saving system state… and the other stages.
7. When the screen reads System is safe. You may turn off power., press Close Application, then turn off the machine power at the main disconnect and lock it out if your plant procedure says so.

WARNING: Use the shutdown buttons, not the power switch. Never turn off the power while the screen says Saving system state…. Cutting power during a save is the most likely way to lose belt and bin work.

If the screen reads Shutdown could not complete cleanly., do not press Exit Anyway at once. Read the reason. If a magnet is still holding a layer, deal with that layer first and get help. If it names a save failure, tell your supervisor before you power off.

Expected Result

Work is saved as the machine runs and again at shutdown. After the next startup the jobs, station queues, carts, bins and rack counts are back as they were. Plates that were still on the belt are restored if the belt is where NexPlate left it; otherwise they are held and the Startup recovery screen asks you to check them.

Stop and Contact Enventek If

• The same fault comes straight back after you fix the cause and press Clear Fault.
• The status bar turns orange and reads MACHINE STATE NOT SAVED FOR N MIN. Do not restart or power off until it has been looked at.
• The Startup recovery screen shows a card you do not understand. Do not use an orange (manual override) button unless you have checked the machine yourself.
• You cannot find plates that the machine says it is holding.
• A sensor, lift or motor keeps failing.

For model-specific instructions or technical assistance, contact Enventek Technical Support at 269-815-4150.

What Correct Looks Like

• The status bar is green and reads RUNNING or Belt: Running during production.
• Racks stay green or yellow; none sit at red OUT.
• Each bin is stacked on the cart named on its Pending Bins row before Complete is pressed.
• The Check tab reads Backup: Good with a recent Last backup time.
• Shutdown ends with System is safe. You may turn off power.