Reference Manual Series 2
Reference Manual Series 2
Reference Manual Series 2
Integrator
Belt Scale
System
ConveyWeigh REFERENCE
522 King Street
Dunbar, WV 25064 MANUAL
(304) 201-2354
support@conveyweigh.com © 2007 ConveyWeigh, Inc.
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Manual Index
ConveyWeigh produces a belt scale system. This manual outlines the installation and maintenance of the
ConveyWeigh 1i single idler scale system. The term "single idler" means that the scale utilizes one
conveyor idler to weigh the material traveling on the belt. Naturally, the more idlers a scale uses for the
weighing, the greater the total weigh area of the scale. Therefore, a four idler scale system will achieve a
greater accuracy level than a scale system with only one idler. ConveyWeigh achieves this higher level of
accuracy by placing multiple single idler scale systems in line on the conveyor.
The ConveyWeigh 1i single idler scale system is not intended to be a high accuracy scale. It is designed to
provide the user with an economical method of weighing moving material when it is not feasible or
possible to install a higher accuracy scale. Under most conditions, the ConveyWeigh single idler scale will
perform within the range of plus or minus one to two percent of a known test standard. In some cases the
accuracy level can be increased. This is usually dependent on the installation and maintenance of the scale.
2.5 Integrator
Signals from the load cells and the speed sensor are transmitted to the integrator. The integrator receives
these signals and mathematically converts them to the rate. It also provides the total mass of the material
which has passed over the scale for a certain period of time.
The scale should be installed in an area where the belt tension is constant. The tension of the belt is force
acting on the scale and therefore is factored out during calibration. If the tension dramatically changes very
often, then it is no longer a constant of the calibration. It is preferred that the conveyor system have some
type of take-up device. A gravity take-up is best.
When possible, the scale should not be installed near the loading point of the conveyor. The loading of the
belt usually varies in this location. This is also true near the head pulley or tail pulley of the conveyor. The
scale should be installed at least five conveyor idlers from any of these locations.
A conveyor belt that has an extreme angle of incline is not a suitable location for the scale. In these cases
the material slides back down the conveyor thus causing the material to be weighed multiple times.
Extreme inclines also increase angular forces on the scale. Conveyors with adjustable angles of incline are
not proper locations for a scale.
Locations where the conveyor forms a concave or convex curve should be avoided. The scale should be
located at least twenty feet (approx. six meters) from the apex of the curve.
Other factors such as weather, vibration, or deflection of the conveyor can sometimes affect the scale.
Many times these factors are unable to be controlled, but they should be avoided when possible.
First, the scale must be fitted with an idler of similar specifications as the conveyor idlers. In many cases,
the actual conveyor idler that must be removed for the scale installation can be used for the scale idler. The
idler is then connected to the scale using the mounting brackets that are supplied with the scale.
The scale can now be placed on the conveyor structure where the idler was previously located. The scale
must be installed with the load cells pointing in the same direction as the belt travels. At this point the
scale can be bolted to the structure.
The single idler is equipped with an integrated “tail-drag” type speed sensor. When the scale is installed,
the speed sensor wheel should make solid contact with the top of the return belt. The speed wheel should
never make contact with any portion of the conveyor structure and it should not be located directly over a
return idler.
Install the integrator close to the scale when possible. It is not suggested to exceed one hundred feet
(approx. thirty meters) from the scale.
The final step is the alignment of the scale with the entrance and exit idlers. The scale should be mounted
the same distance from the next idler on either side of it. This distance will be the normal distance between
the existing conveyor idlers. Two idlers on each side of the scale should be aligned such that the belt is
absolutely level across the entire area. This will ensure that the tension of the belt is equal throughout the
weigh area.
The scale should be kept clean of debris or spilled material. Heavy buildup of material will register as
weight on the scale. This will produce a high error over a long period of time. The scale idler and speed
sensor should be kept properly lubricated.
The scale should be calibrated periodically. Once per month is recommended. The calibration can drift
slightly due to wear on the scale, changing conditions of the belt, or deviation of the operation of the
conveyor. Monthly calibration of the scale will keep these changing factors in check with the scale. Please
refer to the Calibration Manual for the proper calibration procedures.
Note: Zero Offset Potentiometer must be adjusted to eliminate scale “dead load”
for optimum scale accuracy. (Section 2.0)
Most ConveyWeigh scales use a load cell summation board for the pressure signal (Figure 1.2).
All load cells are individually terminated at the weigh bridge junction box (Figure 1.3). The
weigh bridge is designed to use 4-wire (non-remote sensing) load cells. The junction box will be
connected to a BeltPro Integrator. The BeltPro Integrator has the capability to utilize 1 to 4
weigh bridge inputs. Each BeltPro Integrator will be assembled to meet the exact weigh bridge
requirements of the order.
Most ConveyWeigh Belt Scales use the Load Cell Junction Board with a factory installed
quick connector which allows for easy speed installation and removal. However,
depending upon the application, the speed sensor can be directly terminated to the
Integrator Interface Board as shown in Figure 1.5
The ConveyWeigh BeltPro Integrator has the option for a 4 to 20ma analog output signal
representative of the instantaneous tons per hour rate. The signal is self-powered and
does not require the use of an external power supply to power the loop. This signal can
be connected to a remote signaling device such as a rate meter or chart recorder, or even
interfaced to PLC based control system (Figure 1.6).
The ConveyWeigh BeltPro Integrator has the capability of RS-232 Full Duplex, and RS
485 Half Duplex Communication. The connection diagram for both signals is shown in
Figure 1.7.
The ConveyWeigh BeltPro Integrator comes equipped with a Normally Open Dry
Contact output for a Remote Tons Counter. The Contact is rated at .6A 125VAC/
110VDC. The connection diagram for the tons counter output is shown in Figure 1.8
The ConveyWeigh BeltPro Integrator is designed to operate on 120/ 240AC Single Phase
Power, and is protected by a 1A, TR5 Fuse. An extra L1 Terminal is provided for
auxiliary power. 14AWG wire is recommended for power connections.
Zero Adjustment – Using the keypad on the front of the indicator, under the Main Menu\
Utility, go to Analog Out Cal. Under this menu press the left up arrow key for Zero.
Next, place a milliamp meter across the + and – A.O. terminals. Adjust the Zero
potentiometer until the milliamp meter reads 4ma.
Span Adjustment – Using the keypad on the front of the indicator, under the Main
Menu\ Utility, go to Analog Out Cal. Under this menu press the center up arrow key
for Full Scale. Then place a milliamp meter across the + and – A.O. terminals. Adjust
the Span potentiometer until the milliamp meter reads 20ma.
The top row of keys is referred to as soft keys, the arrow keys in the grey area are referred to as the
up/down/left/right arrow keys. The large button in the middle is referred to as the enter key.
1) Menus
2) Virtual Key Pad Data Entry
3) Soft Key Driven Procedures.
MAIN MENU
1. Setup
2. Calibrate
3. Utility
4. Exit
- To move the highlight bar use the up and down arrow keys.
- To select a menu option , highlight it and press the enter key.
- To exit from a menu, move to the Exit option and press enter or use the right arrow key.
- The soft keys to the left and right of the up arrow key will page up and page down on a long
menu.
Use the up/down/left/right keys to highlight a key on the virtual key pad. Press the enter key to select
highlighted digit or option. Highlight RET and press enter to accept the value in the data window.
The calibration routines discussed later are examples of soft key driven routines, text labels for actions that
can be performed by the operator are displayed above the soft keys. To select the action, press the soft
key(s) under the text label.
2. Operating modes
The BeltPro integrator has two operating modes, run mode and setup/ calibrate mode.
Run mode is the default power on mode, the integrator calculates rate and total by sampling the load cell
signal and determining the belt travel. Four process variables are tracked during run mode: Total, rate, load
and belt speed. The integrator display shows the currently selected process variable in large font, as well as
the current rate in a smaller font. If auto zero tracking is enabled and the instrument is running an auto zero
test, then the text “AZT” will be displayed on the integrator screen. To change the primary run mode
display to another of the four process variables, press and release either the left or right arrow key on the
keypad. In addition to the four process variables, a fifth screen is available in run mode that allows the
viewing of reset able batch totalizer. Use the left and right arrows to switch between screens during run
mode. In the batch total screen press the soft key under “Reset” to reset the batch total. Press the soft key
under “Print”, if available, to send the batch total, time and date out the serial port to an attached printer.
Setup/Calibrate Mode: In order to change instrument parameters or run calibration test, Setup/Calibrate
mode must be selected. When in this mode, integration stops. To enter Setup/Calibrate mode, press and
release the enter key on the keypad.
3. Menus
3.1 Main Menu
2.Calibrate – Access the Calibrate Menu to run calibration procedures or view/change calibration data.
The setup menu has various options that pertain to the operation of the integrator. These are explained
below.
1.Design Rate: This parameter is the maximum rate at which the scale is anticipated to operate.
2.Belt Speed: This parameter is the maximum speed value the belt is anticipated to run. This value is also
used as the belt speed, when the integrator is running in constant speed mode.
3.Belt Length: This parameter represents the belt length in the currently selected length units (feet or
meters).
4.Test Duration: This parameter represents the number of revolutions the calibration tests will run.
5.Zero Dropout: This parameter represents the value as a percentage of design rate below which the
integrator will not totalize.
6.# of Load Cells: This parameter represents the number of load cells attached to the instrument, typically
two per idler.
7.Local Count By: This parameter controls the increment that the displayed totalizer counts by. Options
are: .001,.01,.1,1,10,100,1000.
8.Remote Count By: This parameter controls what a pulse of the remote counter relay represents. Options
are .001,.01,.1,1,10,100,1000. If .1 is selected then the relay will pulse once for every tenth of a totalization
unit of material that crosses the scale.
9.Remote on Time: This parameter represents the number of milliseconds the remote counter output will
remain on for each pulse.
10.Rate Units: This parameter represents the rate units the integrator will use. Options are: Metric Tons per
Hour(MTPH), Kilograms per Hour (KG/H), Long Tons per Hour (LTPH), Short Tons per Hour (STPH)
and Pounds per Hour (LB/H). Selection of the rate units controls the units for total, speed, length and load.
11.Rate Damping: This parameter represents the number of rate readings that will be averaged before
display. The analog output of rate also represents the average of this number of rate values.
12.Auto Zero: This parameter controls whether the instrument will initiate a zero calibration automatically
under certain conditions. If it is turned on then if the belt runs at under two percent of the design capacity
for one revolution then a zero test will commence. If at the end of the test, the cumulative deviation from
the last operator initiated zero test is two percent or less, the zero value will be adjusted. When the auto
zero test is running, the display will show “AZT” near the bottom. If during the test, the rate increases
above the start test criteria, the test will be aborted with no loss of totalization.
<STX>uttttttt.ttt<LF><CR>rrrrrrr.rrr<LF><CR>sssssss.sss<LF><CR>lllllll.
lll<LF><CR><ETX>
where:
15.RS485 Unit #: This parameter controls whether the RS485 processing logic will respond to a poll
command from a master. If the master device sends a ASCII string of the below format at 9600 baud, eight
data bits, no parity and one stop bit, the integrator will respond with an ASCII string similar to the RS232
string but with the RS485 unit number embedded. A unit number of 00 will disable the processing logic,
valid unit numbers are from 1-99. See format below.
<STX>uuP<ETX>
where
<STX>nnuttttttt.ttt<LF><CR>rrrrrrrr.rrr<LF><CR>sssssss.sss<LF><CR>lllll
lll.lll<LF><CR><ETX>
where:
17. Pass code: Enter a value other than zero in this field will cause setup and calibration options to become
password protected. This is a field that can be up to 5 digits and can range from 1 to 32000. A value of zero
will disable this feature.
18. Analog Filter: Number of times to average the input from the load cells. 1-20, 0 disables.
19. Remote Output: The output number on the processor board that will strobe the remote count, 0-7,
consult factory before changing.
Prior to performing any calibration procedures the following steps must be performed.
All Conveyweigh Belt Scales are factory configured if a valid Belt Scale Data Sheet has been provided by
the customer. This factory configuration should be sufficient for proper operation of the belt scale.
However, after installation of your new ConveyWeigh Belt Scale and BeltPro Integrator, the factory
configuration should be verified. The following steps should be performed verify the configuration or to
configure the potentiometers for the BeltPro Integrator.
2. Open the Integrator door so that the Integrator Interface Board that is mounted on the back of the
integrator is visible.
3. Please note the following diagram. Each Load Cell section is equipped with a potentiometer that
is labeled Zero (Zero Offset Adjustment). A Zero potentiometer is installed for each weighbridge
connected to the BeltPro Integrator. A Single Idler Scale System has just one Zero potentiometer.
A Four Idler Scale System has 4 Zero potentiometers. All potentiometers will need to be
individually adjusted for each weigh bridge that is connected to your BeltPro Integrator
5. Ensure that the load cells are connected to the integrator, and there is no material on the conveyor.
While monitoring the “View Load Cell Screen” or by using your DC volt meter, adjust the Zero
Potentiometer for the load cell so that the output voltage is between +1.0V to +1.5V. Please make
sure the voltage is positive, because it is feasible to obtain a negative voltage reading.
6. Adjust the potentiometers for all load cells connected to the integrator. The Gain Potentiometer
Resistance setting will be the same for each load cell.
1.Zero Test
2.Span Test
3.Speed Test
4.Exit
Zero Test
0.7
Zero Reference: 50
____________________________________
ENTER DATA START EXIT
The large number in the middle of the display is the current load on the belt in load units.
To change the zero reference number press one of the keys under the ENTER DATA area of the screen.
Key in the new value and press enter on the virtual keypad.
To begin the Zero Calibration test, insure the belt is running and empty, press the key under the START
label You will see a screen similar to below, the first number is the current AD value, the second is the
speed pulses or time left for test to run. Press the ABORT key to stop the test.
Once the test has completed, the screen will appear similar to below:
Zero Test
Old Zero: 50
New Zero: 53
Error--> 6%
____________________________________
ACCEPT ABORT
Press a key under the ACCEPT label to accept the results, or press a key under the ABORT label to discard
the results.
Span Test
75.7
CHAIN lb/ft 77.0 Span: 1200
____________________________________
ENTER DATA START EXIT
The large number in the middle of the display is the current load on the belt in load units.
Below the load display is a line of span calibration information. In this example, CHAIN is the current
calibration method selected, lb/ft are the load units in effect (from rate unit selection in setup menu), and
1200 is the current value of the span reference number.
To change span calibration settings and data press one of the keys under the ENTER DATA label.
The following data items can be entered in the span ENTER DATA menu:
1. Calibration Mode: This is the weight reference type you are using to calibrate, select either
CHAIN for a test chain, or WEIGHTS for static hanging weights.
2. Test Load: This is the value in load units that your test reference represents, test chains typically
have this value stamped on them, for static weights, enter the total weight of the weights being
used. Each calibration method has its own test load value that it stores.
3. Span Reference: Once a span test has been performed, this value represents the digital signal the
integrator sees with the test load applied. Each calibration method has its own value.
4. Span Adjustment: You can key in an error in this parameter and the integrator will adjust the span
reference number by this error. This adjustment is done immediately upon entry of the error.
5. Weigh Area: This option is only available when the WEIGHTS calibration mode is selected, upon
entry of a value here, the integrator will divide the total of the weights entered in the test load
parameter, by this value, placing the results in the test load parameter.
Once the appropriate parameters have been setup as per the above discussion and with the belt running and
the test load applied, press the key below the START label to begin the test. The screen will appear similar
to below. You will see a screen similar to below, the first number is the current AD value, and the second is
the speed pulses or time left for test to run. Press the ABORT key to stop the test.
Span Test
_______________________
____
ABORT
Press a key under the ACCEPT label to accept the results, or press a key under the ABORT label to discard
the results.
Once the test has completed, the screen will appear similar to below:
Span Test
____________________________________
ACCEPT ABORT
Upon selecting the Span Test option from the Calibrate Menu you will see a screen similar to the
following:
Speed Test
The line of information above the ENTER DATA line contains two values, the design belt speed from the
Setup Menu and the speed reference number.
To enter speed specific data press a key below the ENTER DATA label.
The following data items are available in the speed ENTER DATA menu.
1.Speed Mode: Select from CONSTANT or ACTUAL, if CONSTANT is selected then the design belt
speed is used to determine belt travel during integration, otherwise the integrator counts speed pulses from
the speed sensor.
3.Run Input: Input for sensing belt running status, for constant speed operation. This is an optional item.
To initiate a Speed Calibration Test, insure the belt is running and press START. The test will run, with the
time remaining counting down as in previous tests. When the test is complete either press ACCEPT to
accept the results or ABORT to discard them.
Speed Test
___________________________________
_
ACCEPT ABORT