We have built two almost identical Pickmaster systems, one two years ago and one recently to the same customer. The old one use PickMaster 2.30/S4C+ and the new one PickMaster 3.10/IRC5. The systems are started via RIS.
We have noticed that the time from when the start signal is given until the production starts is noticeably longer in the new system which has led to complaints from our customer. The software in the external equipment that sends the RIS commands are identical on both systems. Is there any way to speed this up?
I would not say that the systems are identical. S4C+ and IRC5 are two totally different systems to interact with.
Since IRC5 requires a lot more security and user authorization, the startup sequence takes more time to execute. It has nothing to do with PickMaster or RIS.
Ok, I expressed myself a bit vague. Of course the systems are not identical from a technical point of view, but they are from the operator’s (customer’s) point of view. Since the system is run via a separate HMI system (thus the use of RIS) the operator doesn’t see either the robot controller or PickMaster.
I’m also aware that it is not a PickMaster problem. But the question remains; Is there any way to get it to start faster?
If more than 20 seconds, something is wrong. Activate the “Log IRC5 status messages” in the options dialog (File->Options), and post the startup sequence here.
When a system is too slow to start and/or stop it is very common that the Ethernet cables are bad. It could be worth a try to replace the ethernet cable.