The Smart Distributed System (SDS) offers companies that implement automated assembly lines the opportunity to cost effectively respond to high growth opportunities and quickly changing market conditions. Companies in dynamic businesses are continuously faced with changing capacity, and with ensuring their existing facilities are flexible and cost-effective. These companies need to continually improve the information available from their assembly lines, and have pertinent data available throughout their business systems. Once a system is installed it also becomes critical to detect and remedy problems quickly.

This solution describes how control systems based on SDS and personal computers (PC) (a.k.a. Smart Systems) decrease design and installation costs, reduce operating costs, and allow the use of an assembly line sooner than was previously possible. It explains the SDS architecture, and describes some of the components that make up a Smart System. The paper closes with real-world examples.

The use of 24V Brushless DC Motor-Driven Rollers (MDR) (also known as motorized roller or powered roller) in material handling systems continues to grow as users seek the benefits provided by a powered roller system: · Reduced power consumption · Improved control over each zone in the system · Lower noise levels · Improved safety from low voltage Taking full advantage of the benefits provided by MDR requires controls to evolve. Holjeron’s ZoneLink™ system provides users with three different levels of control: · Simple Zero Pressure Accumulation · Smart Interface to ZPA · Individual Zone Control Each of these architectures can be mixed within a material handling system, providing maximum flexibility to the user.