Experimental Validation of High Precision Web Handling for a Two-Actuator-Based Roll-to-Roll System

Area of Science:

• Engineering
• Manufacturing Technology
• Control Systems

Background:

• Roll-to-roll (R2R) manufacturing requires precise control of web tension and speed.
• Limitations in actuator availability necessitate advanced control strategies for R2R systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To experimentally validate high-precision web handling in a two-actuator R2R system.
• To develop and implement a control sequence for longitudinal web handling.
• To improve the accuracy of web speed and tension control.

Main Methods:

• Utilized tension control loop for unwinder module and velocity loop for rewinder module.
• Applied a radius estimation algorithm for accurate web speed regulation.
• Developed a control sequence for longitudinal axis web handling.
• Incorporated an air floating roller to minimize friction and inertia in the tension zone.

Main Results:

• Achieved tension tracking errors within ±0.79%, ±1.32%, and ±1.58% at 0.1, 0.2, and 0.3 m/s, respectively.
• Demonstrated web speed errors within 1.33% to 1.6% across tested speeds.
• Verified tension control performance within ±0.3 N tracking error for reference tension profile changes at 0.1 m/s.

Conclusions:

• The validated control strategy enables high-precision web handling in R2R systems with limited actuators.
• The integration of radius estimation and an air floating roller significantly improves tension and speed control accuracy.
• This approach offers enhanced performance for demanding R2R manufacturing applications.