Valve Controller

Festo’s introduced its VAEM solenoid valve controller designed for applications requiring high speed and a low coefficient of variation (CV). The VAEM provides individualized control and calibration of up to eight solenoid valves and can open a valve in under 2 milliseconds. The controller also decreased CV from 3% to less than 0.5% in laboratory benchmark testing. The VAEM employs a “hit and hold” strategy to lower energy consumption. A short burst of high current “hits” the open position, and then the valve controller switches to a minimum current to “hold” the open position for a specified time. VAEM valve controllers are suitable for 2/2- and 3/2-way solenoid valves. They feature RS232 communication currently but future iterations will have options for Ethernet, Modbus TCP, and IO-Link. A PC-based GUI facilitates pre-calibrating the dispense heads and to save the control parameters for standalone operation. External 24V trigger-input synchronizes the VAEM with other systems.
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