Abstract
In recent years the introduction of servo technology and PC-based control engineering has led to revolutionary changes in the construction of packaging machinery. Nowadays control and motive power engineering represent key technologies that yield significant competitive advantage in the packaging industry. However, the technology used varies widely and is influenced by the different standards of the various manufacturers. This causes extra development work and customized adaptations by both the manufacturers of packaging machinery and the users. This trend conflicts with the market demand for greater flexibility and performance at lower cost. The use of open and global control architecture resolves this conflict. The success of servo technology has brought its own problems; those problems, the solution concept developed by Bosch and the practical implementation of that solution will all be discussed in this article. The technology is available and was presented to the public for the first time at Interpack 2002 in Duesseldorf.
