Tourists are once again flocking to the seaside resort of Southwold in Suffolk, thanks in part to automation technology from Mitsubishi Electric coupled with the creativity of one local man and the grand vision of another:
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| Magic on Southwold Pier, thanks to Mitsubishi's FX1S PLC. |
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The town's once-splendid Edwardian Pier had degenerated to a dangerous and depressing eyesore, but has now risen again to be the latest marvel of the East Anglian coast. Bought and re-built by Chris Iredale, he wanted as the pier's first new attraction a water powered clock and contacted Tim Hunkin, a renowned maker of such marvels.
"Chris particularly wanted a clock I had made some years before," says Hunkin. "I was delighted that this little gem was so cherished, but was worried that it would not be reliable enough for long-term installation in such a high profile location."
Not a water clock but a PLC:
Hunkin's solution was to convert the escapement mechanism so that while water flowed and it appeared to drive the clock, in fact, a tiny Mitsubishi FX1S programmable logic controller (PLC) was running the show.
"Little FX's tick away in ardous industrial environments controlling critical processes for years on end, and I have every faith that my FX will be just as reliable."
As the pier's restoration neared completion Iredale and Hunking brainstormed ideas for unique attractions to woo visitors. The result was the Under the Pier Show, probably the whackiest and most original amusement arcade ever built. Nearly every machine in the arcade was conceived, designed and hand built by Husking.
"The concept is to have machines that seem familiar but which on closer inspection are disturbingly different," explains Hunkins. "A common theme running through all of them is that we are achieving sophisticated entertainment using standard Mitsubishi automation kit applied in straightforward ways. For instance, the Expressive Photo Booth appears fairly conventional, but before taking your picture it gives you a little surprise such as dropping the seat a couple of inches, unleashing a howling gale into your face, or creaking open a trap door above you. The flash goes off and you are caught with a very expressive face - and a background is added to the resulting photo that complements your facial contortions to a tee.
"We're using a PLC to deliver the surprise and activate the camera using standard I/O switching and timing functions. Then the PLC interfaces with a PC to add a suitable background. Its all very simple open-loop programming -- and that is essential to achieving the reliability levels required to ensure that no punter is ever disappointed by seeing a duff machine, even in the depth of the off season."
The Under the Pier Show includes several virtual reality rides in which movements are synchronised with video images to create realistic sensations of dramatic motion. Most simulators cost hundreds of thousands of pounds and include any number of control loops to cross check and ensure that video and movement are in sync.
'Accurate to the atomic second':
"With Mitsubishi's industrial automation equipment, such systems architecture is complete overkill," asserts Hunkins. "With quartz-based timing built into the controllers once you set them up they are accurate to the atomic second, so there is no need to close the signal loops. If mechanicals and visuals start off in sync, they will stay in sync until long after I'm pushing up the daisies!"
The pier has also been extended with the construction of a landing stage so that Southwold can now welcome Britain's only seagoing paddle steamer, the P.S. Waverely, and its sister ship M.V. Balmoral.
For more information by email, please click HERE.
Contact: Caroline Stanton
Mitsubishi Electric Automation Systems
Customer Response Centre
Travellers Lane, Hatfield,
Herts AL10 8XB
Tel: 0870 5168567
Fax: 01707 278695
Web: www.industrial.meuk.co.uk
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