Application of Solidot PN5R Series All-in-One I/O Module in Liquid Filling Production Line

In recent years, China's food and beverage industry has maintained steady growth, with a continuous expansion of liquid food categories and sustained demand for the construction and renovation of filling and packaging production lines. Liquid filling lines typically stretch tens of meters, with multiple stations and fast pacing, imposing high requirements on the flexibility and responsiveness of control systems. With the widespread adoption of distributed deployment concepts, remote I/O modules installed locally and expandable on demand are becoming the mainstream choice for automation control in liquid filling lines. This case study focuses on a liquid filling production line and analyzes the application practice of Solidot PN5R Series All-in-One I/O Modules.

Solidot Products Used in This Case: PN5R Series All-in-One I/O Modules

I. Equipment Introduction

The liquid filling production line is a core link in automated production within the food and beverage industry, widely used in the packaging of liquid products such as beverages, condiments, edible oils, and dairy products. The line typically consists of an empty bottle (empty can) conveying unit, bottle washing/sterilization unit, quantitative filling unit, capping/sealing unit, labeling unit, online inspection unit, and case packing/palletizing unit, completing the entire process from container supply, filling measurement, sealing, packaging, to finished product inspection.

The overall process covers the following typical stations: (process stations listed)

II. Solidot Solution

This liquid filling production line uses a Siemens PLC (S7-1200) as the core controller, with a long-distance linear layout. Considering the scattered stations and fast-paced operations of the filling line, this project focuses on two key requirements in automation control, addressed by the Solidot PN5R Series All-in-One I/O Modules:

Requirement 1: Scattered stations require higher flexibility in I/O deployment

The filling line has numerous sensors and pneumatic actuators distributed along the tens-of-meters-long line. An ideal architecture should allow I/O modules to be installed near the field devices, shorten signal cable lengths, and enable convenient addition of new stations during line expansion or upgrades.

Solution: The PN5R Series All-in-One I/O Modules are adopted, connected to the Siemens S7-1200 PLC via PROFINET, forming a distributed control architecture. Each module is deployed near its corresponding station, with on-site sensor signals connected locally. Each station can be independently configured with the required I/O nodes. Overall signal cable length is significantly reduced, making installation simpler and more efficient. For future line expansion, new I/O module nodes can be added at the new stations for flexible and controllable integration.

Requirement 2: Filling precision demands high communication real-time performance

In the quantitative filling process, the filling valves must open and close within short timeframes to ensure measurement accuracy and batch consistency. Simultaneously, multi-station parallel operations require the communication network to have synchronization capability to guarantee product qualification rates and food safety.

Solution: The PLC communicates with each PN5R All-in-One I/O Module via PROFINET. Each module collects field signals from its station and provides outputs locally to the corresponding actuators, establishing a high-speed data link from the controller to the field. This ensures real-time signal transmission and anti-interference capability, supporting the consistency of parallel multi-station operations and filling measurement precision.

III. System Architecture

Control Layer: The Siemens S7-1200 PLC serves as the core controller, responsible for overall line logic scheduling, filling data processing, and signal interaction with actuators at each station.

Signal Layer: Solidot PN5R Series All-in-One I/O Modules are used, with flexible selection of 16-point or 32-point digital input/output configurations. The modules support direct connection of three-wire sensors without intermediate terminal blocks, effectively freeing up control cabinet space. Output channels locally drive actuators at each station, enabling efficient field signal acquisition and output.

IV. Application Results

V. PN5R Series All-in-One I/O Module

The Solidot PN5R Series All-in-One I/O Module integrates communication and I/O functions in a compact, space-saving design. It supports PROFINET protocol, features spring-type terminals for easy wiring, and comes with a conformal coating on the PCBA board and a dust cover for deployment outside the cabinet. The "+" models offer configurable DI/DO channels to accommodate future line upgrades. The dual-track diagnostic architecture supports proactive fault reporting by the system for rapid fault localization.