PC-Based Control Redesign for High-Precision Grinding Machines

Application Areas: Universal Grinding, High-Precision CNC Machining, Mass Production Automation
Industry Sectors: Medical Technology, Aerospace, Cutting Tool Manufacturing, Professional Toolmaking

Adelbert Haas GmbH designs and manufactures high-precision universal grinding machinery, pairing mechanical engineering with proprietary software development for micrometer-accuracy workpiece machining. Two years after launching the Multigrind Radical—a compact, fully automated machine engineered for mass production—the company initiated an engineering overhaul of the machine's control systems and electrical cabinet architecture.

The primary technical objective was to replace disparate systems with an open, high-performance automation platform capable of reducing hardware complexity, shortening cycle times, and preserving the machine’s existing external footprint. The engineering team required a control environment that would interface directly with Adelbert Haas’s higher-level proprietary software, which calculates kinematic interpolation internally and requires synchronized real-time data exchange. To execute this, the company partnered with Beckhoff Automation, tasking the provider with translating mechanical and process requirements into a unified electrical engineering concept.

Hardware Consolidation and Real-Time Software Integration
The upgraded Multigrind Radical standardizes on an open architecture driven by a Beckhoff CX2043 Embedded PC running TwinCAT 3 CNC software. This single CPU integrates PLC, CNC, and HMI functionality, minimizing discrete hardware interfaces and simplifying intra-machine cabling.

The control system communicates across EtherCAT and TwinSAFE terminals to coordinate the machine’s drive axes. Motion control is managed via the AX8000 multi-axis servo system alongside an AX8820 universal regenerative unit. This drive package operates both third-party linear axes and Beckhoff AM8043 servomotors, which actuate the Z-axis and the automated tool changer.

A central priority was maintaining deterministic feedback loops between the CNC kernel and Adelbert Haas’s higher-level software.

"The kinematic interpolation for our grinding machines is calculated by our higher-level proprietary software. Therefore we need a control system that provides values such as position feedback, tracking error, current, force, and torque in a simple, precise, and synchronized way. That’s exactly why we opted for PC-based control from Beckhoff." — Martin Trittler, Technology Developer, Adelbert Haas

Multi-core processing within TwinCAT 3 enables the execution of independent PLC and CNC tasks while feeding synchronized operational data directly to the supervisory platform for diagnostics and process monitoring.




Space-Constrained Cabinet Architecture
Because the external dimensions of the Multigrind Radical were fixed, the machine could not accommodate an external or enlarged traditional control cabinet. Instead, the electrical architecture is split across three distinct mounting plates fitted directly into the machine housing during assembly.

Beckhoff designed the electrical layout to match these mechanical constraints, integrating the CX2043 controller, EtherCAT/TwinSAFE I/O slices, C2 mains filters, and mains chokes for the AX8525 power supply and axis modules directly into the distributed mounting scheme. Sourcing both automation control and electrical layout engineering from a single partner minimized engineering interface risk and maintained the machine's compact form factor.

The upgraded Multigrind Radical entered series production in mid-2023, delivering improved real-time responsiveness, lower cabling overhead, and an open hardware baseline structured for future IT, diagnostic, and cloud integration.

Edited by Romila DSilva, Induportals Editor, with AI assistance.