Web tension control is often a key component for success with any type of heavy

duty machinery used inweb handling. Controlling the speed and torque of the
machines motor goes hand in hand with controlling the web tension. Every web
has limits and can even break under too much pressure, but the tension also
directly affects the webs behavior as it moves through the production process.
Defects or wrinkles may appear in the material without the appropriate tension
controller in place.
What is a Web?
It is a thin, long or continuous material, with enough flexibility that enables it to be
changed to various forms. Some examples include film, textiles, paper, foil and
nonwoven material. The converting industry involves processing the material from
one form to another. Converting may include a number of production processes
such as embossing, coating, printing, laminating, treating, slitting, punching,
sheeting, die cutting, calendaring, winding and unwinding. The material is
transferred from one roller (rotating cylinder) to another, and a web that is wound in
roll form is also called a roll in the converting industry.
Tension Build-Up
Tension builds as web material moves from zero speed to its final speed. The tension
forms either through the pulling of the material at one end (e.g. rewinding) or by the
increase of drag created by a brake, clutch or drive when the material is being unwound
from a roller.
Web Tension Processed Control Methods
Various methods of control are used to ensure producing a roll of better quality. For
example, the taper tension function decreases the tension of the web in the rewind zone
as the diameter of the roll increases. This eliminates crushed cores and telescoping as
well as helps avoid having rolls that are too tight or too loose. Sometimes a soft
starter may be added to the converting machines motor to prevent or minimize damage to
the material upon start up.
Today, most industrial machines operate with their own motor in place (a DC or AC motor),
with a motor drive and/or controller in place. Open-loop or closed-loop control systems are
implemented to measure and control the web tension. With open-loop web tension
control, a device is installed to measure tension (e.g. tension transducer). The
measurement is available for reading on a meter or some type of display. Using this
measurement, the operator of the machine may adjust the device manually to match the
tension to the desired value as closely as possible. With closed-loop control, an automatic
controller is used to measure the tension many times each second. The output from the
controller is sent to the device and adjusted to an error signal at a constant loop rate. The
error signal is a signal that is generated when the controller compares the actual tension
value to a desired set point (set by the machines operator before a run).