Intelligent Paint Mixing Technology

WiSAR developed a bespoke hardware and software solution to control the different aspects of the shaking and mixing machines and to give Chameleon an intelligent machine with connectivity to the internet. The hardware comprised of a multi-board solution with a mini-computer at its heart. Embedded electronics captures button press data, I/O status, sensor information relating to different aspects of the machine and control information for turning on/off contactors and motors. For example, the system holds a paint can in place using a clamp motor which is precisely controlled by correlating the current drawn by the motor to the distance travelled by the clamp motor.

The prototype machine is packed with advanced and industry first features. It guides store employees to best practice, self corrects for mis-use and can distinguish between one large paint can or multiple smaller cans. However, the biggest potential benefits of the new platform are related to the data which can be gathered remotely and automatically from each machine. A record of each mixing cycle is stored in an internal database, tracking the size of can, speed, time and if the cycle was stopped prematurely allowing the generation of an accurate report of the whole life cycle of a machine. Then by utilising a WiFi or Ethernet network connection and ubiworx™, an Emutex software framework, the system can be managed remotely including automatic alert report generation to technical support when the system encounters an issue. Ultimately, by gathering data from paint mixing machines remotely from around the world Chameleon will be able to predict failures and provide world leading support to their clients.