Automatic Colour Change Management Software

With Lesta’s automatic colour change management software, it is possible to insert, between the execution of one program and the next, a completely automatic colour change, without any manual intervention on the system. This orchestration relies on the same PLC that controls the rest of the painting line.

An automatic colour change consists of:

• Washing of the gun and paint circuit
• Loading of the new colour

This accessory makes it possible to perform a complete and automatic colour change even outside of program execution, for example on the operator’s manual command or according to a dedicated logic managed by the software.

Thanks to the automatic colour change management software, washing and loading cycle times can be set by the operator or managed directly by any automatic mixer present on the system. No other commands are needed: once the colour change is complete, the robot automatically returns to its home position, ready to resume the painting cycle.

The system is scalable according to the number of colours and valves in the customer’s painting system: Lesta’s software communicates with the system’s PLC, which drives the valves dedicated to each colour, and can therefore adapt to both systems with few shades and lines with a high number of colours and recipes. The software is suitable for industrial painting and finishing systems using both liquid and powder.

Why automate colour change in painting

In painting lines working on made-to-order production or with mixed batches, manual colour change requires time and attention from the operator, who must stop production, wash the gun and circuit, and correctly load the new colour before restarting the cycle. The automatic colour change management software eliminates these manual steps, reducing dead time between orders and the possibility of error in the washing and loading sequence.

Since the colour change can also be recalled outside of a painting program’s execution, the system adapts both to planned production, where the colour sequence is known in advance, and to unforeseen needs, where it is necessary to quickly switch to a different shade without stopping the system for manual reconfiguration.

How the automatic colour change management software works

From an architectural standpoint, the software communicates with the system’s PLC, which in turn drives the valves of the customer’s painting system dedicated to each colour. When a colour change is recalled, the software sends the PLC the correct sequence for opening and closing the valves, automatically managing both the washing phase of the gun and paint circuit and the loading phase of the new colour, without the operator needing to manually intervene in either step.

This architecture makes the automatic colour change management software independent of the number of colours handled by the system: by adding valves to the painting system, it is possible to expand the range of available colours while keeping the same management software and the same operating logic already proven on the existing system.

The software in Lesta systems

The colour change management software integrates with Lesta’s other accessories and management systems within complete industrial painting systems, helping to automate the entire production cycle together with systems such as Syncro for painting synchronization and Image MATCH 3D pro for recognizing parts being processed.

This accessory is widely used in lines dedicated to industrial metal painting, where it is common to have to paint parts of different colours in sequence, such as automotive components, mechanical parts or cycling accessories, without compromising the system’s cycle times. Thanks to this system, Lesta allows its customers to increase production flexibility while maintaining consistent finish quality on every colour and every part processed.