Today’s full body heating of tube and pipe is accomplished with process control for superior mechanical property generation either inline or offline. The VIP model induction heaters are an ideal match for the wide dimensional range, industrial environment and production demands. Modular power supplies and multiple coils with superior process management allow precise and uniform heating control while still providing for manufacturing flexibility. The major difference in full body heating versus seam annealing is the type of inductor; and since full body heating requires the product to be heated throughout the entire profile, a circular induction coil is used. Process recipes which optimize the heating profile through wall or surface to core are stored for repeatability and ease of use.
VIP™ Power Supplies
Thermatool shares the VIP design with the Inductotherm Group companies with an installed base of over 30,000 of these power supplies worldwide. These same power supply designs are used in various industries such as melting, heat treating, vacuum refining, full body tube heating as well as seam annealing. This power supply design is very modular and ranges in sizes from 50 kW to over 38 MW, 0.2 kHz to 10 kHz applications. They feature intelligent microprocessor-based digital controls and are engineered to operate at a constant high-power factor regardless of power level, while generating low harmonics and voltage distortion. Harmonic and voltage distortion is further reduced in larger units by designing the equipment to accept 6, 12, or even 24 input phases.