Light curtain muting module enhances safety and productivity
18 March 2025 
Sick Sensor Intelligence has unveiled a light curtain muting module designed to ensure that operators stay safe from hazardous machinery while materials, boxes and finished products move through unhindered. The DMM4 extension module is slimmer and more powerful than previous versions and is compatible with the company’s deTec safety light curtains and deTem safety light-beam sensors. It is designed to reduce the possibility of manipulation, while minimising workflow interruptions.
The module adds new tools, functions and benefits to entry/exit access guarding to minimise false stops. It can be used in safety applications up to PLe / SIL3 and complies with ISO 13855, the standard covering requirements for positioning safeguards regarding approaching humans. It doesn’t need a separate cabinet because it is protected against dust and water in the field, reducing wiring and commissioning times.
Applications for the DMM4 module range from logistics – such as muting for AGVs, electric forklifts or AMRs – to manufacturing.
The module provides more functions than basic muting systems, and more flexibility at a lower cost than muting using safety PLCs or safety controllers. Sick’s free Safety Designer software allows easy, flexible configuration of muting parameters, smart functions and operating modes. It includes a mode switch to store different configurations, a smart restart interlock, and access to a full diagnostics and error histories.
Modern manufacturing requires goods to pass smoothly and safely between production processes. This is becoming increasingly important as production lines become more complex. Standalone muting modules offer flexibility and safety while ensuring free-flowing production.
Muting – the temporary automatic suspension of a safety functions by safety-related parts of a control system – aims to achieve continuous, efficient material flows, while protecting people from hazards. In the case of safety light curtains, sensors and process signals can identify materials safely to initiate a mute and allow products to pass through without stopping. The new muting module differentiates between materials and people to ensure safety.
To accompany the module, Sick has released robust new support columns with micro-adjustment capabilities and built-in spirit levels.
“Highly flexible and configurable, the Sick DMM4 is out-of-the-box certified and plug-and-play, with easy installation and connectivity with the Sick deTec safety light curtain,” says Martin Kidman, manager of Sick’s safety business in South and West Europe. “It’s part of a complete range of Sick safety light curtain products, including light curtains, sensors, fittings and muting modules.”
