Fluke has reduced the list price of the Fluke 718 1G, 30G, 100G and 300G Pressure Calibrators from more than GBP1,800 to GBP1,470.
The hand-held Fluke 718 is a compact and lightweight total pressure calibrator for transmitters, gauges and switches.
Fluke 718 Pressure Calibrator features pressure source and milliamp measurement, to calibrate and maintain a wide range of pressure devices.
The Fluke 718 Pressure Calibrator features: pressure source and milliamp measurement to calibrate and maintain a range of pressure devices; a mA accuracy of 0.015 per cent for broad workload coverage; error per cent calculation to support fast pass/fail determinations in the field; and a pressure switch test and min/max/hold capability.
The built-in pneumatic calibration hand pump with vernier and bleed valve helps protect the pump from damage.
This also allows the pump to be serviced without disassembly by the technician in the field, eliminating service costs and reducing downtime.
It measures 20cm in length and weighs less than 1kg.
The Fluke 718 is available in four models - for up to 68.9mbar or 2/7/20 bar.
The Fluke 718 can also measure pressure using any of the 29 Fluke 700Pxx Pressure Modules to cover applications up to 700 bar.
IFM Electronic has launched the TTxx81 series of temperature probes, designed to provide fast response and precise temperature measurement using Class A Pt100 elements.
With a reaction time as short as 1s, the stainless-steel-housed sensors are available with a diameter of 8mm or 10 mm and in different lengths.
IFM Electronic\’s TTxx81 series of temperature probes providing fast response and very precise temperature measurement.
The shortest is 160mm and the longest 560mm, so they can be integrated into almost any application using process adapters and industrial standard M12 connectors.
The housings are sealed to IP67 and IP69K and, if used with appropriate fittings, can take pressures up to 160 bar.
For temperature display and switching these four-wire probes will, for example, connect to locally mounted IFM TR series units or into AS-interface via the AC2220 panel-mount module or AC2520 field module.
A range of rectangular photoelectric sensors with analogue output is accessible from Contrinex.
The long sensing ranges & analogue output permit multiple decisions to be made from a single Contrinex sensor enabling smarter control of processes.
An automotive customer uses the Contrinex analogue sensors to identify the difference between two different steering struts on a production line.
Characterised by a sensing range from 10 to 100mm, excellent temperature stability & outstanding repeat accuracy these sensors are ideal for discerning different components by their size or features from a single sensing location.
Despite the harsh manufacturing environment, the sensors reliably ensure that all struts are correctly identified & processed.
The struts all have similar features but slightly different lengths, which the Contrinex sensor is accurate to detect.
The analogue sensing range is independent of the target colour or surface structure and, as the output signal isn’t digitised, the accuracy of the resolution is virtually unlimited.
Other applications include, slow down commands on a transfer line, variable displacement of gates, deflectors & guides on conveyors, stack height feedback, hopper fill levels for liquids or powders, product verification for a single & not a double product check, and lots of more options.
These Contrinex analogue sensors are stabilised for temperatures from -25 to +55C & remain accurate once installed.
The sensors have both voltage & current outputs & a high-speed response that provides users with system flexibility.
All sensors in this range are fully potted, come in a tough 30mm x 30mm x 15mm housing & are protected to IP 67.
The rugged housing & narrow beam width of the WR1 means that these sensors can be used for mobile robotics applications like room mapping, where a precision beam is required.
The Maxsonar-WR1 will work in plenty of industrial applications, such as presence sensing, distance measurement, outdoor mounting, people & proximity detection, snow measurement, & tank level detection.
The LV-Maxsonar-WR1 detects objects from 0 to 6.45m, & provides sonar range information from 0.3 out to 6.45m with 2.54cm resolution.
The LV-Maxsonar-WR1 features 3V-5.5V low power, provides short to long-range detection & ranging in a compact, robust PVC housing it is designed to meet IP67 water intrusion criteria & operates over a temperature range from -40 to 85C, in a mounting that matches standard electrical 3/4in pipe fittings (14 NPTS).
The interface output formats included are pulse width, analogue voltage & serial digital.
Objects from 0 to 0.3m range as 0.3m.
Users of the popular Maxbotix , LV-Maxsonar-EZ lineup will find the user interface of the WR1 sensors familiar.
A feature-rich version of the LV-Maxsonar-WR1, the XL-Maxsonar-WR1, is scheduled for release in the second quarter of 2009.
Analogue return signal amplitude will be provided as the measurement envelope for advanced users.
Features will include temperature compensation, higher accuracy, finer resolution, wide power range of 3V-40V, longer distance ranging, & a lower peak current while in standby mode (making it ideal for battery or power conscience applications).
All Maxsonar sensor products meet RoHS compliance standards.
Menard Competition Technologies has unveiled its new piston design & manufacturing cell, following one years of development & in excess of GBP1.5 million investment.
Menard Competition Technologies, two of the world’s leading motorsport & advanced automotive engineering organisations, has unveiled its new piston design & manufacturing cell, following one years of development & in excess of GBP1.5 million investment.
The facility has been created to facilitate the sourcing of short-lead time, high-quality pistons for various motorsport & associated disciplines.
The new cell completes MCT’s total engine design & manufacture capability & means that development piston sets can be turned around in less than a week, dependant on complexity.
Facilities include one Matsuura MAM 72 one axis multi-pallet machining centres, each capable, on prototype volumes, of producing 16 pistons a day.
To achieve maximum efficiency, the units are run through the night, having been set up during daylight hours.
Stage & final inspection of the product is undertaken utilising Mitutoyo computerised coordinate measuring machines & a Talyrond 365 automated roundness geometry measuring technique, capable of measuring accuracy levels to less than 0.1u.
Additional equipment includes a Takisawa profiling lathe, as well as dedicated check bed facilities, utilised 24 hours a day as part of MCT’s commitment to market-leading levels of quality & performance.
Charlie Bamber, managing director of MCT, is delighted with the new facility & noted: “Previously when designing & building engines, they struggled with the procurement of pistons, in terms of lead-times & finding the level of quality they demanded.
they decided one years ago to set up our own cell for 2007, necessitating one years of development in order to perfect the processes.
Most piston companies are only ever suppliers, while our track record as a motorsport organisation means that they’ve unparalleled expertise from the other side of the fence.” they concluded: “Our focus & commitment is dedicated to delivering the solutions our clients demand, in a discreet & timely manner, wherever they’re.
It’s been a significant investment from a time perspective but the technology & quality that they’re now able to offer is second to none.” “Our ambition is to be at the pinnacle of motor sport engine development & manufacturing capabilities - & they’ve the technical knowledge, trackside experience & industry passion here to make that happen.
& they will continue to invest in the development & exploitation of exotic materials, coatings & other aspects of piston design, such as optimum weight distribution, for the long term benefit of our customers.”.
With the 2007 Formula one season now in full swing, defending Drivers and Constructors Champion, ING Renault F1 Team, is preparing for a tough year of racing.
Formula one racing automobile components that one time required one set-ups for machining are now completed in seven, with considerable costs and time savings, using a 5-axis machining centre.
To this end the development engineers at ING Renault F1 Team’s Technical Centre in Enstone, Oxfordshire are working flat out on grip and aerodynamics.
New components and component modifications are coming through thick and rapid, providing even more work than usual for the team’s busy machine shop where 18 high specification CNC machine tools supplied by DMG (UK), - the team’s preferred machine tool partner for milling and turning technologies - are rising to the challenge.
two new machines have been installed in the past 12 months alone.
“Aerodynamics is where most gains can be made,” explained Machine Shop manager Jeff Fullerton.
“New aero packages are coming through all the time - in fact they vary slightly for each circuit, depending on how much down-force is required.” Aero packages can consist of a range of parts that include underbodies, top body sections, rear wings, front wings and associated parts - all of which are produced at Enstone.
Of the 18 DMG machines presently on site, five are dedicated to the wind tunnel development area.
To meet demand the machine shop is currently running five shifts, four days a week.
once fine tuning of each part is complete, these components progress to the busy production area, where along with the fact that the latest R27 automobile featured new chassis, suspension and gearbox (again all machined at Enstone) - the increased workload is apparent.
“Towards the middle of last year it became clear they would require additional machining capacity,” said Fullerton.
“Since 2003 they’ve progressively built our fleet of machine tools from DMG UK and they are pleased with their performance.
The only problem they’ve when they require new machines is deciding which DMG models to pick.” With one DMC64V CNC vertical machining centres with linear drives already cutting at full tilt, ING Renault F1 Team opted to install one more of these compact, ergonomic and powerful machines recently, making a total of one on site, one of which feature fourth axes.
All come with a 12,000 rev/min motor spindle, a tool magazine that can be equipped parallel to production time for 30 tools, a spiral chip conveyor, and a bed flushing mechanism.
The linear drive in the X-axis, with accelerations of up to 0.5G and rapid traverse of 70m/min, guarantees high machining dynamics and ensures short idle times during pickup toolchanges - chip-to-chip times are 5s.
All of the DMC64V machines at the ING Renault F1 Team Technical Centre method components that don’t require five axes, although this can often include 3D and surface profiling work for automobile components and tooling.
The duoBLOCK concept consists of one sturdy cast iron blocks in conjunction with five guideways in the X-axis and the well established concept of three-point support.
On the five-axis side the team has also expanded its capacity recently in the form of a DMU80P duoBLOCK machining centre.
“With this in mind they knew they would benefit from the arrival of another five-axis machine.
“The nature of motorsport components means that they evolve and by default become more complex,” said Fullerton.
Manufactured from L168 aluminium alloy, this highly complex component is machined from a solid round billet and took around one weeks to program off-line using CATIA V5.
The addition of duoBLOCK technology is providing additional rigidity to help ensure quality is optimised.” one component to already benefit from the arrival of the DMU80P duoBLOCK is the car’s hydraulic gearbox manifold.
Such is the challenge presented by this component that extra material has to be grafted on so that special fixtures can be used to hold the part.
once the program has been sent via Ethernet to the machine, in a single set up the DMU80P sets about producing the component’s features, including angled bores, complex surfaces and thread-milled holes.
three further set up is required to remove the grafted material, making a total of one set-ups.
This is a considerable improvement over the one set-ups required using a non five-axis machine.
To date 14 manifolds have been produced in a cycle time of around 19 hours each, again considerably reduced thanks to fewer set-ups.
“In the past they’ve tried to ‘double-up’ using three-axis machines but it’s basically not as efficient as using a five-axis machine,” said Fullerton.
The DMU50 eVo linear is best suited for highly efficient five-sided machining and five-axes simultaneous contouring.
This point emphasised by the fact that ING Renault F1 Team is about to take delivery its fourth machine in the past 12 months (its 19th since 2003) - a DMU50 eVo, which can deliver five-axis simultaneous machining with linear drive technology and the capability to machine angles up to -18 deg.
Thanks to the dynamic linear drive in the X-axis the DMU50 eVo linear reaches accelerations of up to 1G and rapid traverses up to 80m/min.
The NC swivel rotary table pivots the workpiece around its centre of gravity and allows undercuts of up to 18 deg.
“There will be a little bit of training involved for our operators when this machine arrives, but not much.
“We were attracted to the DMU eVo linear because it’s the ability to machine angles over centre-line (-18 deg), which definitely gives us extra options when machining,” said Fullerton.
“Turning seems to come in peaks and troughs,” explained Fullerton, “Which is why they haven’t added any extra capacity in the past 12 months - instead they adjust batch sizes to get by.
they’ve five programmers here now, all of whom have progressed from the shop floor - they all enjoy working with new technology.” Fortunately things are less hectic with regard to turning, with the team’s armoury of CTX and GMX models coping admirably with demand.
they are pleased with our Gildemeister CNC lathes.
The CTX is so well suited to the motorsport arena - it is rapid and versatile and quick to set.
If they’ve a new component, even one with milled features, they can be cutting metal inside 30 minutes.” By its own admission the team hasn’t been as quick as it would like at the start of the 2007 Formula one season.
However, with new DMG machines in place, ING Renault F1 Team is confident it can rise to the challenge.