Features

Design time can be reduced while ensuring durability and high performance.

Reducing design time is critical in engineering because the result is lower costs and faster time to market. Design time often includes a number of non-value-added activities such as re-design, over-design, or scope creep that can be minimized by thoroughly understanding all of the application criteria and verifying calculations and analysis via parametric testing of components, modules, and full assemblies with data acquisition equipment, and proving out projected performance results with testing.
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Flow control is one of the most critical functions in the hydraulic industry. Traditionally, flow control is implemented via a proportional or servo valve. When current is applied into the coil of a solenoid (proportional valve) or a torque motor (servo valve), a corresponding electromagnetic force is generated. These forces could either directly stroke the spool (single-stage configuration) or indirectly move the main stage spool via regulating the hydraulic pressures on each end of the main stage spool (multiple-stage configuration).
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Hydraulic steering systems have long dominated the industrial utility vehicle market because of their familiarity both to vehicle designers and operators. More recently, a trend has been seen towards the use of electronic steer-by-wire systems that provide greater design flexibility by enabling software to customize the connection between the steering wheel and steering mechanism. Several suppliers offer integrated steer-by-wire systems targeting the industrial utility vehicle market. A key differentiating factor is the method used to provide torque feedback to give the operator a heightened sense of vehicle control. The latest generation of integrated steer-by-wire systems consumes less power, is less expensive, and offers the ability to be programmed to provide a wide range of value-added features.
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Medical equipment motion control runs the gamut from electric wheelchair motion to heart assist pumps. This article will focus on the segment consisting of medical laboratory instruments. Even in this segment, motion control ranges from precision liquid handling and dispensing, to sample- handling robotics and automated sample storage and retrieval systems. We’ll delve into precision liquid handling and dispensing and related functions, and the interaction between the mechanical system and the motion control system. High-pole-count permanent magnet AC servo motors can simplify system design and improve system performance and reliability when mated with control systems capable of bringing out their full potential.
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Many hydraulically operated machines perform adequately with on/off “bang-bang” valves, but some need special controls to avoid maintenance problems and deliver quality production output. This is particularly true when multiple hydraulic axes need to be synchronized. In these cases, designers should use an electro-hydraulic motion controller with multi-axis synchronization capability.
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Environmental friendliness, economy, and individuality are the fundamental ideas associated with the topic of eMobility (electromobility). The increasing scarcity of resources and constantly rising prices are being felt by everyone, as will be the follow-up costs if we don’t succeed in reducing environmental pollution such as greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, the demand for individual mobility is growing, e.g. in big cities and the urban centers that surround them, in which around 40% of the world's population will live by 2015.
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In dozens of industries and in millions of applications around the world, dangerous chemicals are transferred from their original shipping containers into smaller jugs or buckets, or applied to other end-use processes. Historically, the predominant dispensing method in many of these applications has been through an open system where the liquid is poured out of the container. In many industries using high-purity chemicals, a popular dispensing method is a semi-closed system that pumps the liquid out of a drum or container. In these systems, a dip-tube draws chemicals from vertically oriented containers using an attachable hand or electric pump. While a step in the right direction, the semi-closed dispensing system requires a dip-tube that needs to be removed and re-inserted each time a new drum is used, exposing the end user to drips, leaks, and fumes during transfer. The primary drawback of all open and semi-closed systems is that they needlessly expose the user, equipment, and the environment to potentially hazardous chemicals and vapors.
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