Mechanical Engineering-CIME articles from February 2007

Mechanical Engineering-CIME archives from February 2007

Only on M.E. Magazine Online: @ www.memagazine.org.(Mitsubishi and LMS Corp. contracts)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... The January Question of the Month had two parts: Manufacturers of very light jets (VLJs) claim they will become popular because they will reduce business travel time. Do you agree? VLJs may find a niche. 56% Costly,...

Conflict resolution.(editorial)(Column)
February 1, 2007... Why does it seem as though we're wrought with conflict these days? At work, at home, even on the golf course, the stakes seem to be getting higher and higher all the time, no matter what we do, and there's no letting up. Or does it just seem...

Letter credibility.(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... To the Editor: I must protest the editorial policy of Mechanical Engineering magazine and the careless tendencies of my fellow engineers in the Letters to the Editor portion of the magazine. We are technical professionals, but you would not...

Letter of approval.(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... To the Editor: This is a letter of apology. During my 30-plus years of engineering work, I had not subscribed to ASME and did not receive regular copies of Mechanical Engineering. This was my error. The skilled writing, article...

Women and engineering.(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... To the Editor: A season doesn't pass that someone does not write in righteous indignation about there being too few women in engineering, as quoted in your November 2006 editorial. Women don't become engineers because they look at what it...

Reaching Mars.(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... To the Editor: The article "A Step Closer to Mars" (November 2006) brought a smile to my face. As a young boy in the early 1960s, I would lie in the front yard at night studying constellations, stars, and the moon. Occasionally, I witnessed a...

Ethanol equivocation.(news & notes)
February 1, 2007... One of the most raucous debates in the alternative energy field is the value of ethanol derived from corn. Does this biofuel provide a valuable means to extend petroleum fuel supplies, as its supporters contend? Or is it a boondoggle, as its...

Two companies join in biofuels research.(news & notes)
February 1, 2007... A Swiss company and a California firm have announced a new 10-year research and development partnership to study enzymes for biofuel production. Their research will focus on the discovery and development of enzymes to convert cellulosic biomass...

Cells on a scaffold.(news & notes)
February 1, 2007... Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers say they've successfully grown stem cells on a three-dimensional scaffold of nanoscale protein fragments that acts more like a living body than other cell culture systems. Shuguang Zhang,...

ASME.(Briefly Noted)(American Society Of Mechanical Engineers conferences)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... ASME will sponsor three biotechnial conferences in June. The ASME Bioprocess Technology Seminars and Exhibits will be held June 4-6, at the Radisson-Dublin St. Helens Hotel in Dublin, Ireland. Frontiers in Biomedical Devices 2007 is set for...

Dana Corp. of Toledo, Ohio, and a subsidiary, Dana Canada, have completed the sale of their trailer axle manufacturing assets to Hendrickson USA, a subsidiary of The Boler Co. of Itasca, Ill.(Briefly Noted)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... Dana Corp. of Toledo, Ohio, and a subsidiary, Dana Canada, have completed the sale of their trailer axle manufacturing assets to Hendrickson USA, a subsidiary of The Boler Co. of Itasca, Ill. The price was $31 million.

TGC Industries Inc.(Briefly Noted)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... TGC Industries Inc. of Piano, Texas, plans to acquire six new vibrator vehicles for delivery in the first quarter of 2007 and two new shot-hole drill rigs for delivery in the second quarter. Currently, TGC has 42 vibrator vehicles and nine...

IMS Software.(Briefly Noted)
February 1, 2007... IMS Software of Haverhill, Mass., has released IMSverify 2007 for numerically controlled machine simulation and collision detection.

Actify Inc.(Briefly Noted)(Actify Inc. introuces Design Share 2.0 software)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... Actify Inc. of San Francisco has released DesignShare 2.0 for enterprise collaboration based on Microsoft's SharePoint platform, which allows users to track, collaborate on, and manage product information including 2-D and 3D data. The update...

Watlow Electric Manufacturing Co.(Briefly Noted)
February 1, 2007... Watlow Electric Manufacturing Co. has opened a factory in Shanghai to produce tubular heaters for customers in China.

Parker Hannifin Corp. of Cleveland has acquired Cabett Subsea, a Houston designer and manufacturer of fluid handling systems and services used in deepwater oil and gas exploration and production.(Briefly Noted)(acquisition)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... Parker Hannifin Corp. of Cleveland has acquired Cabett Subsea, a Houston designer and manufacturer of fluid handling systems and services used in deepwater oil and gas exploration and production. The company produces steel tube hydraulic and...

Delivering wind power.(news & notes)(Buena Vista Energy LLC)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... A major energy supplier in California has begun to draw power from a new wind farm. Pacific Gas and Electric Co., which serves about 125 million people in central and northern California, has begun receiving renewable power from the Buena Vista...

Polish factory for Black Hawks.(news & notes)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... In an effort to make the Black Hawk global, Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. of Stratford, Conn., has agreed to acquire aircraft maker PZL Mielec from the Polish government. Sikorsky Aircraft is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. of Hartford,...

Spanish Army awards missile contract.(news & notes)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... The Spanish Army has awarded Army General Dynamics Santa Barbara Sistemas of Madrid a $424.5 million contract for the supply of Long Range Spike Missile Systems. General Dynamics Santa Barbara Sistemas, the prime contractor, has an...

Why so strong a swimmer?(computing)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... HOW CAN DOLPHINS SWIM ON and on at speeds of up to 33 feet per second? Researchers didn't really know. The conundrum is known as Gray's Paradox after Sir James Gray, who first pointed it out 70 years ago. Today's standard engineering...

No more slothful hardware.(computing)
February 1, 2007... COMPUTERS ARE LAZY. They work only when they have to and almost all of them spend most of their time loafing. The hardware at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., however, has developed a hard-work ethic. The university's computers...

Just enough oil.(Entec Beez-Lademann GbR using computational fluid dynamics software)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... THOMAS KRUGER DIDN'T INITIALLY think his employer, Entec Beez-Lademann GbR, could use computational fluid dynamics software to simulate the unique motion of the automotive oil pump that it makes. He thought wrong. Today, the manufacturer,...

The head of Kelly Ripa.(Direct Dimensions makes sculpture using laser face scanning)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... TALK-SHOW HOSTESS KELLY RIPA recently got a rather unlikely gift--a sculpture of her head based on a 360-degree laser scan of same. The scanning process took about five minutes in her New York television studio. Employees at Direct...

Where am I in 3-D?(research on 3-D imaging)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... THE THREE-DIMENSIONAL computer programs of the future will grant users the ability to see through walls and objects just like Superman. That's the conclusion of Niklas Elmqvist, in his doctoral dissertation in computer science at Chalmers...

Autopilot too affable?(computing)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... TWO ENGLISH RESEARCHERS SAY they've prototyped a flight computer to improve the interaction between an airplane's autopilot and its real pilot. Put broadly, the researchers think the autopilot needs to do more work. Although autopilots and...

CAD into Space.(France's Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales implements CAD software from MSC.Software)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... THE CENTRE NATIONAL D'ETUDES SPATIALES OF PARIS, the French government's space agency, recently implemented computer-aided design and related data management and collaboration software, all from MSC.Software of Santa Ana, Calif. The...

Really fast motorcycle.(Joe Harralson )(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... IT TOOK 17 YEARS, but Joe Harralson and his team at Sierra Design Engineering say they've helped design the world's fastest motorcycle. The cycle that his Mount Aukum, Calif., engineering firm helped design for BUB Enterprises of Grass...

One million robots strong.(computing)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... NEARLY ONE MILLION ROBOTS roam--or wield tools--in manufacturing plants around the world today, according to the Robotic Industries Association in Ann Arbor, Mich. Nearly half of them work in Japan. Today's robots perform a range of...

VI Group, the parent company of Vero International Software of Wixom, Mich.(Briefly Noted)
February 1, 2007... VI Group, the parent company of Vero International Software of Wixom, Mich., has acquired Camtek Ltd., a Malvern, England, maker of computer-aided manufacturing software.

SolidWorks of Concord, Mass., says its SolidWorks 2007 CAD software is certified by Microsoft Corp.(Briefly Noted)
February 1, 2007... SolidWorks of Concord, Mass., says its SolidWorks 2007 CAD software is certified by Microsoft Corp. for its Windows Vista operating system.

Comsol.(Briefly Noted)(launch of multiphysics tutorial CDs )(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... A series of free multiphysics tutorial CDs is now available from Comsol of Burlington, Mass. The company makes multiphysics software. Each CD contains a general introduction that illustrates how multiphysics modeling can be applied in a...

Autodesk of San Rafael, Calif., and PTC of Needham, Mass., have formed an interoperability agreement.(Briefly Noted)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... Autodesk of San Rafael, Calif., and PTC of Needham, Mass., have formed an interoperability agreement. Autodesk will incorporate the Granite Interoperability Kernel from PTC into AutoCAD and Autodesk Inventor while PTC will incorporate RealDWG...

Cimmetry Systems of Montreal has released AutoVue version 19.1 for SAP's PLM platform Enterprise Central Component 5.0.(Briefly Noted)(AutoVue version 19.1)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... Cimmetry Systems of Montreal has released AutoVue version 19.1 for SAP's PLM platform, Enterprise Central Component 5.0. AutoVue users gain access to documents stored in the mySAP repository.

Dassault Systemes.(Briefly Noted)
February 1, 2007... Dassault Systemes of Paris has released the third version of its Industry Solutions Business Process Content, version five.

Cyco Software.(Briefly Noted)
February 1, 2007... Engineering data management software maker Cyco Software of Atlanta has released Cyco AutoManager View 2007.

CoCreate Software Inc.(Briefly Noted)
February 1, 2007... CoCreate Software Inc. of Fort Collins, Colo., which makes PLM software, has released 2007 CoCreate OneSpace Suite.

Laser Design Inc. of Minneapolis released its Catia importer for Geomagic Qualify 8.(Briefly Noted)(Brief article)
February 1, 2007... Laser Design Inc. of Minneapolis released its Catia importer for Geomagic Qualify 8, which is automated inspection software from Raindrop Geomagic of Research Triangle Park, N.C.

Plotting and calculating.(software exchange)
February 1, 2007... Capability: EZplot for Excel creates and updates more than 50 plots. Plots and calculations are defined by parameter names rather than cell locations. EZplot provides formulas for 2-D interpolation, 3-D interpolation, and for polynomials....

Plot and animate.(software exchange)
February 1, 2007... Capability: With Tecplot 360, engineers can plot and animate their simulation and experiment data. That data can be analyzed and explored by arranging multiple x-y, 2-D and 3-D plots. Engineers control more than 2,500 plot attributions. For...

CAD on Mac.(software exchange)
February 1, 2007... Capability: VersaCAD 2006 for Macintosh Universal Binary runs on all Mac OS X systems, whether you're running an iMac or a G5, and whether your internal processor is Intel or PowerPC. The application offers a design and drafting software for...

Make it a solid.(software exchange)
February 1, 2007... Capability: The name says it all: Mesh to Solid converts a meshed virtual part into a solid. Many modeling operations--such as add, subtract, or intersect, or the capability to extrude, offset, fillet, chamfer, rib, draft, or hollow a virtual...

Pass-around PDF.(software exchange)
February 1, 2007... Capability: Using the upgraded Adobe Acrobat 8 application, engineers can create portable document format files from standard documents. With the upgraded version, several design and construction documents can be combined into a single PDF and...

Dipstick for E. coli.(INSTRUMENTATION AND CONTROL)(technology to prevent food contamination)
February 1, 2007... The recent spate of poisonings at chain restaurants in the United States has once again put food contamination in the spotlight. While food that's fresh is seen as healthier, it also has the potential to carry pathogens unless it has been...

Bone seismograph.(INSTRUMENTATION AND CONTROL)(new sensors for identifying stress fractures)
February 1, 2007... Stress fractures are easy to predict in aggregate: Out of a given number of adults engaging in aggressive, physical activity, some will develop cracks in their foot and leg bones that will need medical attention. But catching these fractures...

One-pixel wonder.(INSTRUMENTATION AND CONTROL)(Rice University to develop a uni-pixel digital camera)
February 1, 2007... Advertisements for digital cameras often stress one measure: the number of pixels the device can record. The more pixels, the higher the resolution of the image captured on the camera's charge coupled device. Indeed, even small cameras embedded...

Sense of touch.(INSTRUMENTATION AND CONTROL)(Pressure Profile Systems Inc. develops pressure sensors for industrial purposes)
February 1, 2007... There are all kinds of things that people have a need to measure--the pressure of a wiper blade as it travels across a windshield, for instance, or a patient's grip on the handle of a therapeutic machine. A baby diaper must fit right, so it...

Filling the void: to attract women to engineering in greater numbers, some suggest, they must be able to see how they are making a difference.(engineering management)
February 1, 2007... gender stereotypes have been breaking down in the United States for decades. After all, this is a time when American servicewomen are taking positions alongside their male counterparts in many aspects of military operations, including the Army...

Put your bom to work: a well-crafted bill of materials offers keys to improved efficiency.(engineering management)
February 1, 2007... as manufacturing companies strive to remain competitive, they're also seeking to improve efficiency. Today's manufacturing environment has pushed companies into a constant search for improved production and better management. This...

The substance of our styles: one engineer will live for the rules and another will try to rewrite them, but both minds bring valuable insights to the table.(engineering management)
February 1, 2007... Engineers--like all humans--are problem solvers, and the problems engineers have to solve are getting more complex and more difficult every day. We are responsible for more solutions, delivered at increasing speeds, with growing demands for...

Into the fold: tying all company technologies through one PLM system.(product lifecycle management system)
February 1, 2007... Q When is a product lifecycle management system more than a PLM system? A: When it smoothly links everyone involved in the company's business--including suppliers and aftermarket dealers--no matter what software application they're using,...

Fly silent, fly cheap: when a team of engineers set out to design the world's quietest airliner, they discovered that a silent airplane would be an efficient one.
February 1, 2007... SOME design problems are so obvious, they hit you right between the eyes. But in 2003, when engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge and the University of Cambridge in England were looking for a project they could...

Electronic indexer.(new products)
February 1, 2007... DANAHER MOTION, WOOD DALE, ILL. Danaher's electronic indexer solution set can double throughput compared with mechanical indexers, according to the company. It is said to let OEMs build a better machine, faster, and enables end users to...

Dry lubricant.(new products)
February 1, 2007... KERK MOTION PRODUCTS INC., HOLLIS, N.H. The company is offering lead screw, linear rail, spline shaft, and ScrewRail actuator assemblies with its Kerkote TFE coating. Kerkote reduces friction and extends the life of Kerk's cost-effective,...

Pressure transducers.(new products)
February 1, 2007... OMEGA ENGINEERING INC., STAMFORD, CONN. The company says aerospace silicon technology in its PX309 Series pressure transducers delivers accuracy at competitive prices. With a choice of absolute pressures from 5 to 300 psi, gauge pressures from...

Adjustable levers.(new products)
February 1, 2007... J.W. WINCO INC., NEW BERLIN, WIS. The company's stainless steel adjustable levers have stainless steel handles with a sand-blasted satin finish. Inserts, screws, and springs are also stainless steel. The all-stainless steel construction makes...

Thermocouple sensor.(new products)
February 1, 2007... PARKER HANNIFIN, TUCSON, ARIZ. A thermocouple assembly design from the company's Partek division provides a reliable temperature monitoring sensor for high-purity fluid systems. The sensor assembly is said to overcome weaknesses with current...

Clinch studs.(new products)
February 1, 2007... PENNENGINEERING, DANBORO, PA. PEM Type HFHB Busbar self-clinching studs can be used in applications that need electrical or mechanical attachment points in copper. These phosphor bronze externally threaded fasteners offer twice the conductivity...

Mini hole plugs.(new products)
February 1, 2007... HEYCO PRODUCTS INC., TOMS RIVER. N.J. Heyco's D-subminiature connector mounting hole plugs can be used in electrical cabinets, electronic equipment, appliances, distributed control systems, or anywhere that D-sub connectors are used. They are...

Transfer switches.(new products)
February 1, 2007... RUSSELECTRIC INC., HINGHAM, MASS. For 600-volt class applications, Russelectric single-operator and dual-operator automatic transfer switches are available in 2-, 3-, or 4-pole configurations for emergency and standby power systems. With high...

Linear motion solutions.(new products)
February 1, 2007... THK AMERICA INC., SCHAUMBURG. ILL. In response to growing application demands, THK has designed a line of ceramic linear motion solutions. The use of ceramic rails, blocks, and in most cases, ceramic bails, contributes to nonmagnetic...

Nano-alignment system.(new products)
February 1, 2007... PHYSIK INSTRUMENTE LP. AUBURN. MASS. The improved F-206.S, 6-axis nano-alignment system provides high-resolution 6D motion, a user programmable pivot point, and powerful alignment software. Typical applications are nanomanipulation (life...

Filtration system.(new products)
February 1, 2007... EBBCO INC., NEW BALTIMORE, MICH. The company's closed loop filtration system is for use in the waterjet cutting industries. Designed to completely close the drain, the system reduces water consumption by 90 to 98 percent of normal use by...

More protection.(new products)
February 1, 2007... EMERSON NETWORK POWER. COLUMBUS, OHIO. A new higher-capacity version of the Liebert GXT uninterruptible power supply is configurable as a tower or rack-mount model. The 10 kVA power supply unit delivers online double-conversion protection for...

Magnetic conveyors.(new products)
February 1, 2007... PURITAN MAGNETICS, OXFORD, MICH. Belt-free magnetic conveyors are designed to convey stamping scrap, knockouts, or chips, and turnings from lathes, mills, presses, or other metal working machinery. The virtually maintenance-free design...

Accelerometer.(new products)
February 1, 2007... PCB PIEZOTRONICS INC., DEPEW, N.Y. The Series 3713 high-sensitivity, MEMS dc (steady state) response accelerometer can measure accelerations in a variety of automotive and off-highway testing applications. The unit is gas damped, and provides...

Vibration meter.(new products)
February 1, 2007... OMEGA ENGINEERING INC., STAMFORD, CONN. The HHVB82 vibration meter monitors machinery to determine maintenance needs. All industrial machinery vibrates, so monitoring the level of vibration is a useful guide to a machine's condition. Poor...

Compact modules.(new products)
February 1, 2007... ROCKWELL AUTOMATION, MAYFIELD HTS., OHIO. Compact I/O modules are designed to conserve panel space and extend the versatility of integrated architecture to smaller applications. Rockwell Automation has added three new modules to its...

Boosting joint strength.(new products)
February 1, 2007... SPS TECHNOLOGIES, JENKINTOWN, PA. Preload indicating washers provide an accurate method of measuring the preload, or, clamp force, in a bolted joint. Using preload indicating washers to achieve maximum preload lets designers maximize joint...

Concentrated power.(new products)
February 1, 2007... MICROMO ELECTRONICS INC., CLEARWATER, FLA. The Series 1224SR dc micromotor has an external motor diameter of 12 mm and a length of 24 mm, so its power-to-volume ratio is notable. This is achieved through a combination of the Faulhaber ironless...

Shaft collar accessories.(new products)
February 1, 2007... STAFFORD MANUFACTURING CORP., WILMINGTON, MASS. New accessories are designed to improve the characteristics of shaft collars by providing a low-friction surface or cushioned end stop. The accessories include thrust bearings with nylon ball...

One-piece gear design.(new products)
February 1, 2007... INTECH CORP., CLOSTER. N.J. Cast-in metal core gears use proprietary gear-life calculations in a one-piece gear design, eliminating traditional flanged attachments and providing lubrication-free, high-torque transmission for use in demanding...

Signal conditioner.(new products)
February 1, 2007... MACRO SENSORS. PENNSAUKEN, N.J. The company's new single-channel, low-voltage signal conditioner supports any standard LVDT, RVDT, and VRT half-bridge sensor. Operating from 12 V or 24 V dc power, the Model LVC-2500 DC-LVDT signal conditioner...

Single-pole connection devices.(new products)
February 1, 2007... LEVITON MANUFACTURING CO., LITTLE NECK, N.Y. A new line of Rhino-Hide 49 Series single-pole connection products is engineered to meet exacting requirements in high-amperage power applications subject to punishing environments and severe...

Steam pressure regulator.(new products)
February 1, 2007... SPENCE ENGINEERING CO., WALDEN. N.Y. The Type ED pilot-operated steam pressure regulator is useful for steam distribution systems, district heating systems, pressure control for steam plants, and single, two-stage, or parallel reduction. The...

Inspection crawler.(new products)
February 1, 2007... ENVIROSIGHT LLC, RANDOLPH, N.J. The SuperVision 140 video inspection crawler travels as far as 1,640 ft. through pipelines 6 in. and larger, rapidly evaluating condition and identifying maintenance needs. Like other Envirosight crawlers, the...

Vacuum extruders.(new products)
February 1, 2007... CORELCO, CHICAGO, ILL. Vacuum fuel-line extruders, or corrugators, are modifiable for increased efficiency and quality. These machines are specific enough to meet the demands of different fluid-transfer applications and flexible enough to allow...

Seat control valve.(new products)
February 1, 2007... FLOWSERVE CORP., DALLAS, TEXAS. The Worcester CPT series ball valve is engineered as a control valve and provides reliable operation and precise valve positioning in the most critical throttling conditions, according to the company. CPT series...

Linear actuator.(new products)
February 1, 2007... IGUS INC., EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. The company's first linear actuator is the DryLin ZLW. It is a lightweight, toothed-belt linear drive equipped with a hard-anodized aluminum profile, a DryLin W compact linear guide, and iglide plastic sliding...

Alloy products.(product information)
February 1, 2007... MILWARD ALLOYS INC.. LOCKPORT. N.Y. A new brochure describes the company's capability to develop custom or non-standard alloy products for proprietary applications in the metallurgical industry. The literature covers typical applications, such...

Thermal cutting.(product information)
February 1, 2007... HYPERTHERM INC., HANOVER, N.H. The Mechanized Cutting Solutions Guide gives an overview of the company's mechanized plasma solutions. A comparison of plasma, oxyfuel, and laser technologies is described, with advantages for each. Rationale is...

Temperature and flow.(product information)
February 1, 2007... OMEGA ENGINEERING INC., STAMFORD. CT. The Controlcat New Horizons in Temperature, Flow, and Pressure catalog features 138 Dilbert cartoons and more than 190 full-color pages of products for the temperature, flow, environmental, pressure, DAS,...

Flow indicators.(product information)
February 1, 2007... ERNST FLOW INDUSTRIES, FARMINGDALE, N.J. This company, which specializes in processing and industrial plant equipment, highlights its offerings in a 52-page publication. Its latest products are a pair of sight flow indicators. The Model EFI...

Fixturing systems.(product information)
February 1, 2007... HIRSCHMANN ENGINEERING INC., BUFFALO GROVE, ILL. A 36-page catalog has information about fixturing systems, presetting stations, and automated robotic loading devices. Fixturing System 4000 for Wire EDM reviews Hirschmann's product line along...

Power transmission parts.(product information)
February 1, 2007... QUALITY TRANSMISSION COMPONENTS, GARDEN CITY PARK, N.Y. The process of selecting timing belt pulleys, belts, belt and roller chain tensioners, and other power transmission components for new prototypes or for production applications is aided by...