Mechanical Engineering-CIME articles from November 2003

Mechanical Engineering-CIME archives from November 2003

Engineering role models.(2003's American Society of Mechanical Engineers award winners)(Editorial)
November 1, 2003... Consumer spending on technical gadgets is growing--from new hand-held devices that double as mobile phones and portable video game players, to global positioning systems that track your kids while you're in the frozen food section and they're...

The age of experience.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2003... To the Editor: This is to strongly complain about the age discrimination expressed in the April article, "New Wheels for Grandma." Detroit was never able to design a car I would buy when I was 20. Now that I am 65, they still can't design...

Turbo truck.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2003... To the Editor: Alexander R. Kovnat (Letter, July) mentions the use of methanol in gas turbine engines and wonders "... how well a large truck, using such an engine would perform with regard to economy of operation and exhaust emissions, in...

The darker side of Henry Ford.(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2003... To the Editor: I was very disappointed in the cover article in your May issue. While Henry Ford's achievements as an industrial innovator have been well chronicled, the account of his contributions to society have some notable missing elements....

Corporate welfare.(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2003... To the Editor: The call for more federal aviation R&D spending is really a call for more corporate welfare (Washington Window, May). The U.S. aerospace industry has spent countless billions of dollars on mergers and acquisitions that have...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
November 1, 2003... A fuel cell installed at Yale University's Environmental Sciences Building is rated at 250 kilowatts of electricity. Because of an editing error, the electrical capacity of the cell was misstated in an article in the June issue.

Biomedical foundation doles out last award.(news & notes)(Whittaker Foundation ends biomedical engineering research grants and will close)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... The Whitaker Foundation, which has been awarding grants to biomedical engineering researchers since 1976, has given out its last awards. With the final $10 million in grants, the Biomedical Engineering Research Grants Program is shutting its...

Better still.(news & notes)(high efficiency solar still developed)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... When Nature wants to make fresh water, she relies on simple solar-powered evaporation and condensation. But engineers who design desalination systems to supply water to growing cities have opted for more active systems, including reverse...

Electric airplane.(news & notes)(Intelligent Energy (UK) among Boeing partners in aviation fuel cell research)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... The Boeing Co. in Chicago said that it has lined up partners to develop a demonstrator airplane that will test the use of fuel cells for aerospace applications. The research project, led by the Boeing Research and Technology Center in...

Only on M.E. magazine online.(news & notes)
November 1, 2003... @www.memagazine.org. Responses to the October Question of the Month: Should U.S. automakers be offered financial incentives from the federal government to produce more fuel-efficient vehicles? A new Question of the Month will be posted...

Quick quotes for rapid prototypes.(news & notes)(Quickparts designs engineering costing software to work with CAD programs)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... A provider of rapid prototypes and production parts, Quickparts.com, has been working directly with vendors of computer-aided design software to make it easier for customers to get quotes and order parts. The company has developed a new...

Report: bigger vehicles increase safety.(news & notes)
November 1, 2003... Weight reductions in cars, lighter vans, pickup trucks, and sport utility vehicles increased the risk of fatal crash involvement, according to a study released by the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety...

Westinghouse Electric Co. will supply turbine and reactor control systems.(Briefly noted)(contract with A.I.E. Centrales Nucleares Almaraz-Trillo in Spain)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Westinghouse Electric Co. will supply turbine and reactor control systems to A.I.E. Centrales Nucleares Almaraz-Trillo in Spain as part of an $8 million modernization program for the Almaraz nuclear plant.

Donaldson Co. of Minneapolis has acquired the assets of the LHA industrial hydraulic business.(Briefly noted)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Donaldson Co. of Minneapolis has acquired the assets of the LHA industrial hydraulic business from Tulsa-based Berendsen Fluid Power.

The city of Corpus Christi, Texas, has received a $500,000 grant.(Briefly noted)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... The city of Corpus Christi, Texas, has received a $500,000 grant from the Texas Water Development Board to evaluate the viability of a sea water desalination project.

Connecticut-based Crompton Corp. has been ordered by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to pay $4.5 million to clean up the Bear Creek Area chemical site.(Briefly noted)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Connecticut-based Crompton Corp. has been ordered by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to pay $4.5 million to clean up the Bear Creek Area chemical site, and help finance a new public water system for the surrounding area....

Renishaw plc.(Briefly noted)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Renishaw plc, based in Gloucestershire, U.K., established a Canadian subsidiary in Mississauga, Ontario, to support applications of its inspection probe, calibration system, and encoder products.

Growing a new lower jaw bone.(computing)
November 1, 2003... In an operating room at Carle Hospital in Urbana, Ill., last spring, scientists from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Sandia National Laboratories watched a surgeon fit a ceramic prosthetic device into the mouth of an elderly...

Sharing data on different systems.(computing)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Airborne Systems Germany, a unit of the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co., is using specialized software to better communicate designs between its customer and suppliers on military transport projects. The software automatically...

Predicting forest fires.(computing)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Forest fires cost the United States billions of dollars in property losses each year and, of" course, are responsible for the deaths of fire-fighters and residents, according to researchers at the Forest Services Fire Sciences Laboratory in...

Outside help to steer the snow thrower.(computing)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... A manufacturer of lawn and garden equipment, Murray Inc. of Cleveland, is working with a consulting company to develop new designs for a line of snow throwers. "Murray uses us as their production development department," said Bob Lewis,...

Supporting sports cars of the future.(computing)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Ferrari Gestione Industriale of Modena, Italy, the production-car branch of Ferrari S.p.A., is using simulation software to help develop sus pension systems for future Ferrari and Maserati models. The company is using MSC.Adams software...

A close-up look at a little-seen body part.(computing)(hair follicles studied by L'Oreal)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... There are 150,000 hair follicles in the scalp. Each is associated with a muscle, a sebaceous gland, and a sweat gland. Researchers at the cosmetics company L'Oreal of Clichy, France, are using a computer-aided design program to study the...

Testing products bound for space.(computing)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... The aerospace contractor Spectrum Astro of Gilbert, Ariz., is integrating a multichannel vibration control and data acquisition system into its satellite development center. The satellites designed by the company meet rigorous requirements,...

Fluent Inc.(Briefly noted)(releases Gambit 2.1 version of its geometry software)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... A maker of computational fluid dynamics software, Fluent Inc. of Lebanon, N.H., has released Gambit 2.1, an upgrade to Fluent's geometry and mesh generation software.

MSC.Software Corp.(Briefly noted)(MSC.Adams 2003 motion simulation product has been released)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... MSC.Software Corp. of Los Angeles has come out with MSC.Adams 2003, a motion simulation product.

Think3.(Briefly noted)(Think3 releases version 8.4 of its personal data manager software)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Think3 of Pleasanton, Calif., which makes PLM and CAD software, has released version 8.4 of its integrated 2-D, 3-D, and PDM software, which offers Auto-CAD compatibility.

Tailor Made Software Ltd.(Briefly noted)(DGNXchange software released)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Tailor Made Software Ltd. of Kent, Wash., a provider of CAD conversion and visualization tools for the Windows, Unix, and Linux platforms, has released DGNXchange, which converts MicroStation Design files into Adobe Acrobat portable document...

Alias Systems.(Briefly noted)(Alias ImageStudio graphics utility software released)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Alias Systems of Toronto has released Alias ImageStudio, a new software application to create rendered images suitable for presentations.

Algor Inc.(Briefly noted)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... The maker of finite element analysis software, Algor Inc. of Pittsburgh, has released version 14 of its Algor FEA program.

Photon Design.(Briefly noted)(CrystalWave software for photonic crystal design released)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Photon Design of Oxford, England, has released a range of CAD software applications called CrystalWave for photonic crystal design.

Coade.(Briefly noted)(CADWorx 2004, enhanced autoCAD software released)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Coade of Houston has released CADWorx 2004, an enhanced version of its AutoCAD-based software suite for plant design. Enhancements include a new equipment module as well as enhancements to the pipe module.

National Instruments.(Briefly noted)(Measurement Studio 7.0 released)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Measurement Studio 7.0, a suite of native classes and controls for developing measurement and automation applications in Microsoft Visual Studio .Net 2003, has been released by National Instruments of Austin, Texas.

Technology reseller Impac Systems of Houston has signed an agreement with CAD maker PTC of Needham, Mass., to become a PTC reseller.(Briefly noted)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Technology reseller Impac Systems of Houston has signed an agreement with CAD maker PTC of Needham, Mass., to become a PTC reseller. The agreement will allow Impac to sell the developer's CAD and other engineering software to customers who are...

Medical agent maker links factory floor.(computing)(Amersham to automate new factory)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Amersham, which makes diagnostic imaging reagents to highlight organs, tissues, and cells inside the human body for early disease detection, will completely automate its new plant in Lindesnes, Norway. The medical diagnostics maker will use...

Fighting fire without risk to firefighters.(computing)(National Institute of Standards and Technology is upgrading its fire modeling software)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Experts at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg, Md., are reworking the agency's fire-modeling software--known as the Fire Dynamic Simulator--to increase the system's ability to simulate the smoke, hot air, and...

Turbomachinery mesh generator.(software exchange)
November 1, 2003... Capability: MinuteMesh Turbo is a parametric mesh generator that helps users create finite element models for turbomachinery applications. Design features include a range of shank designs, from simple dovetail to curved fir-tree root. The...

C or C++ interpreter.(software exchange)
November 1, 2003... Capability: Ch is a cross-platform C and C++ interpreter useful for scripting two-dimensional or 3-D graphical plots and for numerical computing. It supports 1999 ISO C Standard complex numbers, variable length arrays, IEEE-754 floating-point...

Integrated FEA/FEM.(software exchange)
November 1, 2003... Capability: The upgraded finite element analysis and finite clement modeling program LapFEA release 8 now includes a utility that slices a model along any user-defined plane. Analyzed models can be broken down into layers and displayed its...

CAD views without a CAD system.(software exchange)
November 1, 2003... Capability: The professional version of the SpinFire CAD visualization soft ware has been upgraded. The program lets users look at and mark up CAD files without having to own the CAD systems in which those files were created. It supports all...

Ceramic rollers follow a smooth path.(Power Transmission And Motion Control)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Hybrid bearings combining silicon nitride rollers and metal races run faster and longer than their all-steel counterparts, according to Paul Johnson, a staff engineer specializing in ceramic roller manufacturing at MRC Bearings in Jamestown,...

Robot crash protection.(Power Transmission And Motion Control)(robot crash sensor reduces manufacturing down time)
November 1, 2003... Robot end-of-arm tooling is often costly and easily damaged by minor crashes that take place during setup of a new job or during actual production. During the training phase of robotic applications, when the robot arm is walked through its...

Big torque in a small package.(Power Transmission And Motion Control)(Renold Hi-Tec Couplings of Halifax, England, introduces compact rubber coupling)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... A maker of compressed rubber couplings has come up with a compact design that the company says will transfer as much torque as its considerably larger cousins. The unit protects against vibration, backlash, and reverse torque. Renold Hi-Tec...

Well-rounded rails.(Power Transmission And Power Control)
November 1, 2003... Around rail system from ATR-Strothmann in Cambridge, Ontario, brings nearly flush, grooveless track to factory floors, giving ordinary workers the illusion of superhuman strength as they push loads as heavy as 10 tons by themselves. The secret?...

Phone hook.(Power Transmission And Motion Control)(Kerk Motion Products Inc. designs improved telephone access)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... A telephone handset lifter to let headset wearers answer the ring from across a room needed an inexpensive, reliable lead screw for its lifting motion, according to Bob Hawkins, an applications engineer with Kerk Motion Products Inc. of Hollis,...

Rubber baby buggy bumpers absorb energy.(Power Transmission And Motion Control)(rubber pads cut machine travel and vibration)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... These machine supports are designed to withstand horizontal loads measured in tons. That's probably more than anyone would need on a baby carriage, and the manufacturer, AirLoc, is selling the supports for machines and presses with forces of...

Crank it to 11.(Power Transmission And Motion Control)(Victrex produces polymer heat dissipation filaments for speakers)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... Forget about woofers and tweeters. One of the most important animals in high-yield audio speakers is a spider--a fine mesh of filaments designed to bleed off excess heat. And though heat doesn't seem at first to be such a big problem with...

EV extended in Hawaii.(Power Transmission And Motion Control)(electric vehicle demonstration project extended two years)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2003... The Hyundai Motor Co. of Seoul, Korea, and the state of Hawaii extended by two years an electric vehicle demonstration project. The Hawaii Electric Vehicle Demonstration Program began in July 2001 as a partnership of Hyundai, the state, the...

Critical issues for aviation and aeronautics: a white paper focuses on technologies the U.S. should pursue.(Washington window)
November 1, 2003... If the United States is to maintain technological leadership in aeronautics and aviation, it must support the development of advanced aeronautical technologies, according to a recent ASME white paper. The white paper was written by an ASME...

A touching sensation: haptics technology lends the sense of touch to virtual reality. That might not sound very exciting, but it's being used to train surgeons and rehabilitate patients.
November 1, 2003... Haptics, a fairly recent enhancement to virtual reality technology, gives users the touch and feel of simulated objects they interact with, usually through a device like a specialized mouse or a haptic glove. The touch technology is making its...

The next century of air power: the U.S. Air Force is engineering a transformation of defense, in the sky and above it.(Feature focus: Future Engineering Systems)(Cover Story)
November 1, 2003... As we approach the 100th anniversary of powered flight, engineers and scientists from the broad aerospace community have much to celebrate. A century of innovation and perspiration has created a worldwide aerospace industry that has taken us...

Rolyn Optics Company.(Advertisement)
November 1, 2003... Rolyn manufactures and distributes a wide line of high quality, off-the-shelf optics including simple or compound lenses, filters, prisms, mirrors, beamsplitters, reticles, objectives, eyepieces plus thousands of other stock items. All are...

"Look, Ma, no pilot!" Unmanned aircraft are making news today, but their beginnings date back to the great war.
November 1, 2003... In a test that took place several years ago, a small, pilotless biplane took off from Cook Field in Dayton, Ohio. A team led by the inventor Charles Kettering had developed the airborne contraption, conceived as a top-secret weapon to deliver...

The conquest of friction.
November 1, 2003... The wheel is often described as the most significant invention of all time. Actually, that is not literally the case. The real innovation was putting the axle and the bearing into the large round carrier. There is ancient evidence of the...

Digging deeper in New York: if the third-largest port in the U.S. is too shallow, then dredge we must, says the Corps of Engineers.
November 1, 2003... A container ship that sails partly empty is a container ship that's not meeting its full earning potential. That's been the problem with the Port of New York and New Jersey: Ships have had to sail in only partly loaded, because the channels...

Linear actuator.(new products)
November 1, 2003... SMC CORP., TUSTIN, CALIF. The Series CG5 pneumatically driven linear actuator is designed for superior moisture and corrosion resistance. It uses Food and Drug Administration-approved grease and materials, which are suitable for applications...

Solar scriber.(new products)
November 1, 2003... MUNDT & ASSOCIATES INC., SCOTTS-DALE, ARIZ. The MPS14 multipin solar scriber is suitable for high-speed production of scribing solar panels or other materials, such as plastics, metals, and stone. According to the manufacturer, in two...

Motion controller for servos.(new products)
November 1, 2003... IMC LTD., SERVO-HALBECK GMBH & CO. KG, OFFENHAUSEN, GERMANY. The advanced motion controller Posys 7xx is for brushed or brushless servo or stepper motors. The ISA-Bus card is available in 1-, 2-, or 4-axis configurations. For more axes,...

Microscope stage system.(new products)
November 1, 2003... CDS MODULES L.L.C, SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. The company's high-performance universal motorized microscope stage system is compact. The Bio Stage can be mechanically positioned onto a manual stage of 200 square mm or larger. It sets firmly on...

Joystick-operated combination tool.(new products)
November 1, 2003... LUDECA INC., MIAMI, FLA. Smart-Scanner provides one solution for vibration, alignment, and balancing. According to the company, the product is the first ever joystick-operated combination tool for corrective and predictive maintenance tasks. It...

Yellow picking fingers.(new products)
November 1, 2003... PARKER HANNIFIN CORP. ENGINEERED SEALS DIV., SYRACUSE, IND. A new series of yellow poultry picking fingers is said to dramatically reduce physical marking and provide increased resistance to abrasion and premature breakage. The yellow fingers...

Linear guidance system.(new products)
November 1, 2003... BISHOP-WISECARVER CORP., PITTSBURG, CALIF. The Vee slide linear guidance system called Simple-Select offers four sizes of spacer slides complete with assembled carriages ready for installation. All units have double row bearings and fitted cap...

System combination.(new products)
November 1, 2003... TRANSDUCER TECHNIQUES INC., TEMECULA, CALIF. The MLC/TM0-1 System is a combination of the company's mini load column compression-only load cell and its 12V dc-powered amplifier/conditioner module. The TMO-1 provides dedicated conditioning so...

Load measuring pins.(new products)
November 1, 2003... MAGTROL INC., BUFFALO, N.Y. Based on accurate and reliable full-bridge strain gauge technology, load measuring pins are a cost saving solution for precise load or overload measurement in any harsh industrial environment. Standard models include...

Self-recuperative burner.(new products)
November 1, 2003... KROMSCHRODER INC., HUDSON, OHIO. This manufacturer of engineered combustion control systems now has the BICR self-recuperative burner. It provides economical operation and uniform tube temperatures, which increase the life of the radiant tube...

Sealed cordset connections.(new products)
November 1, 2003... TURCK INC., MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. The company now has M8 stainless steel coupling nuts for its picofast line of cordsets. Rated for 1,200 psi wash down, cordsets with these new stainless steel coupling nuts are useful for the food and beverage...

Circuit protection.(new products)
November 1, 2003... LITTELFUSE INC., DES PLAINES, ILL. Transient voltage suppression diodes are designed to suppress over-voltage transients induced by electrically fast transients, inductive load switching, and lightning. For use in automotive,...

Snap-action switches.(new products)
November 1, 2003... CHERRY ELECTRICAl. PRODUCTS, PLEASANT PRAIRIE, WIS. The GP Series snap-action switches provide actuator travel differentials as low as 0.002 in. and mechanical endurance of more than 1 million cycles. These precision switches are suited for...

Ultrasonic inspection system.(new products)
November 1, 2003... UE SYSTEMS INC., ELMSFORD, N.Y. The Ultraprobe 10000 is a multilevel, digital ultrasonic condition analysis system, which consists of two basic components. The first is a handheld, metered pistol, ultrasonic sensing instrument with onboard...

Uniform temperature measurement.(new products)
November 1, 2003... PYROMETER INSTRUMENT CO. INC., NORTHVALE, N.J. The Pyrofiber non-contact automatic emissivity correcting infrared thermometer has multiple sensor heads for uniform temperature measurements. The multisensor head unit lets the user obtain more...

Military-oriented air filters.(new products)
November 1, 2003... UNIVERSAL AIR FILTER CO., SAUGET, ILL. New Mil-Spec air filters are designed to meet the demanding needs of electronics equipment operated in harsh military environments. Mil-Spec filters help protect electronics gear where high temperature and...

Miniature vacuum pump.(new products)
November 1, 2003... VACCON CO., MEDFIELD, MASS. An ultra-miniature, air-powered venturi vacuum pump is lightweight, compact, and efficient. Designed to operate over a wide range of supply pressures, these pumps are useful for drip control in liquid dispensing or...

Integrity tester.(new products)
November 1, 2003... POROUS MATERIALS INC., ITHACA, N.Y. The QS201A integrity analyzer is specially designed for a quick test procedure to detect acceptable pressure leaks for quality control compliance. Test material slides into a holder and all that the operator...

Grate magnet.(new products)
November 1, 2003... ERIEZ MAGNETICS, ERIE, PA. Eriez has redesigned its drawer and wing grate magnet to improve operation and separation performance. These new drawer units, using the company's ceramic or Erium 3000 rare earth tubes, provide a powerful and...

Motion technologies.(product information)
November 1, 2003... DANAHER MOTION, CLEVELAND, OHIO. The company's new brochure highlights the many brands and products that comprise its mechanical and electromechanical product lines. There are photos and detailed listings of features, benefits, and applications...

Pad-mount substation.(product information)
November 1, 2003... COOPER, POWER SYSTEMS, WAUKESHA, WIS. The company's pad-mount substation brochure highlights the cost-effective solutions available to utilities that face the challenges of permitting and specifying open-bus substations. The brochure describes...

Fluid control.(product information)
November 1, 2003... SPENCE ENGINEERING CO. INC., WALDEN, N.Y. This dozen-page brochure has a broad range of steam specialties and fluid control products for commercial and industrial process control requirements. Among the products covered are steam and fluid...

Mineral sizer.(product information)
November 1, 2003... PENNSYLVANIA CRUSHER CORP., BROOMALL, PA. This brochure describes the Mountaineer Sizer, which handles a wide variety of minerals and incorporates features that enable it, according to the company, to outperform other makes for primary and...

Rotary shaft seals.(product information)
November 1, 2003... SAINT-GOBAIN PERFORMANCE PLASTICS, WAYNE, N.J. The complete line of OmniLip rotary polytetrafluoroethylene, or PTFE, shaft seals is covered in tiffs catalog. Designed to handle high temperatures, high surface speeds, and high pressures, these...

Metals and materials.(product information)
November 1, 2003... GOODFELLOW CORP., BEP-.WYN, PA. The company's CD-ROM catalog of metals and materials contains more than 40,000 items, including a selection of pure metals, alloys, polymers. ceramics, and composites in a range of forms and sizes. The CD helps...

Cable carriers.(product information)
November 1, 2003... GORTRAC DIVISION, A&A MFG. CO. INC., NEW BERLIN, WIS. Gortrac GX-Series cable and hose carriers are described in detail in the firm's new brochure, These carriers feature a one piece link design with fewer separate parts, yet are able to handle...

ASME codes & standards.
November 1, 2003... ASME International, Codes & Standards, Three Park Ave., New York, NY 10016-5990 (212) 591-8500 Fax: (212) 591-8501 e-mail: cs@asme.org We invite you to visit our Web site: www.asme.org/codes. If you are looking...

Inventing Modern: Growing up with X-rays, skyscrapers, and tail fins.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
November 1, 2003... John H. Lienhard. Oxford University Press, 198 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016-4314. 292 pages. 2003. ISBN 0-19-516032-0. $28 In Inventing Modern, John H. Lienhard captures the feeling of progress and hopefulness of the first half of the...

Ignition Handbook.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
November 1, 2003... Vytenis Babrauskas. Fire Science Publishers, 9000 300th Place SE, Issaquah, WA 98027. 1, 116 pages. 2003. ISBN 0-9728111-3-3. $198. Fire safety is an interdisciplinary specialty, and includes professionals working as fire protection...