Product Design & Development articles from June 2008

Product Design & Development archives from June 2008

Greater positioning, velocity control.(First Look)
June 1, 2008... Aerotech introduces their ALAR series of direct-drive, large-aperture, rotary stages that are available in 100 mm, 150 mm, 200 mm, 250 mm and 325 mm sizes with continuous rotational speeds of 45-300 RPM and axial load capacities of 260 - 1,300...

Encoder meets multiple motor applications.(First Look)
June 1, 2008... Dynapar recently unveiled their HC20 commutation encoder for use in brushless servo and step motor applications. According to the company, unlike other encoders in this price range, the HC20 features direct-read non-interpolated technology from...

Greater connector flexibility.(First Look)
June 1, 2008... New from Anderson Power Products is their Powerpole T-Pak for use with 4-position Powerpole Pak connectors. The unit helps split current from 1 incoming circuit into to 2 outgoing circuits. Made of high-impact and corrosion resistant black...

Housing expands optical sensing in industrial applications.(First Look)
June 1, 2008... ifm elector recently introduced its OG-Cube photoelectric sensor in a compact metal housing for improving position detection. The housing is built to withstand harsher industrial conditions with metal M18 mounting threads that will not strip...

Polymers add to sensor durability.(First Look)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] New from Vaisala is their DMT152 dewpoint measurement sensor/transmitter with polymer technologies that enable its use down to temperatures of-112 degrees Fahrenheit. The new sensor combines the company's thin-film...

Greater velocity from a smaller unit.(First Look)
June 1, 2008... PI (Physik Instrumente) recently unveiled their P-653 piezo motor linear slide, which they state is smaller (8 mm in length) than other miniature linear stages, but provides significantly higher velocities and resolution. Utilizing a 4-part...

Avoidance achieved.(At Issue)
June 1, 2008... About five years ago I was ill all airport with a colleague who made a very simple, but very interesting observation. He lamented about not getting in on the ground floor of cell phones, and investing in those companies who had been primarily...

High speed encoder and counter.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The ADAM-5801 high speed quadrature encoder and counter module by the Industrial Automation Group of Advantech provides accurate, high speed data collection for applications such as facility and machine automation....

Efficient converters.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... FDK Corp. introduces 3 products in a new DK Series of non-isolated DC-DC converters. According to the company, the FPDK12SIR003PA, FPDK05S 1R003PA and FPDK05S 1R003PAV deliver: * 3 Amps of output current at power densities up to 640 W/inch...

Greater accuracy from an easier set-up.(From the Cover)
June 1, 2008... New from Yaskawa is Sigma-5, their fifth generation of servomotors and amplifiers, with improved positioning accuracy, reduced vibration, simplified usability and an optimized auto tuning function for more sophisticated applications, such as...

High power drives.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Lenze-AC Tech introduces its new, higher powered SMVector NEMA 1 drives. According to the company, the drives feature: * Additional programmable digital input. * Terminals for RS-485 communications. * An...

30-Amp. AC relays.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] HAT 900 series relays by Hasco are now available with AC coils. The relays are rated for 30 A on the N.O. side and on the N.C. side. According to the company, the relays also feature: * AC coils from 12, 24, 48,...

Breakthrough filter technology.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... Schurter extends the application of X2Y filter technology to AC power input in its new Series 5150 to provide simple and universal EMC for high frequencies. The 5150 Series features: * Broadband suppression properties to 1 GHz--combined...

Differential amplifier with active headstage.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... Warner Instruments has introduced the new DP-311 AC/DC Differential Amplifier with Active Headstage. The amplifier can be used for EEG, EKG, and extracellular recording using high impedance glass or metal microelectrodes. The small, active...

Fully isolated amplifier.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... RDP Electrosense introduces a the DR7DC, a fully-isolated strain gage amplifier for integration into industrial systems and to avoid ground loop noise problems. According to the company, the DRTDC exhibits: * Full EMC compliance. *...

Jitter performance.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... ON Semiconductor introduces 9 new PureEdge PLL-based clock modules for crystal oscillator (XO) replacement in its NBXxxxx series of devices for high-speed networking, telecom and high-end computing applications. According to the company, the 9...

LED in the city: the city that never sloops isn't going to light up itself; the now custom sign atop ABC Studios is packed with custom components making sure that corner stays lit until 2017.(LED DISPLAY: Engineering Answers)
June 1, 2008... On the world's biggest stage, working for an American corporate giant, the D3 LED digital display specialists were charged with the 3,200-square-foot custom retrofit of the ABC Studios super sign. As a bright beacon of commercial entertainment...

Pressure monitoring.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... ProSense pressure switches and transmitters have been added to Automation Direct's sensor products. While the pressure sensors are designed to monitor system pressure in hydraulic and pneumatic applications, the vacuum sensors read increases...

Server-class solution.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... American Portwell Technology has launched the new ROBO-8921VG2R, a system host board (SHB) server-class solution with high-end workstation graphic card support. According to the company, the ROBO-8921VG2R offers: * A flexible 1333/1066 MHz...

Industry-specific connectors.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... Phoenix Contact meets strict requirements of the pharmaceutical and food and beverage industries with its sensor/actuator boxes, cables, and connectors. According to the company, the products feature: * Stainless steel for all metallic...

Effective EMI filtering.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... Spectrum Control introduces the series 700 D subminiature filtered connectors. According to the company, the connectors provide an effective method of EMI filtering at the I/O interface. Additional features include: * Feed thin capacitors...

Universal smart label chip.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... With its new IDS-SL 13A smart active label chip, IDS Microchip provides a new automatic data radio frequency identification technology. According to the company, the chip features: * Fast deployment of data logging and tracking systems. ...

Flexible and scalable.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... Brick Business, a unit of Vicor Corp., has introduced the VI BRICK PRM (pre-regulator module) and VTM (voltage transformation module) Current Multiplier as part of the new VI BRICK family providing advanced modular platform power solutions. ...

New cap styles.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... CIT Relay & Switch offers its LP Series with new cap styles with new choices for latching and momentary switch styles. The switches feature: * Availability in round, square, rectangle, low profile, concave/convex, and ridged tops. *...

Submersible level sensors.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... Automation Products Group's PT-500 Submersible Liquid Level/ Pressure Transmitters are cCSAus certified for use in Class I, Div. 1, Group C, and Class I, Zone 0, Group liB hazardous locations containing ethyl-ether vapors, ethylene, or...

SpecCheck/flowmeters.(FLOWMETERS)
June 1, 2008... SpecCheck/Flowmeters [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] PRECISION ENGINE CONTROLS The eXVG fuel valve is designed for use with industrial engines ...

Linearized AlphaProx sensors.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... Baumer has expanded their line of non-contact AlphaProx inductive analog proximity sensors with tile addition of models exhibiting linearized output. According to the company, the sensors feature: * A teach-in function that allows the user...

On/Off limit applications.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Athena Controls introduces the new Series 86 and Series 88 Limit Controllers as an economical solution for On/Off limit applications. According to the company, they feature: * Installation via fast-on lugs or...

Small modem module.(New Products: Electronic Components)
June 1, 2008... With its newest embedded modems, the XE2400G and XE5617G, Cermetek Microelectronics integrates LSI modem technology into a small, complete modem module. According to the company, using the Cermetek Hybrid PLCC package, the modems deliver: ...

High performance thermal management.(New Products: Test & Measurement)
June 1, 2008... Carlo Gavazzi Computing Solutions introduces its thermal analysis service for electronic enclosures and cards in the military, industrial, and oil and gas markets. The service conducts thermal analysis in the design and production phases and...

Spring-loaded ribbon thermocouple.(New Products: Test & Measurement)
June 1, 2008... The spring-loaded thermocouple from Nanmac is designed for threaded blind-hole measurements, surfaces subject to vibration/oscillation, or any application where positive contact for good measurement and response in under a half-second is...

One-of-a-kind camera.(New Products: Test & Measurement)
June 1, 2008... Flir Systems has introduced its new ThermoVision A320G infrared camera for machine vision applications. The product is the first infrared camera to bring plug-and-play integration and real-time processing for machine vision applications to...

Multi-range tester.(New Products: Test & Measurement)
June 1, 2008... Uson has unveiled its new Qualitek mR, a single-channel tester designed for high-volume industrial leak and flow testing applications. According to Uson, the Qualitek mR features: * 2 transducer inputs that allow acceptance of pressure...

Improved force monitoring.(New Products: Test & Measurement)
June 1, 2008... The Model 410B01 ICP force sensor signal conditioner from PCB Piezotronics monitors forces experienced during manufacturing, assembly, on-line processes, quality assurance and end-of-the-line product testing. According to the company, the...

Self-compensating hose clamps.(New Products: Fastening, Assembly & Thermal Solutions)
June 1, 2008... Rotor Clanap has produced a line of self-compensating hose clamps for low-pressure applications in single-wire, double-wire and constant tension band (CTB) configurations. The clamps expand and contract with the hose in response to temperature...

Large diameter locknuts.(New Products: Fastening, Assembly & Thermal Solutions)
June 1, 2008... SPS Technologies introduces 8-pitch, large-diameter locknuts that meet the locking torque requirements of NASM-25027. The 1-piece, all-metal locknuts exhibit vibration-resistance without excessive wrenching torques to tighten nuts with more...

Demanding heat removal.(New Products: Fastening, Assembly & Thermal Solutions)
June 1, 2008... A new line of Removable Cover Plate generator coolers introduced by Unifin effectively removes heat in the most demanding applications of power generation installations, from nuclear to hydroelectric to gas turbine power. According to the...

Sturdy, reliable cable.(New Products: Fastening, Assembly & Thermal Solutions)
June 1, 2008... Northwire's high-flex-life MVC-800 Firewire Cable endured 11 million flex cycles in bending, rolling and torsional tests. The rolling and torsional flex testing includes twisting the cable 360[degrees] for 30 minutes with weight attached....

Heat resistant, ventilated screws.(New Products: Fastening, Assembly & Thermal Solutions)
June 1, 2008... Ceramco introduces a new ceramic screw with a hole in the center for ventilation so air does not get trapped from pressure changes during aerospace flight. According to the company, the screws: * Withstand elevated temperatures that plastic...

Nylon locking elements.(New Products: Fastening, Assembly & Thermal Solutions)
June 1, 2008... PEMHEX[R] self-clinching fasteners from PennEngineering incorporate a unique hexagonal nylon element providing a reusable, non-metallic prevailing torque thread lock, according to the company. The self-locking fasteners feature: * The...

Through hole protection.(New Products: Fastening, Assembly & Thermal Solutions)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Heyco Products has announced a new line of Rubber Push-In Bumpers for through hole protection. According to the company, the new bumbers feature: * Availability in sizes to handle mounting hole diameters from...

Long distance firewire.(New Products: Fastening, Assembly & Thermal Solutions)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] igus has solved the problem of prematurely failing industrial firewire cables with its Chainflex CFBUS.055 FireWire cables for longer distance machine vision applications. According to the company, the FireWire cable...

Which group has greater control over time-to-market improvement: the product design team or other internal stakeholders?(THE BRAINSTORM)
June 1, 2008... Bernard J. Putz, Ph.D., MBA bernard@nl-leadership.com www.nl-leadership.com Control is a challenging leadership question. In today's matrix organization with multiple projects and multiple priorities a project manager or design...

In the swing of things: enhanced motion controls have created a hit product for "baseball training.(New Products: Motion Control)
June 1, 2008... If the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, partners in what is perhaps the most headed rivalry in all of sports, can agree on something, then it's worthy of noting. And that's the case with the use of the PX2 ProBatter[R] Professional baseball...

Slipstream stages.(New Products: Motion Control)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] New Slipstream Series 1 linear stages are now available from LM76. The ready-to-run, compact linear stages feature 0.2 mm/300 mm accuracy and 0.1 mm repeatability. Available in travel lengths to 6 mm, the precision...

Linear guide systems.(New Products: Motion Control)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Pacific Bearing Company has unveiled the Integral V Technology, the company's latest line of linear guide systems. The design carries heavy loads at high capacity, velocity and acceleration, while resisting wear. The...

Long-life air cylinder.(New Products: Motion Control)
June 1, 2008... The air cylinder by Beswick is ideal for use in food packaging machinery and other applications in need of long-life and corrosion resistance. According to the company, the 1" bore cylinders made of brass or stainless steel with a clevis style...

Compressed-air-cooled hysteresis brakes.(New Products: Motion Control)
June 1, 2008... Magtrol has announced the release of the AHB Series Compressed-Air-Cooled Hysteresis Brakes. According to the company, additional product features include: * Passages that run through the brake, enabling compressed air cooling and...

Shaft and rail systems.(New Products: Motion Control)
June 1, 2008... LEE LINEAR offers its Shafts and Rail Systems of pre-assembled pillow blocks, shafting and support blocks for time savings. According to the company, LEE LINEAR System 1 is built with one 60-Plus precision case hardened and ground shaft, 2...

Force without friction.(New Products: Motion Control)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Airpel-AB Air Bearing Actuator from Airpot Corp.'s Airpel Division provides force without friction with air cylinder-like linear actuation and zero friction air bearing technology. The product offers: * A...

Built-in 1-Q speed controller.(New Products: Motion Control)
June 1, 2008... maxon motor has launched a range of brushless DC motors with integrated electronics. The range features the EC 20 flat, EC 32 flat and EC 45 flat drives with built-in speed controllers. Additional features include: * Availability in 2- and...

Improving time-to-market with PLM: insights on deploying a best-in-class implementation approach.(New Products: Software)
June 1, 2008... Delivering on the promise of innovation in today's competitive environment means more emphasis than ever on developing and sustaining winning new products. To thrive--and survive--companies must constantly reduce time to market (TFM), increase...

Fully-integrated 3D parametric personal CAD/CAM.(New Products: Software)
June 1, 2008... Alibre's CAM product family is now available for download. Designed for manufacturers and machine shops of any size, the Alibre CAM is the first fully integrated 3-D parametric personal CAD/CAM solution. According to the company, Alibre CAM...

Model-based SOA for enterprise PLM.(New Products: Software)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Aras has introduced its Version 9 of the Aras Innovator suite of model-based service-oriented architecture solutions for Product Lifecycle Managements (PLM). According to the company, Version 9 features: * The...

Solving complex mathematical problems.(New Products: Software)
June 1, 2008... Maplesoft has expanded Maple, its tool to solve complex mathematical problems and create rich technical documents, with the introduction of the new Maple 12. Maple 12 includes new tools built on Maple's fundamental technology platform of smart...

Thermal simulation software.(New Products: Software)
June 1, 2008... Flomerics announces the Package Engineering Group from Applied Micro Circuit Corp., which uses Flotherm thermal simulation software to reduce the cost of packaging and project resources for the new family of ICs. AMCC did this by comparing...

Software for 3-D full-wave electromagnetic field simulation.(New Products: Software)
June 1, 2008... Ansoft Corp. introduces HFSS vll.l software for 3-D full-wave electromagnetic field simulation. Now available for Windows, Linus and Solaris, HFSS vll.l offers: * Nastran (.nas) geometry support. * Parasolid and Unigraphic geometry...

Automated O-Ring installation.(New Products: Hydraulics & Pneumatics)
June 1, 2008... AGI offers 2 devices that automte the installation of O-Rings. The different devices allow positioning and sealing of O-Rings of a variety of sizes. The devices can be utilized in partially-antomate single-station hand assists and...

Oxygen-clean series manifolds.(New Products: Hydraulics & Pneumatics)
June 1, 2008... Clippard Instrument Laboratory presents single and multi-station manifolds to be used with Clippard's series electronic valves. Manufactured and assembled for applications in Oxygen-rich environments, the oxygen clean products are...

High stress thermoplastic composites.(New Products: Materials)
June 1, 2008... Ticona has introduced Celstran thermoplastic composites to its polymer portfolio. Celstran thermoplastic composites are lighter than thermoset resin and light metal alloys, yet still endure high levels of stress. According to the company,...

Elastomers exceed performance limitations.(New Products: Materials)
June 1, 2008... A new family of thermoplastic olefin (TPO) elastomers from Teknor Apex exceeds the performance and softness limitations of conventional TPOs, according to the company. Telcar[R] OBC, the new TPO compounds, blends a rigid polyolefin and INFUSE...

Customized stainless steel tubing.(New Products: Materials)
June 1, 2008... The seamless stainless steel tubing from Greenville Tube Company, a division of RathGibson, can deliver quality, customized tubing in as little as a few days. The stainless steel tubing ranges in size from 1/8" to 1 1/2" outer diameter, varies...

SpecCheck/linear actuators.(LINEAR ACTUATORS)
June 1, 2008... SpecCheck/Linear Actuators [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] TOLOMATIC Tolomatic MXE screw-drive actuators are available in 6 body sizes with 2 hearing ...

Product evolution: increasing global competition and abbreviated product lifecycles force product development times under more pressure.(Trend Feature)
June 1, 2008... Tire Internet has changed everything. Consumers are wiser and it's arguable that knowledge of a topic breeds a more selective consumer. The Internet is partly at fault for putting the world in which we live into high drive. Not only can...

Customized devices.(New Products: Computer Hardware & Peripherals)
June 1, 2008... National Instruments introduces 4 new R Series I/O modules with Zilinx Virtex-F field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). The new NI PXI-7841 R, PXI-7842R, PXI-7815 R and PXI-7852R modules allot, scientists and engineers to program with the NI...

Rackmount computer.(New Products: Computer Hardware & Peripherals)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The net, Relio R4000 rackmount computer from Sealevel Systems offers improved I/O expansion in space-critical environments. According to the company, the computer features: * Powerful processing power up to...

On-Chip debug solutions.(New Products: Computer Hardware & Peripherals)
June 1, 2008... Macraigor Systems has added the ability to access the Debug Conmmnications Channel, or debug communications channel (DCC), in the ARM Embedded ICE to its proprietary On-Chip Debug Teclmology (OCDemon). According to the company: * The DCC...

Durable foot switch.(New Products: Computer Hardware & Peripherals)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Linemaster Switch Corp. has introduced the Linemaster GEM foot switch for easy use and long life. The round, low-profile foot switch offers omni-directional design with its rugged cast zinc, chrome-plated housing....

Personalized keypad.(New Products: Hardware & Peripherals)
June 1, 2008... EAO offers a new way to create a personalized, impact-resistant, vandal-resistant, oil- and waterproof keypads or keyboards with its TSK series. According to the company, the new series also offers: * PCB-based keypads or keyboards. *...

Desktop 3-D scanner.(New Products: Hardware & Peripherals)
June 1, 2008... NextEngine offers a Desktop 3-D Scanner. According to the company, some of the scanners features include: * Twin arrays of 4 Class 1M, 10 mW solid state lasers with custom optics, 650 wavelength * Twin 3.0 Megapixel CMOS RGB image...

Enhanced surface reconstruction capabilities.(New Products: Hardware & Peripherals)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Creaform has unveiled a re-designed REVscan scanner. The redesigned REVscan delivers improved surface quality and enhanced surface reconstruction capabilities, such as improved surface boundaries recognition and true...

More current & amperage.(Distributor Data)
June 1, 2008... Mouser Electronics now stocks 3 compact, high amperage RADSOK PCB connectors from Amphenol Industrial. The connectors are ideal for current, single-point connections to printed circuit boards (PCBs). The new PowerBlok, RADSERT, and PGY...

Innovative packaging.(Distributor Data)
June 1, 2008... Newark, part of the Premier Farnell Group, launches innovative peel packaging for integrated circuits (ICs) during shipping, storing and handling. According to the company, the new solution features: * Case sizes measuring 12 by 12 mm and...

Diversity in communications.(Distributor Data)
June 1, 2008... Digi-Key Corp. and TriQuint Semicolrductor have entered into a global distribution agreement. TriQuint Semiconductor supplies high-performance modules and components for communications companies worldwide and is diverse across wireless...

More connections for connectors.(Distributor Data)
June 1, 2008... ITT Internconnect Solutions and PEI-Genesis have partnered in the worldwide assembly and distribution of ITF VEAM's CIR Series multi-pin connectors. PEI now builds finished connector products from ITT components for low volumes and quick...

Where's that bottleneck.(Final Thought)
June 1, 2008... When I was asked to write a monthly column for Product Design Development, I asked if there was anything special I should focus on, other than product design and development, of course. She suggested that this issue was going to deal with...