Product Design & Development articles from November 2005

Product Design & Development archives from November 2005

Contest aims at promoting engineering education.(Extreme Redesign)(Interview)
November 1, 2005... The deadline for entries for The Dimension 3D Printing Group's Extreme Redesign contest is fast approaching. Entries must be submitted by December 31. (See article in Product Design & Development, August, 2005.) But what is this contest, and...

The DARPA Grand Challenge.(Special Report)
November 1, 2005... While TeamDAD, the automated vehicle racing team from Digital Auto Drive, didn't fare as well as it had hoped in this year's DARPA Grand Challenge, its autonomous pick-up truck that uses Texas Instruments' DSP technology as a navigation system...

Using a miniature piezo motor to battle high costs: there have been piezoelectric motors for more than 35 years. Compared to traditional models, a standardized piezomotor is constructed in a much easier way and has a very positive influence on price.(Tech Watch)
November 1, 2005... Innovative solutions that give consideration to the high conscience for costs are demanded in industries such as medical engineering. The aim is the increase of the feed-in quality, while maintaining a justifiable costliness. An example of such...

Q&A: joint analysis.(Questions & Answers)(Interview)
November 1, 2005... Fasteners and joints are often overlooked by designers, yet they often contribute to the failure of designs. Recently, a new company led by David Archer, a 25-year design and manufacturing engineer and an expert in design for assembly, opened...

Small pumps, big considerations: far from being toys, tiny pressure and vacuum designs demand serious engineering planning.(Focus On Miniature Pumps)
November 1, 2005... Some are barely as large as your fingertip. But packed inside modern miniature vacuum and pressure pumps are surprising performance capabilities that can be unlocked through proper system design. The keys are, first, recognizing that the...

Time to get plugged into RoHS: electronics product designers must make major changes in materials and processes now if they don't want RoHS to leave them behind.(Technology Review)(Cover Story)
November 1, 2005... It's a simple fact of life: no one likes change. However, the electronics industry, including everyone from component manufacturers to large OEMs, is going to have to brace for a major one as the deadline for the European Union's (EU)...

Mastering legacy industrial devices over Ethernet.(From The Field)
November 1, 2005... When considering your investment in your installed based of industrial equipment, it is difficult to justify throwing it all away in order to join the "Ethernet Revolution.". Of course, it is tempting. The evidence of Ethernet's role in...

Agency submittals made easy.(Focus On Testing)
November 1, 2005... NRTLs (nationally recognized testing laboratories) offer companies the ability to secure third-party verification of product capabilities. These approvals can also be a wise marketing strategy since they allow products to be compared fairly and...

Gas leak workstation.(PD&D Exclusive)
November 1, 2005... The ILS 500 is a multi-program workstation for trace gas leak testing. Using the ILS 500, all of the designing of a control interface for a leak test station is taken care of in one package. The unit incorporates an advanced hydrogen trace gas...

Signal tower LEDs.(PD&D Exclusive)
November 1, 2005... The LU5 Series is a new addition to an extensive signal tower line. The LU5's modular nature allows users to quickly change color configurations to suit specific needs, even on existing machines. Made to high-quality standards, the...

High-temperature switch.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Developed for design-in OEM component installation within industrial equipment, the M180 Series low-flow/high-temperature switch from offers precision gas or liquid flow sensing with no drift down to less than 1 cc per minute in fluid...

Stainless steel couplings.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... These 17-4PH stainless steel couplings are suitable for applications where high strength, fatigue resistance, and high torsional stiffness are needed. The units double the torque when compared to both 303 stainless steel and 7075-T6 aluminum....

Rolling bearings.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Explorer bearings are engineered to exceed performance normally expected with bearings designed to ISO tolerance specifications. Tech Specs: Types include spherical roller bearings, angular contact bar bearings, cylindrical toiler bearings,...

Switching power supplies.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... A new generation of switching power supplies features sophisticated digital management capabilities. Along with digital control, the new iMP Series offers a range of hardware modules that is intended to give designers the ability to tailor...

New control software version.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Key Feature: LabView 8 features LabView Poroject, a new project-based environment for managing large applications and team development. LabView Project also includes tools for multiple target management, integrated code differencing and source...

Inductive/capacitive proximity sensors.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Tech Spec: The proximity sensors offer high switching frequency up to 3000Hz, maximizing production efficiency with targets moving at high speed. A line of inductive and capacitive proximity sensors is designed for non-contact presence...

Multi-polymer compound.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Behind the Design: Static charge may weaken the performance of drug delivery devices by impeding passage of drug particles. To combat this tendency, Vu-Stat Y-20 compound incorporates advanced static dissipative technology directly into its...

Voltage translators.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Application Note: The devices are suitable for the mobile handset market because of the 3 x 6 mm TQFN and TFBGA package sizes. The new PI4ULS3V16(M)and PI4ULS3V08(M) families of voltage translators are designed to translate signals with a...

Miniature pressure gauges.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Tech Data: The low-cost miniature gauges are available in several styles including standard dial-pointer gauges, differential pressure switches, gauge/switch combinations, and special designs that indicate changing delta-P on...

Handheld plastic enclosure.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Design Options: Standard color for the Grabber--Style I is black with ether colors, top configurations, and modified versions available. A new style of the Grabber handheld plastic box is available. The Grabber--Style I is the latest in the...

Piezoelectric sensors.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Application Note : Applications include clinching, crimping, metal forming, plastic injection molding, pressing, punching, spot welding, stamping, and automated assembly operations. Multi-purpose, ICP piezoelectric sensors use piezoelectric...

Rotary position sensor.(New Products)
November 1, 2005... Behind the Technology: As designed, the sensor has a Packard-style connector and a blade drive configuration, however, it can be modified to meet user requirements. The 9428 non-contacting rotary position sensor incorporates cost-reducing...

A new sample kit.(Samples)
November 1, 2005... A new sample kit featuring a wide variety of custom designed and engineered IDC terminals, fuse clips, lead frames, and related parts is available for appliance, automotive, aviation, marine, medical, and industrial applications. The kit is...

Arkema Inc.(Brochures)
November 1, 2005... Arkema Inc. has made a new, full-color brochure detailing the uses of Kynar PVDF resin in automotive applications available. The brochure is targeted toward automakers looking for innovative material alternatives to replace heavy, weak, or...

Banner Engineering.(Brochures)
November 1, 2005... Banner Engineering's World Beam Series Sensors are featured in a new printed brochure. This 24-page full color document delivers an overview of sensing solutions that feature the standardized World Beam platform. Users will find an offering of...

Baldor Electric Co.(Brochures)
November 1, 2005... Baldor Electric Co.'s 14-page, four-color brochure describes methods of reducing electricity costs and paybacks when using the company's premium-efficiency motors and adjustable speed drives. The brochure outlines the advantages of...

Apple Rubber Products.(Online)
November 1, 2005... Apple Rubber Products has introduced a new, interactive online tool that allows engineers to search the company's extensive inventory of O-rings for the size they require, including AS568B standard sizes. The online O-ring search function is...

Designing a PC board.(Online)
November 1, 2005... Designing a PC board for manufacturability can be difficult. If the design is flawed or contains errors it can create costly delays in production. Advanced Circuits is providing a free Web-based design-check for manufacturability service. Prior...

Medical equipment designers.(Online)
November 1, 2005... Medical equipment designers can log on to www.uafmedical.com, the Universal Air Filter Website specifically designed to help specify medical equipment air filters. Detailed sections offer a fast and efficient way to get to specify air filter...

Online cable configurator.(Free Stuff)
November 1, 2005... An online interactive design guide provides simple step-by-step instructions for configuring GORE High Flex Flat Cable or GORE Trackless Cable from standard components, with five-day lead times. The new cable configurator is available at...

Laser-etching enhances the labeling of automotive parts.(AUTOMOTIVE DESIGN)
November 1, 2005... For years, Europe's automobile manufacturers have employed automated laser-etching technology to mark labels for parts identification and vehicle identification numbers. Speed and flexibility are key performance requirements. In Europe, the...

Programmable logic devices drive new automotive designs.(AUTOMOTIVE DESIGN)
November 1, 2005... The modern automobile has developed in a remarkable manner over the past decade--a reflection of effective competition between manufacturers, rising customer expectations, and tighter environmental legislation. As vehicle manufacturers strive...

Picking the perfect hydraulic motor.(AUTOMOTIVE DESIGN)
November 1, 2005... We all wish selecting components for con-ag equipment was as easy as playing eeney meeney miney moe. However, for each piece of compact equipment, application constraints such as performance, efficiency, reliability, serviceability,...