Industrial Factory Automation

Elma Electronics has launched the Minibox 34 family of compact modular enclosures for medical, communications, industrial, test and measurement and military/aerospace applications. The Minibox 34 enclosures are said to provide a flexible modular design. The simple construction allows the enclosures to be used in desktop or wall-mount styles. Grooves on the inside of the top, bottom, and sidewalls of the enclosure allow PCBs to be directly inserted in various heights inside the enclosure. The plate can be inserted in the middle of the enclosure or in various spots allowing PCBs of different widths to be plugged without special hardware mounting. With a rugged aluminium design, the Minibox family of enclosures is lightweight and sturdy. EMC design is standard with advanced shielding options available. Protection to IP40 is also standard, with options to IP65 for dust and water resistance. The Minibox is said to have a sleek, modern design and a sidewall that slides into the extrusio...

Kistler has brought out the Type 8766A miniature, lightweight triaxial accelerometers. These are suitable for structural analysis on small components or subsystems, full vehicle testing for aerospace and automotive applications and a range of general test structures. They feature the Piezostar shear element, which provides a wide operating frequency range and low sensitivity to temperature changes, combined with high immunity to base strain errors. The new sensors combine Piezostar crystals and high-gain integral hybrid microelectronics to achieve low sensitivity variation over the operating temperature range compared with other sensing-element designs. The accelerometers use a welded titanium construction for low mass and an industry standard four-pin. Where lowest mass and highest frequency response are required, an M4.5 mini four-pin connector can be specified. The accelerometers are available with ranges of 50, 250 and 500g in both base and high (165C) temperature versions. The Pi...

Aitech Defense Systems has introduced the Nighthawk remote-control unit (RCU), a compact Intel Atom-based, self-contained control unit that weighs 4.5lb (2kg). The Nighthawk will be showcased at CMSE 2010 in Los Angeles, California, on 8 February. The low weight, combined with a slim profile and natural convection/radiation cooling that dissipates up to 22W at +55C in stagnant (non-flowing) air or at up to +71C with an optional low pressure fan or base plate, makes the control unit suitable for a variety of military, aerospace and commercial environments. These include data concentrator and remote interface applications such as manned/unmanned and ground/airborne vehicles as well as low size, weight and power data concentrator unit (DCU) and remote interface unit (RIU) applications. For military tracked and wheeled vehicle applications, the Nighthawk RCU can provide a condition-based maintenance (CBM) functionality to reduce the overhead costs of preventative vehicle maintenance. Base...

A lightweight seat structure from JSP offering a 2.2kg reduction in weight and increased levels of 'perceived quality' has been launched in Citroen's new C3. Engineers replaced the heavy and costly steel structure with JSP's Arpro, a strong, light and recyclable material. Material properties such as deformation resilience and moulding accuracy enabled Citroen to achieve improved alignment with visual design features such as leather stitching. Paul Compton, JSP's president and chief executive officer in Europe, said: 'The objective was to create a lighter seat that could achieve excellent crash-test results. 'In prototype form, Arpro reacts in the same way as mass-produced components. 'This allowed us to create applicable parts quickly and without tooling. 'For a very small investment and within a short timeframe, we were able to validate and prove the concept in a real crash test. 'This gave the programme engineers the confidence to back the pro...

The UltraFlex hose is highly resistant to corrosion and offers outstanding working and burst pressures. PCL has launched a lightweight ultraflexible hose it reckons is the ideal companion for its range of handheld air tools Ideal for applications and environments where space is at a premium, yet complete freedom of movement is required, the UltraFlex air hose is a superb alternative to the traditional inflexible and heavy hose. Manufactured in a quality three-ply construction, using highly flexible PVC and polyester yarn reinforcement, the UltraFlex hose is highly resistant to corrosion and offers outstanding working and burst pressures. UltraFlex also has a very good "memory", which enables bends and kinks to straighten out so that the hose can return to normal after use. Available with a blue cover and black inner tube in 30m coils, UltraFlex is a convenient and cost-effective piece of equipment designed to make life easier for the user. The UltraFlex Air Hose complemen...