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GlobalSpec's Industrial Automation Event — April 7, 2010

Join your peers and leading manufacturers for this free, informative, and interactive ONLINE conference and trade show — right from the convenience of your desktop. Participate in any or all of the educational sessions, network with peers, and meet with manufacturers eager to showcase their latest products, services, and new technology offerings. Learn more about the educational sessions offered to meet your information needs, including:

• The World of Industrial Automation
• Lower Your Operating Costs: Options for Reducing Energy Consumption with AC Motors
• Developing Autonomous Robotics "Within a Year's Time"
• The Changing Landscape of Machine Safety: Building a Safer, More Productive Machine
• Appliance Transaction Modules: Simplifying Plant Floor Controller, Computer System Data Exchange

Robert Mullins of Harmonic Drives demonstrates the smooth, fast, and highly accurate motion control that can be achieved with a mechatronics combination of a PC-based servo control package and his company's high gain geared actuators. In a second video he shows a "finger module" that replicates the motion of a human hand.

Designed for manufacturers of packaging, material handling, gantry cutting, and similar equipment, the new LAZ Series from T-RACE offers an easy and economical solution for light load, long travel linear bearing applications. The compact design is only 26 mm x 22 mm, yet each slider is rated to carry 800 N (180 lbs) of payload. More info.

Haydon Kerk offers the Linear Rail System in a variety of configurations, both motorized and non-motorized. The LRS Linear Rail System is available with several options including the IDEA™ programmable linear actuator, consisting of the stepper motor, drive, and controller programmed through a graphic user interface.

Looking for quality motion control bearings? Visit AST at booth # 133. Our engineers, Application Assistance, and R&D services conquer tough problems and give, Solutions That Last™. We operate one of the largest bearing lubrication facilities in the USA, including class 10,000 clean rooms. Let AST take your company Beyond The Part™.

The versatile LIC 4000 incorporates absolute technology to a multi-substrate scale tape linear encoder design. Providing absolute position measurement, this new encoder from Heidenhain is characterized by its high resolution of 1 nanometer and its fast, purely serial EnDat 2.2 interface.

New displacement measurement technology developed in Germany could replace some Hall Effect sensors. These eddy current sensors determine the linear relationship between target magnets and output signals. They're highly sensitive, so they can measure over longer distances (to 60 mm). They use printed coils, instead of semiconductors, lowering their cost.

In this video primer, Design World editor Miles Budimir describes the design and processes of resolvers and encoders. He also gives an overview of pros and cons of these two most common motion system feedback devices, from the ruggedness of resolvers to the lighter weight and noise immunity of encoders.

The announcement conjures up Superman-like phrases. Besides "50 to 100 times the deflection and force" of traditional piezo-stack devices, the maker of this actuator promotes its temperature-compensating frame, amplifier, and piezo ceramic stack for direct-drive potential to replace inefficient electric motors, and its fit in serial bus and battery-powered applications.

Mountains of machine data are worthless if you don't have access when it's needed. Unfortunately, much information is siloed deep in a facility's networks. This software helps by collecting data directly from the backplane of the machine controller. It also reduces risks from data loss from network or system interruptions.

Avago's AEDR-8400 is the world's smallest reflective optical encoder!

The SMT encoder with easy mounting procedures meets the demand for compact and cost-effective feedback solution. It combines an emitter and a detector in a single surface mount leadless package. For more details...

Tolomatic's integrated rod-style actuator's servo motor design creates a compact package with exceptional performance. Eliminates separate motors, couplers, motor mounts, and gearing belts for reduced failure points and assembly time. Available with roller or ball screws, variable strokes from 3-18 in., various motor winding options, and 3300 lbf forces. Five-day delivery! Download the brochure.

Learn from UL experts by attending UL University's upcoming workshops for industrial control equipment manufacturers. Featured topics include:

•  Industrial Control Panels UL 508A and Short-Circuit Current Ratings
•  Test, Measurement and Laboratory Use Equipment: Designing for Compliance to UL 61010-1

Register with discount code GBMC0310 and receive 15% off!

Universal lead screw assemblies meet accuracies of 10 microinches per turn and 25 microinches per inch — the best in the industry. Standard lead screws offer accuracies of 50 microinches/turn, 100 microinches/inch. Patented nut design maximizes repeatability. Custom lead screw applications using our lead screws welcomed. More details.

Coordinating movement of two-axis stages can be tricky. Using "contour mode" in controllers limits users to only time and position inputs, risking wide velocity variations and a noisy, erratic outcome. Controllers with Position-Velocity-Time functionality permit specifying velocity in addition to position and time, helping smooth out the motion profile.

The trend toward integration knows no boundaries. Now, even for single coil, low power brushless motors and DC fans, the market offers smart or "all-in-one" controllers, like this new integrated circuit. The unit reduces the PCB area needed, and requires no external driver components while supporting sink currents up to 300 mA.

Because they've seen use over many centuries, rack-and-pinion drives may be viewed as outdated technology. Yet, improved manufacturing and the advent of electronic pre-loading should keep rack-and-pinion on the serious contender list — especially when their speed and acceleration are nearly on par with linear motors, and their efficiencies can reach 97%.

What "sells" a million steering system ball screw drives and beats out hydraulic competition? For starters: low friction, low noise, improved fuel efficiency, and reduced emissions. Additionally, the electromechanical system's servomotors consume energy only when steering occurs; hydraulic systems require "always-on" hydraulic pressure, demanding more energy, plus space for pump equipment.

IKO C-Lube Unit for Cam Follower is a lubricating part attached to the cam follower. Since lubricating oil which is indispensable to the outside diameter surface of the cam follower outer ring and track surface is supplied, periodical oil supplying is not required. It realizes a long period of maintenance-free operation of the track surface. Learn more.

Engineers and scientists use virtual prototyping to design, optimize, validate, and visualize their products digitally. NI SoftMotion for SolidWorks enables mechanical and control engineers to collaborate and gives them a way to assess the operation of moving parts and visualize realistic machine operations. View the tutorial.

Miniature gearboxes with Aluminum housings and 1:1 to 120:1 ratios. Torques up to 40 in.-lbs, NEMA or custom motor flanges. The gearboxes are easily customized, or built to your design. Made in the USA. Learn more...

High precision Timing Belts — Urethane and Neoprene, for linear indexing. Metric and in. sizes. Synchronous conveying, high acceleration, deceleration, or continuous high running speeds. Available open-ended or welded endless. Strong and durable, steel, or kevlar tension members. Customized belts to meet any application. Timing Belt clamping plates.

Shortages of manufacturing professionals loom in our future. Recent surveys unveil some reasons behind the trend, plus hints on how to alter the shape of the curve. One is to expose teens to manufacturing. They can't love what they don't know. Now, only 39% of teens have toured a manufacturing facility.

In May, 110 years after Ferdinand Porsche wowed Paris with the world's first hybrid cars, Porsche will put the world's first hybrid race car on the track at Nürburg, Germany. The vehicle's two 60 kW electric motors are not powered by batteries, but by an electrical flywheel power generator.

Google Gigawatts

Google is now fast creating footholds in many potential mega-markets. Is it too many? Google's latest zinger: they received the right to buy and sell electricity. Should we welcome, or be wary, of a new ISP and electric utility?