Does Art trump Engineering or vice versa in David Byrne's latest project? Does it matter? "Playing the Building" uses an assortment of pneumatic and electric actuators — plus a big air compressor — to tie an old pump organ to the radiators, girders, and pipes of a New York City Ferry Terminal. Why? Therein lies the beauty.

Linear displacement transducers, built into air cylinders, will indicate piston position — but how precise and at what cost? The compressibility of air, not to mention the sensor's added expense, make LDTs the exception rather than the rule. An alternative design, involving a light emitting diode and light receptor, offers several advantages.

Besides "no lubrication" and a variety of configurations, key features of two new valves from Humphrey Products include: a pressure-operated spring and pressure return. The 125 and 250 Series air-piloted valves maintain actuated position after the pilot signal; both valves offset possible leakage with a "trapped" pilot reserve.

Four control valve ranges — Fisher GX, Vee-ball, easy-e, and HP — offer independent third-party SIL3 certification to IEC 61508 standards. Pre-certification "may make things a little easier for end-users and system integrators" by eliminating prior use methodology in Safety Instrumented Systems.

Compared to other industrial applications, chemical plants pose unique challenges for compressed air. Air quality requirements, for instance, are often more strict, demanding special drying or filter setups. Demand profile, compressor types and number, plus air quality considerations are explored in this detailed compressed air tutorial from Chemical Processing magazine.

Pressure has been building within the food industry to ensure the health and safety of its "farm-to-table" production processes, including the use of compressed air. An industry "Code of Practice" for the supply of compressed air — prepared by the British Compressed Air Society and the British Retail Consortium — identifies best practices.

When designing your compressed air system, don't be stingy with the hose. High-quality compressed air hose — offering fluid compatibility for all compressor applications — will help ensure the quality and integrity of your air supply. New Equipment Digest profiles this new product for your design files.

When it comes to describing his membrane dryer, one can forgive Maintenance Manager Bert Brown's superlatives. Frustrated by moisture seeping into his electrostatic coating operation — not to mention the rework that resulted — Brown researched refrigerant dryers, deliquescent dryers, and other options. Membrane separation, as this archived story recalls, proved the solution to his problem.

Your shop needs a positioning system. You have engineers, catalogs of components, and an idea of what you need to accomplish. Why not build your own system? As most engineers — and this article — will tell you, the end result may not prove such a time and cost savings, after all.

Back to the Future, Again

Since necessity is the Mother of Invention, it's no surprise that — as in the 1970's — trucking industry attention is on aerodynamics. This time around, researchers are looking beyond streamlining, testing active flow control technologies to improve not only aerodynamics, but braking efficiency as well. PhysOrg.com reports...

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Pneumatics Technology Advances, but How?

Despite its reputation as a "mature" technology, pneumatics continues to meet an expanding array of technology challenges. What, in your experience, are the top three areas of innovation with regards to the pneumatics industry?