29/4/2005

Helping to unravel the mysteries of saturn The spectacular success of the Cassini-Huygens mission to explore Saturn, its rings and its moons has been due in no small part to the extra-ordinary performance and reliability of the 12 scientific instruments carried on-board. Precision-Optical Engineering (P-OE) is delighted to have supplied a selection of diamond machined germanium lenses for the spacecraft's Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS). The CIRS is used to measure infrared emissions from atmospheres, rings and surface in the huge Saturn system to determine their composition, temperatures and thermal properties. The instrument has already delivered outstanding results, including the most detailed temperature measurements to date of Saturn's rings and, most recently, how daytime temperatures at low latitudes on the dark material on Saturn's moon Iapetus vary with time of day, from about 130 Kelvin (-226 Fahrenheit) at noon to about 70 Kelvin (-334 Fahrenheit) at sunset.

Design your own time-based spectrofluorometer - You can design your own time-correlated single-photon counting spectrofluorometers using components available from Horiba Jobin Yvon. A full range of light sources, sampling optics, detectors, acquisition electronics and software is available to be combined to form a modular system to fit your exact requirements Light-sources include the nanosecond and picosecond pulsed NanoLEDs from UV to Near-IR, 280 nm to 830 nm, the microsecond pulsed SpectraLEDs for phosphorescence measurements, the broad-band 5000F coaxial nanosecond flash-lamp, and the sub-microsecond 5000XeF xenon flash-lamp for weak phosphorescence measurements. Modules available include the FluoroCube sample chamber, pulse-converter and discriminator, specially designed monochromators, NIM modules, high-speed pre-amplifiers, and power supplies. Options include extended-red and thermoelectrically cooled detection, plus microchannel-plate detection for lowest transit-time spread (25 ps).

Torque testing of super-glued nuts and bolts - A steel jig for testing the torque of super-glued nuts and bolts is the latest adhesives testing system to be introduced by Lloyd Instruments. The test jigs can be used with Lloyd Instruments' LRX or LRXPlus universal materials testing machines. The jig clamps the glued nut/bolt into position while a lever arm is driven down, applying torque force to the nut.

Innovation finalist - Curvaceous Software has been selected as a finalist in the Carbon Trust Innovator Awards 2005. As one of three finalists from over 250 applicants Curvaceous was chosen for their new approach to reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

A new 10 Nm high performance microstepping motor - PennEngineering Motion Technologies has developed a new high-power 1.8o stepper motor for demanding motion control applications. The new HS34 range is based upon a compact NEMA 34 frame size motor and combines neodymium magnets for an impressive 10 Nm holding torque and a bipolar winding design optimised for fine positioning, microstepping applications.

Digital automation platform features Pulse Synchronised Output (PSO) with error mapped systems for enhanced accuracy laser machining - Aerotech's A3200 Digital Automation Platform is a powerful, software only machine control system combining a high-performance, 32 axis motion engine with decentralised drives interfaced via Firewire and other machine control function modules such as HMI and soft PLC, for a completely integrated solution. Widely used in semiconductor, data storage, laser processing, automotive, and machine tool industries, the A3200 includes a wide range of advanced motion control commands aimed at increasing and improving the finished quality and throughput performance of demanding production and test applications.

Joystick controls sails and bow thrust for the worlds largest single-masted yacht Penny + Giles is pleased to announce it has supplied Mirabella V, the largest single-masted luxury yacht in the world, with a total of 25 joysticks in a number of applications including bow thrust and sail winch controls. Chosen for its proven potentiometer technology, ergonomic design and high IP rating, JC150 is a large, robust, single-axis joystick that offers excellent repeatability. "There were a number of key factors in determining which joysticks to use," commented Peter Medcalf, Electrical Design Engineer, VT Shipbuilding. "The joysticks needed to be weather resistant, functional and look good too; the JC150 matched all these criteria."

Micropower omnipolar digital Hall-effect switches are ultra-sensitive - The A3213 and A3214 from Allegro MicroSystems Europe are micropower omnipolar digital switches based on ultra-sensitive, pole-independent Hall-effect switches with latched digital outputs. Each device includes, on a single silicon chip, a Hall-voltage generator, small-signal amplifier, chopper stabilisation circuitry, a latch and a MOSFET output. Advanced BiCMOS processing is used to achieve low-voltage and low-power operation, and also results in excellent component matching, very low input-offset errors, and small component geometries.

Coriolis flow and density measurement enable new skid designs that raise production quality by up to 30 percent - Emerson Process Management has applied its Micro Motion Coriolis technology to enable Euroelettra Sistemi SpA, a leader in the automation of ceramics production from Italy, to design a skid-mounted blending system for ceramic slip and colouring materials. Euroelettra customers have experienced up to 30 percent improvement in production quality by using the new skid systems that enable actual blending of batches of the ceramic raw materials to take place immediately at the time of use, compared to the traditional approach of mixing and maintaining mass quantities for use over extended periods.

Linear bench power supplies offer higher power and higher current - TTi (Thurlby Thandar Instruments) has extended its highly successful EL Series of low-cost and compact linear bench power supplies with two new models that offer both higher power and higher current levels. The EL155 provides 0-15 V at 0-5 A (75 W maximum), while the EL303 provides 0-30 V at 0-3 A (90 W maximum). Both models retain the features that characterise the EL Series: namely, silent convection cooling and linear regulation for low output noise combined with excellent transient performance. They also share the compact dimensions of the series and the convenience of dual digital displays and a DC output switch.

New antenna range - Low Power Radio Solutions, a British based radio solutions specialist, has introduced a range of reliable, low cost antennas. These new products are for use in transmitters, receivers or transceivers and complement its extensive range of wireless products for use in industrial and commercial data transmission and control applications. The antenna can often be the weakest link in any wireless system. A good antenna will almost certainly improve range performance and these antennae have been carefully selected so that users can achieve the optimum range performance from the LPRS "easy-Radio" range of radio modules.

SMS water meter reading - a first in Malaysia - Jekyll Electronic Technology has successfully implemented an SMS based data collection system with their Malaysian partner EMS Technologies. Following on from the success of the project at Selangor Water Works, EMS announced a significant interest by customers who are looking to deploy an AMR wide integrated solution for the water industry. The system uses the proven Telemodem2 Mobile platform as the Meter Interface Unit (MIU) and it delivers daily meter reads over the GSM network Short Message Service (SMS). The Telemodem2 provides a communications interface with Sensus compliant meters and on a daily basis sends meter readings via SMS to the data collection site.

Multi-frequency metal detection system is sensitive and flexible - The new Genius Quattro metal detection technology, from S+S Inspection, uses four quartz stabilised field frequencies to provide reliable, fast metal detection in a wide range of products. Using four frequencies, rather than the normal one or two, allows the system to monitor products with a variety of characteristics whilst achieving exceptionally low "false alarm" rates and installation in a much smaller metal-free zone.

M12-RJ45 adaptor for industrial interfacing - A new M12-RJ45 bulkhead mounting adaptor has been added to the Harting range of interconnection products for interfacing in industrial Ethernet systems. The new adaptor complements their recently introduced RJ Industrial(r) and M-12 connector families, which are aimed at applications in the factory automation and machine control sectors. They are available with protection to IP65, IP67 or IP68, and are equally suited to use inside or outside industrial machinery cabinets.

Redundancy Module for Zone 2 Increases System Availability - For use in safe areas and those with a Zone 2 explosion risk, Phoenix Contact is now offering the Quint Diode redundancy module compliant with explosion protection as defined by EN 50 021. This means that power supplies connected in parallel to provide redundancy can now be fully decoupled.

Custom designed rotary valve for undersea fluid transfer application - Bio-Chem Valve/Omnifit has helped the manufacturer of an oceanographic water sampler solve a difficult fluid transfer problem by providing a custom-designed rotary sampling valve. The client required a 50-way sampling valve with low torque, capable of operating to depths of 250 metres below the ocean surface. The valve had to be resistant to exposure to seawater for periods of over three months at a time and operate over a wide range of temperatures and pressures. As the overall design of the sampling instrument had already been finalised, the valve had to fit within a restricted space of 126mm diameter by 45mm height.

Continuous Monitoring of Oil in Water - The OIW-100 from Applied Analytics, is a solid state, continuous oil in water industrial analyzer. It utilizes UV absorbance techniques to measure the oil contents instantaneously. A sampling system including a homogenizer is used to allow for the monitoring of undissolved oils. A fast response and full spectrum is used to compensate for effects such as turbidity, algae and coating. The analyzer uses automated zero to compensate for non-oil substances.

Award received - Wonderware (whose products are sold and supported in the UK and Ireland by Pantek), has announced that InTouch software has received top honors from Frost & Sullivan for its innovative technology features. Wonderware's InTouch human-machine interface (HMI) software received the industry research firm's Product Innovation Award.

Safe certification is a first - TÜaut;V Rheinland (TÜaut;V), the German certification organisation, has certified the compliance of Yokogawa's ProSafe-RS safety system with the IEC 61508 and IEC 61511 international standards and approved its use in SIL3 applications. ProSafe-RS is the world's first safety system to receive SIL3 certification under the IEC 61511 standard.

Industry's first controllers to use mobile Intel 915GM Express chipset - National Instruments has announced two new PXI controllers, the NI PXI-8195 and NI PXI-8196, which are the industry's first controllers to use the Mobile Intel 915GM Express Chipset. In addition, the PXI-8196 is the first embedded controller to use the power of a 2.0 GHz Intel Pentium M 760 Processor, making it the industry's highest-performance embedded controller and increasing its overall performance by more than 50 percent compared to existing PXI controllers operating with the 2.5 GHz Mobile Intel Pentium 4 Processor. The new PXI-8195 includes the 1.5 GHz Intel Celeron M 370 Processor.

New safety website - Fortress Interlocks has launched a new website designed to deliver extensive information on products and applications, enabling customers to make informed decisions on the best safety solutions for their company. The website includes information on eGard, a completely new approach to controlling access to hazardous machinery and equipment.

Western Canada to hold major fieldbus event - The Fieldbus Foundation (FF), in partnership with the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT), today announced that its End User Council (EUC) - Western Canada will conduct a major FF informational event on Thursday, June 9, and Friday, June 10, 2005, at SAIT, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Universal programmer combines ease of operation with high-speed USB interface - The new All-100 universal and gang programmer, available from Computer Solutions, is a versatile, high-speed unit for programming virtually every type of device with a programmable memory or configuration including EPROM, EEPROM, FLASH, PLD/CPLD/FPGA, microcontrollers, BPROM and Serial PROM.

Easy connection - Phoenix Contact provides signal level matching for digital, analogue, and serial I/O and power supplies for the entire DeltaV control system from Emerson Process Management. Wiring in the cubicle can be installed quickly using System Cabling that connects to the DeltaV Mass Termination Blocks and provides a wide range of field interfaces to suit individual applications. These include disconnects, fuses, test points, relays, terminals and special circuits for the process industry.

New Linux based Serial-Ethernet development kit - IntelliCom, has announced the embedded NetBiter Linux development kit. The NetBiter is an embedded serial - Ethernet/web platform, today used by companies in more than 30 countries. The NetBiter Linux development kit offers companies to design their own applications for internet connectivity, serial-Ethernet, micro web servers, protocol converters etc. Using Linux and our ready made software drivers for the hardware and applications, improves the development time and provides short time-to-market.

Resources for Technicians - Technicians know what kind of resources they need - comprehensive, detailed, easy-to-use references that help them stay on top of the critical issues facing them in the workplace. The resources in ISA's downloadable catalogue are designed to fit these needs needs. Written by subject matter experts, these titles will give the insight needed to become more successful in this field. Those thinking about taking the ISA CCST (Certified Control Systems Technician) exam, will find these resources will help in preparation.

Enhanced DDL Technology and new wireless development - The HART Communication Foundation (HCF) announces two significant HART technology advancements in the HART enhanced Device Description Language (eDDL) Specification has been successfully validated and is near completion; and a new HCF initiative to develop a Wireless HART Standard is now underway. Developed in a cooperation with Fieldbus Foundation, ProfiBus Nutzerorganisation e.V., and now the OPC Foundation, the eDDL extends the capabilities of Device Description Language to provide an industry-standard solution for advanced visualization of intelligent device information to maintain the proven integrity of existing DD technology across all three communication technologies.

IS product range expanded - Fluke has extended its growing line of intrinsically safe products for use in explosive environments. The new 725Ex is Fluke's first intrinsically safe multi-function process calibrator on the market enabling the test and calibration of practically all sensors and transmitters. The handheld tool is designed to meet the needs of instrumentation technicians in hazardous environments, such as petrochemical plants, oil platforms and refineries, pulp and paper and pharmaceutical plants, and other locations subject to risk of explosion. It is certified under the European ATEX directive (ATEX - II IG EEx ia IIB 171deg C).

Automation industry visionary, tells his story in Contemporary Controls' newsletter - Dick Caro is one of the most influential persons in industrial networking and the automation business. Caro led the charge for adopting Ethernet as a fieldbus and as a means of achieving interoperability between hundreds of manufacturers’ products. He has held important positions at Foxboro and Automation Research Corporation. Contemporary Controls' Extension features Mr. Caro in the March / April newsletter, highlighting not only his career, but his personal adventures and innovations.

New development allows remote monitoring of production processes - The new CoMo View from Kistler Instruments, a development of the widely used CoMo Net production process monitoring system, has a built-in 5.7' colour touchscreen that displays process parameters in real time and provides operator access to the menu of pre-set process definitions. The new unit can accept a wide range of inputs from piezoelectric and strain gauge sensors, voltage output sensors and potentiometric angle and displacement sensors allowing any combination of acceleration, force and pressure to be monitored as a function of angle, displacement or time. Twelve freely combinable process evaluation functions, including boxes, real-time thresholds, gradient and integral, can be used to monitor block force, limit position and threading or the entire curve. Real-time digital I/O's and high speed process and curve data exportation ensures that process monitoring remains reliable even at high sampling rates.

Redundant level measurement system - K-TEK, a leading manufacturer of state-of-the-art level instrumentation for liquid detection now celebrating 30 years of manufacturing excellence, has just announced the new MagWave Dual Chamber Level Measurement System. A lightweight, compact, precision-fabricated unit, the MagWave is designed to provide independent, redundant measurements in a variety of oil, gas, petrochemical, and power applications.

32-port modular managed Ethernet switch saving space and money in the telecoms industry - Telecoms equipment manufacturers face increasing pressure to fit more and more into tight rack spaces. GarrettCom's new 6K32 managed Ethernet switch addresses this problem by housing 32-ports into only 1U of a 19" or ETSI or 23" Telco rack space. The 6K32 switch offers 24 fixed copper ports with room for an optional module that allows for 20 port-type combinations including up to two Gb or eight 100Mb fibre ports, meaning larger communications systems can fit into existing floor space.

Software to increase competitive advantage - DTL Systems, the market leading developer of Manufacturing Productivity Solutions, have announced that LittleFuse have expanded the use of Provideam to their Castle machines. Using the data from Provideam will further increase LittleFuse's competitive advantage.
Provideam is an extremely powerful, easy to use software tool which enables users to analyse Overall Equipment Effectivity (O.E.E.), Yield, Machine Downtime etc.

Sensor for monitoring WFI quality - Responding to requests from the pharmaceutical industry for better surface finishes for all wetted parts on water-for-injection skids (WFI), Emerson Process Management has introduced the Rosemount Analytical 403 Endurance Conductivity Sensor, with a 0.4 micron Ra surface finish on all wetted surfaces. The Model 403 also incorporates a PT1000 RTD sensor, enabling presentation of the raw, uncompensated conductivity as well as temperature, as specified by USP guidelines. Both measurements can be displayed via the Rosemount Analytical Xmt Foundation fieldbus transmitter or the Model 1055 dual channel transmitter, which is provided with preset WFI alarm capabilities.

Airbus ABD0100.1.8 test options for AC and DC power sources - Windows software is now available that allows the California Instruments families of AC and DC power sources to support the latest Airbus ABD 0100.1.8 tests for avionics and cabin electronics equipment on aircraft. California Instruments, (represented exclusively in the UK by TTi), is a leading manufacturer of AC and DC power sources for aircraft test power systems. The company has long supplied RTCA/DO-160 and MIL-STD 704 test options for its line of AC and DC power sources. Most of the later AC and DC power sources are now capable of supporting ABD 0100.1.8 tests as well.

New technology is shown in HART Communications stand at Interkama - Emerson Process Management used the HART Communication booth at the Interkama trade show in Hannover, Germany, to demonstrate the advantages of the enhanced Electronic Device Description Language (EDDL) Technology. The EDDL enhancements improve the display of field device information, including the incorporation of images into displays, and support of graphs and charts to enable the calibration and configuration of complex devices such as control valves, radar level gauges, and variable frequency drives. The enhancements also provide 'Persistent Data Storage', which allows for the archiving and retrieval of diagnostic data from storage.

Straight forward migration path to users of legacy Honeywell distributed control systems - Yokogawa is now offering users of legacy Honeywell distributed control systems a migration path which offers increased reliability combined with a lower total cost of ownership. These legacy Honeywell systems, including the TDC2000/3000 and the TPS, will soon need to be replaced following Honeywell's announcement of their new Experion PKS system, and the Yokogawa migration approach will allow users to replace their systems with the Yokogawa Centum CS3000 system without touching a single wire from the field.

Novel ion optics design ensures high sensitivity and mass resolution for 3DAP - The combination of the high mass-resolution reflectron lens and a patented, three pair delay line detector brings exceptional sensitivity to the 3-Dimensional Atom Probe (3DAP) from Oxford nanoScience Ltd. This unique combination brings the best atom probe mass resolution available commercially both at the conventionally quoted Full Width at Tenth Maximum (FWTM) and the much more challenging Full Width Thousandth Maximum (FW0.1%M). This makes the instrument particularly well suited to the detection of small quantities of dopant materials. In addition, unlike other commercially available detectors, up to 98.5% of the detected atoms are both spatially located and chemically identified.

Major upgrades To precision dosing pump - The gamma/L precision dosing pump from ProMinent Fluid Controls is now available with a liquid end manufactured from PVDF, and a simplified proportional flow dosing methodology. These pumps have capacities of 0.74 - 32 L/hr at 16 - 2 bar back pressure. The new liquid end brings increased resistance to aggressive chemicals. It can be rapidly sterilised using superheated steam at a pressure of 1-2 bar to increase the range of applications.

Major order for polymer testing In China - Ametek/Lloyd Instruments has announced that a major multinational company based in the People's Republic of China has placed orders for nine polymer testing instruments and accessories from its Davenport range. The polymer testing instrumentation ordered allows a comprehensive quality testing program for polymers to be carried out to a variety of internationally recognised ASTM and EN ISO standards. The order includes Falling Dart Impact Testers to determine the impact resistance of thin flexible plastic films and HDT/VICAT testers for the measurement of VICAT softening temperature and heat deflection temperature (HDT) of thermoplastic materials. Testing using the HDT/VICAT instruments is fully automated using theirrenowned NEXYGEN software for advanced control and analysis.

New EMC Engineer strengthens filter design team - Schaffner has announced a new appointment at its Wokingham (GB) based office and EMC test facility. Amir Majedi joins to offer increased EMC Engineering support for UK customers and extend the pre-compliance testing facilities Schaffner offers to its customers both in their own Screened room and on-site. Amir has a BEng Electrical Engineering (in Telecommunications) and has over ten years experience as test house manager, sales support and in designing and producing custom EMC and RF products for military and commercial customers. He has also carried out research into electro-magnetic absorbers and has UKAS testing/quality experience.

The first polymer laser safety spectacle for fs-lasers - GPT Glendale claims to have achieved what many people believed to be impossible: The world-wide first laser safety spectacle with a polymer lens offering protection against fs-lasers. This unique laser safety spectacle was EN 207 certified by Din Certco in Aalen (D). Due to the polymer lens, the spectacle is particularly lightweight and comfortable to wear. On top of that, the visible luminous transmission of greater than 45% enables excellent vision.

Instrumentation industry veteran brings diverse background to new position - Flow Technology, a leading manufacturer of precision flow measurement instruments, systems and calibrators, today announced the appointment of Ralph Duffill as vice president of sales and marketing. Duffill is an instrumentation industry veteran with more than two decades of experience developing and marketing analyzers, flowmeters, and other industrial measurement devices.

Acquisition of US company by European automation group - The Lotus Automation Group of Companies, based in Sligo (Irl), has announced its recent US acquisition of the East Coast Division of the major Process and Controls Company, JH Kelly LLC .The most recent Electrical & Mechanical division of the Lotus Automation Group, KM Kelly Inc, is located in Auburn, Massachusetts (US).
Lotus is an advertiser on the signpost home page.

Smallest, most portable measurement device - Engineers and scientists can now turn standard PDAs into customised, portable measurement tools with the new National Instruments CompactFlash data acquisition (DAQ) device. The NI CF-6004 device - which is slightly larger than a standard passport photo - plugs into any PDA with a CompactFlash slot to create a handheld instrument with the processing and wireless communication capabilities of the latest PDA devices.

Passive mechanical switching connector for VME64x Bus applications - The new Har-bus 64S from Harting is a passive mechanical switching connector for use in VME64x Bus systems. The 5-row, 160-way connector offers automatic daisy-chain functionality, with the mechanical switching elements guaranteeing the reliable switching of the daisy chain without contact losses.

Ethernet Powerlink compatible hardware/software provides new platform for machine control - Baldor has launched an innovative solution for implementing machinery and motion control systems using the industry-standard Ethernet Powerlink protocol. Consisting of servo motor drives, a full-function machine controller that will also manage over 200 axes of motion, and a license-free software environment, the range provides machine builders with the platform to make radical progress.

Industry's fastest USB-to-GPIB controller delivers 2X performance improvement - Engineers and scientists can now use the latest USB standard, USB 2.0 high-speed, to control GPIB instruments at transfer rates of up to 8 MB/s (64 Mb/s). The new National Instruments GPIB-USB-HS, the industry's fastest USB-to-GPIB controller, is the latest in the broad offering of NI instrument control products for PCI Express, Ethernet, PCI, USB, PCMCIA and other interfaces.

Product Guide for 2005 now available - CAN in Automation (CiA) published the CANopen Product Guide 2005 on CD and internet at no cost. The CANopen Product Guide number of product entries has increased approximately 30 % since the 2004-edition. A total of 295 (228 in 2004) CANopen-specific entries are listed and provide a comprehensive overview of the world of CANopen products. A single entry consists of a family of products and may thus comprise a multitude of products. This increase confirms that CANopen products are being used in many different kinds of applications and that its usage as "embedded network" per se has increased.

Acquisition down under! - FCX the specialist global distributor and manufacturer of flow control products and solutions - has acquired Melaar, a Sydney-based product distributor. Melaar is a distributor of Graco products in the region, and the acquisition will allow Melaar's activities to be combined with FCX Australia's speciality products division.

Low-cost tool offers flexible programming and debugging for PPC and ColdFire - The Cyclone Max, available from Computer Solutions, is a flexible, low-cost tool for flash programming, debugging and testing of high-end microprocessors such as the Power PC and ColdFire. It can function either as a PC-based program loader and debugger or as a stand-alone programmer for on-chip or off-chip flash.

New semiconductor reliability test system for 65nm and beyond - Keithley Instruments, leader in solutions for emerging measurement needs, announces the S510 Semiconductor Reliability Test System, a high channel count, turnkey solution for use in reliability testing and lifetime modeling of the world's most advanced ULSI CMOS processes at the 65nm node and beyond.
Here is a short online product presentation

Get started with GSM telemetry - Jekyll Electronic Technology is now offering system integrators and instrumentation engineers the chance to explore the opportunities offered by GSM telemetry. With the introduction of the GSM Starter Kit, they offer modem users an all inclusive "out of box" GSM telemetry solution. The kit comprises all the necessary hardware and software components needed to install, configure and set-up the renowned Telemodem2 Mobile device.

IR array detector analyser - Applied Analytics has introduced it's new ChromaSpec IR, a process infrared array-detector analyzer. It is ideal for concentration monitoring of various chemicals such as low water, CO and CO2. With no moving parts, it's a cost effective, maintenance free solution for monitoring gasses or liquids that absorb in the infrared spectral region and it replaces FTIR in many applications

THEY SAID IT April 2005 "SCADA and process control people are very immature in the technology they're introducing." Graeme Pinkney, Head of Threat Intelligence, EMEA, Symantec "Regulation is forcing companies to find new ways of managing data." Emmanuel Vitrac, Marketing Director , Europe and Asia, Axeda Systems "We don't like where we are, and we sure don't like where the offerings in this industry are." Open Letter to the Automation Software Industry "In just a short time, the accelerated, industrywide adoption of ArchestrA technology has demonstrated Invensys' long-running track record of successfully developing go-tomarket solutions based on the Microsoft platform." Charles Johnson, Worldwide Managing Director of Manufacturing, Microsoft Don't miss this incisive commentary on automation every month!

Feature rich, modular digital panel meters with configurable signal filtering - Carlo Gavazzi has introduced a new range of universal modular digital panel meters, supported by software that enables easy cloning and featuring a modular signal conditioning architecture that supports flexible configuration of power supply, measurement, alarm management or signal re-transmission functions. This allows users to rapidly configure a straightforward signal conditioner or a very sophisticated controller with communication port.

Decypher the 30 different descriptions of non-contact level measurement - The "The Consumer Guide toŠ" series, set of books provides detailed and unbiased Guides to the most commonly used instruments throughout the world. The seventh Guide in this series is The Consumer Guide to Non-Contact Level Gauges by David W. Spitzer and Walt Boyes. This book provides insights into the advantages and disadvantages non-contact level gauge technologies (ultrasonic, laser and radar). Did you know that the 60+ suppliers of non-contact level gauges (ultrasonic, laser and radar) describe level gauge performance in about 30 different ways? As a result, it is difficult (if not impossible) for users to compare and contrast the performance of non-contact gauges when making purchasing decisions. You can read The Consumer Guide to Non-Contact Level Gauges to learn how to sort this out.
THE CONSUMER GUIDE TO NON-CONTACT LEVEL GAUGES; David W. Spitzer and Walt Boyes; ISBN 1-9320950-07-1 (100 pages) from Spitzer & Boyes and ISA

First independent MOST testing lab accredited! - Now RMCtech GmbH is an accredited, authorized and independent testing lab according to DIN ISO 17025 specifications. Included in the accreditation are Full-Physical-Layer as well as Limited-Physical-Layer compliance tests.
The Full-Physical-Layer-Test verifies electric-optical components according to the requirements of the MOST cooperation. Control units were verified with the Limited-Physical-Layer-Test in consideration of MOST specific electric-optical parameters. Components and control units conform to the requirements are registered in the MOST-Compliance-Product-List. Manufacturer of components for the MOST-Ring are using solely parts listed and approved in this list. In the automotive upper and luxury class, the MOST-bus is being built into more and more vehicles. The benefit for the customers is to launch into new and growing markets. RMCtechs' accredited test lab certifies the tested components and control units the performance according well-defined requirements. With the accredited verification of the products, the manufacturers prove the production of high-quality within well-defined specifications.

Serial data transmission via Bluetooth - The widely established Bluetooth technology is making fast and economical remote data transmission available in industrial applications. The new PSI-WL Bluetooth converter from Phoenix Contact can be used for wireless transmission of data from RS 232, RS 422 and RS 485 serial interfaces. They function as replacement serial cables in point-to-point or multipoint connections.

Low-cost, high-accuracy current transducer introduced! - LEM has introduced the ITB 300-S low-cost, high-accuracy current transducer. Specified for 300 ARMS nominal measurements, this new model joins the IT current transducer at a lower price point while offering a level of performance that is only slightly lower than other members of the family. Linearity is better than 0.001% and overall accuracy at ambient temperature is 0.05%. Thermal offset drift is very low, at only 1mA/K.

Safety company makes acquisition - MTL Instruments Group has announced it has acquired the GECMA group of companies, a manufacturer of operator display units for use in hazardous industrial areas. The acquisition of GECMA, based in Germany, is part of an active expansion strategy, helping MTL leverage its existing sales channel while offering its customers a more complete solution in Open Control components for hazardous environments. GECMA's specialist operator displays are often used in hazardous areas, such as chemical-, petrochemical plants and pharmaceutical factories, that MTL already targets with its range of remote I/O and surge protection products. As Graeme Philp, MTL's chief executive commented, "This is an excellent acquisition which is a first-rate fit with MTL's existing operations. GECMA sells to the same customers that we are selling to with our interfaces and Fieldbus and MOST products."

Fault-tolerant Ethernet switches now with 9 ports - Sixnet is introducing the Industrial Real-time Ring(tm) Ethernet switch (model ET-9RS). At the same price of the original industrial switches, these pack in a lot more features. Delivering reliability and performance through its ultra-fast, fault-tolerant network redundancy and other features, the Ring switches are ideal for PLC (automation) systems.

Compact digital oscilloscopes offer enhanced waveform display and analysis - The new SignalXplorer DL9000 series of digital oscilloscopes from Yokogawa combine high-performance waveform display and analysis functions with the most compact and lightweight design in their class.

RF amplifiers get three year warranty - All new RF Amplifiers purchased from Schaffner Ltd are now covered by a three-year warranty. The world leader in EMC test equipment, components and systems has many years experience in design, manufacture and supply of Broadband RF Power Amplifiers for EMC testing to customers worldwide. Experience has proven the RF Amplifier products to be highly reliable in the field while operating in very demanding EMC RF immunity testing applications. Frequently the amplifiers will be operated at their limits and into loads with poor VSWR matching.

Differential gear-tooth sensor for automotive engine control applications - The ATS625 from Allegro MicroSystems Europe is a zero-speed differential gear-tooth sensor which is optimised to address the stringent requirements of automotive engine control, especially crank speed and position sensing. By means of differential threshold detection and algorithms such as automatic gain control and automatic offset adjustment, the ATS625 offers very high levels of relative edge accuracy and switching, independently of the airgap. The combination of low jitter and edge repeatability is ideally suited to targets that have signature tooth or valley regions, which are common to engine crank-speed sensing.