Machine Building

How to specify enclosures for environmental management systems

Industry 4.0 is the current buzzword of choice for engineers and marketing professionals across almost every market sector; and for good reason. Industry 4.0 describes the integration of digital communication with the industrial process to create a network of "˜smart' tools and components that can improve efficiency, quality, productivity and safety.

19th September 2019

How to use legacy equipment in an Industry 4.0 environment

It is very unlikely that you will use a piece of technology from 100 years ago, such as a typewriter or a gramophone, in everyday life. However, a town in California has hit the headlines for doing just that. Could manufacturers learn a lesson from holding on to older technology? Here Jonathan Wilkins, marketing director of industrial obsolete parts supplier EU Automation, discusses how new technology can bring legacy equipment into the fourth industrial revolution.

17th September 2019

How to configure a maxon EPOS4 positioning controller

Learn how straightforward it is to configure a maxon EPOS4 positioning controller using EPOS Studio.

16th September 2019

How "˜smart plastics' make maintenance intelligent

"˜Industry 4.0', "˜Internet of Things' and "˜Smart Factory' - these concepts are no longer a vague promise of what is to come. Instead of planning maintenance at fixed intervals or reacting to failures or faults, continually monitoring the health of a machine enables predictive maintenance. Repair or replacement is then only carried out whenever it is actually necessary. At the same time, unscheduled shutdowns and the associated costs can be eliminated.

13th September 2019

How to cut OLED displays?

William S Land II, business development manager at Aerotech, discusses the challenges faced by manufacturers needing to cut organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays for the latest generation of consumer products.

5th September 2019

The design and manufacturing advantages offered by slewing rings

Lightweight slewing rings, or bearings, are rapidly becoming the first choice for design engineers in the aerospace and defence sectors, where absolute accuracy, light weight, improvements in mechanical performance and good corrosion resistance are demanded. Mike Page of Abingdon-based Carter Bearings examines the case for them.

5th September 2019

Ending unplanned downtime for food and beverage manufacturers

With any unscheduled downtime being a cause of major headaches for food and drink manufacturers, John Rowley of Mitsubishi Electric highlights how predictive maintenance can provide the solution and how easy it is to implement.

4th September 2019

What advantages does AI offer for automated part inspection?

If humans had the eyesight of an eagle, we could spot an ant from the top of a ten-storey building. But do we actually need to? Probably not, which is why our eyesight did not evolve in this direction. Similarly, machine vision engineers are pushing the frontiers of camera specifications to offer incredible resolution, but do manufacturers need this level of sophistication? Yonatan Hyatt, CTO and co-founder of Inspekto, explains why artificial intelligence, not camera technology, is expanding the capabilities of machine vision.

3rd September 2019

How to select the right fuse or MCB to work with an EMC filter

Holger Urban, Product Marketing Manager at Schaffner, explains how to select a fuse or circuit breaker that will function as required in conjunction with an EMC filter, and not cause the filter to work as a fuse.

22nd August 2019

Phytron celebrates 30 years of contribution to space exploration

Phytron GmbH managing director Dr-Ing. Robert Stößer has contributed the following article, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing this year and also illustrating his company's significant contribution to the automation of precision instruments deployed on many other space missions over the last 30 years. As a leading UK-based motion control component supplier, customised systems integrator and designer, Mclennan works closely with Phytron and, through its expertise gained over several years, is actively involved in and looking for high-vacuum, extreme-temperature and other motion control applications in challenging environments.

22nd August 2019