Objet Geometries has released a digital material pack that allows manufacturers and designers to create parts and models for product-design testing, simulation and validation. The offering is available exclusively on the Connex350 and Connex500 – 3D printers capable of simultaneously printing multiple materials with different mechanical and physical properties.

The pack provides 3D printing users with 18 materials comprised of combinations of VeroWhite and TangoPlus or TangoBlack Plus, the latest addition to the Tango range. The materials encompass the full Shore A hardness scale (from 27 to 95), characterising a range of rubber/elastomer-based products.

With these materials, Connex users can print parts, such as wires and cables, grips and handles, plugs and connections, shock absorbers, function buttons, gaskets and seals, among other rubber applications. The rigid materials simulate the strength and toughness of products made of such standard plastics as PP, LDPE, HDPE, PVC and PS. Up to 11 different rigid and flexible materials can be combined in a single part in one build.

Softinway is offering an intensive course on turbomachinery design that will take place in Singapore on 15-19 December. Axial Turbine Fundamentals (15-16 December) is a comprehensive overview of steam and gas turbine basics, including turbine designs and cycles, initial turbine sizing, multistage turbines, turbine calculation, design and off-design operating modes, profiling and 3D blade design.

The course is dedicated to engineers who want to acquire a more detailed knowledge of thermodynamics, gas dynamics, structural analysis and basics of axial turbines and their elements. Axstream Interactive Workshop on Turbomachinery Flow Path Design and Optimisation (17-19 December) includes a track customised to participants’ interests (axial and radial turbomachinery, axial turbine, axial compressor, radial turbine, centrifugal compressor and retrofitting, and performance upgrades).

The training contents include: turbomachinery design theory and the use of axstream in engineering practice; axial and radial turbomachinery: design characteristics and basic parameters; design of an optimised flow path from preliminary design to generation of 3D blade profiles; innovative approaches to multidisciplinary analysis; and practice: creation of an original turbomachinery flow path.

SGS Colombia SA has performed storage tank inspections for the expansion of the Cartagena Refinery. SGS was responsible for the inspection of floating-roof and conical-roof tanks with sizes between 20,000 and 130,000 barrels. In terms of the Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) Services for storage tanks, the inspection carried out by SGS Colombia included the evaluation of tank bottoms and roofs, as well as tank shells.

For the inspection of tank bottoms and roofs, SGS inspectors used Ultrasonic Testing (UT) methods, such as B Scan and C Scan, in order to detect corrosion. B Scan provides a cross-sectional image of the material and detects material thinning that is caused by corrosion in the inside of tank walls. The C Scan is able to make cross-sectional images and identify failures of items located underground.

For the assessment of the wall thickness of tank shells, SGS used an ultrasonic crawler, a tool designed to take ultrasound thickness measurements on above-ground ferromagnetic structures, without the need for scaffolding or industrial rope access. The SGS inspection services were carried out in accordance with applicable health, safety and environment requirements, as well as to the API 653 Programme.

ESI Conference Focuses On Simulation-Based Design

ESI Group has announced its first global users’ conference and exhibition on Simulation-Based Design and Virtual Prototyping – ESI Global Forum 2010. The event will take place on 19-20 May, 2010 in Munich, Germany and is designed for ESI customers and experts in Simulation-Based Design and Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE). In addition to learning from simulation specialists from around the world, attendees will get a preview of ESI’s latest developments and advances in simulation.

Beyond enabling Simulation-Based Design for industries ranging from automotive to aerospace, energy, defence and electronics, ESI Global Forum 2010 will address digital simulation best practices as well as the methodology and processes to get the virtual job done ‘at the right time’. Designers, engineers, analysts and management personnel from customer and partner companies in all industries are invited to take an active part in the conference by presenting papers highlighting innovative uses of Simulation-Based Design technology or methods to implement successful End-to-End Virtual Prototyping.

GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms has announced Proficy DataMart version 2.0. The product offers an enterprise reporting platform for manufacturing intelligence within Proficy Plant Applications and expands the ad-hoc reporting capabilities of the range at plant and enterprise levels.

The Proficy DataMart solution provides critical production-centric information to the knowledge users in the plants and the enterprise. It enables users to serve themselves to the real-time production data Proficy Plant Applications has converted into meaningful manufacturing intelligence.

Its high performance KPI roll-ups and drill-downs integrate data across multiple machines, lines and sites seamlessly. DataMart can be used with existing Business Intelligence and Data Warehouse solutions to manage the performance of production operations.

Kyland-USA offers a line of of Ethernet switch, terminal server and media converters with a complete set of certifications for the power utility, industrial, transportation and marine marketplaces. The Ethernet switch line includes complete routing functionality and filtering capabilities on OSI layers 3-7.

Designed to meet and exceed emission, dust, and vibration requirements the product line offers a range of DC and AC power supplies, with dual power supplies as a redundancy option. Kyland provides 10Gb link capabilities. The product line includes managed and unmanaged industrial Ethernet switches.

Shortlink Transceiver Offers Wireless Integration

Designed for use in the standard ISM/SRD band of 433MHz, Shortlink’s SL4300-B1 transceiver module offers a quick and easy way to integrate powerful wireless functionality. The SL4300-B1 comprises a ready-made module with CE marking. It is certified for license-free operation under European regulations and its embedded protocol simplifies data exchange and configuration for radio communication, helping to ensure that the configured module complies with radio regulations.

At 12.7 x 25.4 x 3.2mm, the transceiver enables slim and compact product design. The SL4300-B1 is supplied for use with an external antenna. The SL4300-B1 is a single-channel transceiver and offers a maximum data rate of 38.4kbps and a maximum output power of 10dBm. The part’s receiver class (EN 300 220-1) is ‘2′, and its transmitter power class is ‘8′. When used in a line of sight environment, a range of 1 to 2km is easily achievable. Long battery life in portable products is ensured due to a low-power, discrete RF design. Operating from a supply of 2.2 to 3.6V, the transceiver’s current consumption in sleep mode is 1uA.

The module is frequency and temperature calibrated, and a digital signal-strength indicator is included. Application areas for the product are telemetry, sensor networks, remote control, cable replacement, home and building automation, automatic meter reading, consumer electronics, barcode scanners, meshnet, alarm and security systems, two-way remote key entry, and industrial monitoring and control.

Proficy Process Management Streamlines Production

GE Fanuc has announced version 1.2 of its work process management solution, Proficy Workflow, which allows operations experts to create and modify work processes without requiring support from IT. It allows companies to digitise and streamline production – from Electronic Work Instructions for Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and corrective action to HACCP monitoring and compliance tracking.

Drag and Drop Electronic Work Processes, a new form designer in version 1.2, eliminates coding for display screens and forms. Production teams simply drag and drop in an graphical WYSIWYG environment to build forms and displays for manual data entry and automated entry, from barcode readers and other devices. The displays can also be an actionable part of other applications on the Proficy SOA platform.

GE Fanuc and third-party software can connect to the Proficy SOA platform through service providers. Users, including operators, can share data and displays across applications without having to switch from one application to another. The form designer also supports development of work process templates, which can be published into a library for reuse as displays and forms throughout a plant or company. Version 1.2 includes an ActiveX Task List that can be used within any ActiveX container.

Operators can follow step-by-step instructions within their software, such as a HMI, integrating their work instructions for ease of use. The software features a Dynamic Task List (My Task List), so the production expert can control what the operator sees during the execution of the workflow. The Task List has multiple panes, which can be hidden and expanded.

With the Dynamic Task List, companies can give focus to certain work instructions in the display to help guide the operator. Proficy Workflow Version 1.2 also offers one-click deployment. If the user is in the plant and wants to run Proficy Workflow from a specific computer, they can go to a URL and, through a web browser, automatically install the Workflow Task List on that computer. The system will automatically maintain the most current version with no additional administration.

Selecting The Right Resilient Metal Seal

HTMS offers a seal selection guide to help customers pick the right seal for their needs. The company’s resilient metal seals are designed and produced to provide the required tightness when subjected to extremes of temperatures, pressure and media.

HTMS metal seals are produced from stainless steel or high-temperature alloy tubing, strip and wire. The selection guide covers the following topics: load and spring back; compression or seating load; tightness, plating; and flange rotation or lift-off.

Click on the link of the top right-hand side of this article to download the HTMS catalogue and the selection guide is on pages nine and 10.

MPEG Compression Board Supports ARM Platforms

The MicroMPEG4 from Advanced Micro Peripherals is a sub-credit-card-sized, four-channel MPEG-4 video compression module based on the 32-bit mini PCI form factor. The MicroMPEG4 is said to provide a low-power solution for capturing and compressing up to four concurrent live analogue video and audio inputs to full D1 resolution using MPEG-4. The compression module can also decompress and playback recordings from storage to display and offers an additional incoming live video path for simultaneous preview on the host screen.

The MicroMPEG4 is claimed by Advanced Micro Peripherals to be ideal for space-constrained and deeply embedded, long-life video applications. The MicroMPEG4 is now supported with Linux drivers for ARM platforms as well as standard x86 systems, making it suitable for platform solutions using Intel’s IXP4xx family of ARM/Xscale network communication processors. The combination of these Intel ARM-compatible solutions and the MicroMPEG4 enables developers to create monitoring solutions with resilient, fully encrypted network communications. For surveillance and monitoring applications, the MicroMPEG4 enables text and simple graphics overlays to be combined with the live video for both preview and compression. The supplied SDK enables data such as camera identification, date/time, location data and frame numbers to be easily added to the video image.

The MicroMPEG4 is supported by a suite of drivers for PC-based Windows 2000/XP, Linux and QNX systems along with Linux drivers for ARM platforms – the standard video recording SDK and sample applications are supplied free with the module. AMP also offers a Video Streaming SDK to enable the compressed video to be streamed over an IP network. The board can be optimised for specific application needs by balancing the number of channels used against the image size and frame rate.

The board also features motion detection and a babysitting mode in which recording of incoming video is initiated only when a motion event occurs within the field of interest. This is said to minimise storage requirements and demands on operators’ concentration. Applications include solid-state digital video recorder, intranet/internet video streaming, remote video surveillance and multi-camera traffic monitoring. An extended temperature version with an operating temperature rating of -40C to +85C is also available.