Engineering mega-primer: Lifting and hoisting
Vertically elevating loads is a ubiquitous task in engineering, but prevailing over gravity while maintaining safety and accuracy calls for myriad approaches. ...
Connecting with cables and carriers
What's new regarding cables and carriers? Larry KabelSchlepp: Cables, carriers, and related components have evolved over the years to accommodate ever-increasing...
Interface ingenuity
The human-machine interface or HMI is one of the most important components of an automation system, making communication possible between machinery and...
This Used There: Bellows in aerospace
The aerospace industry demands products that withstand rigorous conditions while maintaining high reliability because failure is not an option. In addition,...
Fantastic plastic conveyor chains
Chain-based conveyor systems offer flexible layouts and material flow designs. They're used globally with handling and automation technology to transport...
Better by Design: Robotic joint
Design engineers tasked with custom robot development must often piece together scores of individual components. Nowhere is this more complicated than...
Steel cable carriers
Dynamic cable carriers were first introduced in 1954, and originally all were made of steel. More recently, manufacturers began making carriers of glass-fiber-reinforced...
Green designs enhance renewable applications
As companies and entire countries strive to increase usage of renewable energy technologies, a plethora of green components has been introduced. Included...
Perfect connect
Industrial cable connectors can be bulky, typically offer only a few contact arrangements, and can be be difficult to fasten by hand tightening which...
Real-life cable questions answered
Cables are often the last component to be considered when designing moving machines or equipment. It shouldn't be this way, because they supply the electric...
Why so many bearing greases?
The right grease can prolong the life of rolling-element bearings in expensive equipment, cut downtime, and improve performance. Guess what the wrong grease can do...
Cable carrier quick facts
Capabilities: Carriers guide and protect cable and hoses from abrasion, snagging, and overbending during machine movement. In many applications, design...
Save time with seals and lubes
Free online seal configurator speeds time to market The Sealing Solutions Configurator is a free online tool that helps engineers identify the right sealing...
What's New
Weldon Solutions, York, Pa., makes automated systems for bakeries to facilitate pan storage and retrieval. New cable carrier systems eliminate space and...
Deforming damping elements
Like an air bag, some single and limited-use shock-absorbing elements transform kinetic energy from impact into deformation work....
Top 10 tips for cables and carriers
Specifying and working with cables – the lifeblood of automated machinery and systems – takes an understanding of how they work and how to protect them. Check out these tips and tactics from industry leaders to keep your data and power lines healthy....
LEDs lighting the way
While energy production and distribution have always been a challenge, today it is increasingly urgent to reduce power consumption — and lighting is no exception. Light-emitting diodes or LEDs provide an alternative to conventional lighting for consuming less power, lower thermal dissipation, and longer life. In fact, LED products are already spurring evolution in lighting, and it is anticipated that power LEDs will lead the way in combining high intensity and efficiency. So what is the structure of LEDs, and how do they emit light?...
From watches to oil platforms: The best design and material for seals depends on the application.
Seals are key components of designs all around us. They hermetically close two units with uneven surfaces, or facing surfaces in motion. Seal forms include...
Smart seals: Radial shaft seals
Conventional shaft seals are designed to last a certain length of time perhaps 5,000 to 20,000 service hours before the effects of wear begin to emerge....
Central lubrication protects large mill equipment and transfer lines
To lubricate large, complex machines, you need more than a grease gun. It takes a sophisticated central lubrication system that uses lubricant sparingly, keeps a lid on costs, and does not assault the environment...
Magnetic bearings: an update
Using magnetism to support a shaft within a bearing is an old concept, but it has been put to practical use only in the past 15 years. Now that it has, radically different, magnetic bearings are resulting...
Centralized lubrication system saves labor and downtime
A centralized lubrication system serving two heat treating furnaces saves $31,000 per year, while virtually eliminating bearing failures — the most common cause of furnace downtime...
Handling cables and hoses
Actuators, positioners, and other motion systems continue to move at faster speeds and for longer duty cycles. Consequently, the cables and hoses that transmit energy and signals from fixed sources to this equipment undergo higher stresses. Here are some of the latest carrier innovations to handle and protect the cabling...
Plastic composites take to the road
Phenolic composite materials offer electrical insulation and corrosion resistance. In molded form, they’re also a handy way to replace several metal parts with a single plastic component. Though used largely in automotive components, these materials have potential for many industrial drive applications...
Thermoplastic bearings cut wear
A maker of custom shock absorbers for motorcycles and off-road vehicles switched to self-lubricating thermoplastic bearings to guide the linear motion in the shocks. The results brought a simpler, more durable shock and reached to the rod ends, too...
Movable shim stack for high-resolution lifts
Wouldn't it be nice if there were a rotary-to-linear device with high thrust capacity, high resolution, fine adjustment, no backlash, no tendency to backdrive, no large extended-to-retracted ratio, and no sticker shock? Engineers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center thought so, too, and so they kept right on thinking...
Barriers to successful cable carrier selection
Conduit carriers simplify many linear-motion applications. However, carriers can suffer from four common problems in specification and installation. Treat those problems or they can turn a potentially maintenance-free carrier into a major headache...
Sealing solutions give longer life, stop pesky leaks
Today's environment makes it tougher than ever to be competitive. Boost reliability with good seal design...
Creating an efficient, user-friendly computer workplace
You have made a big investment in engineering computers. To get the most value from these resources, you need an ergonomic environment that keeps the engineers who operate them productive and healthy...
Bearings on the fast track
Magnetic bearings push machine speeds to levels that seemed impossible a few years ago. Here's how they work and how they might help you someday...
