The fan-maker Fläkt Woods has collaborated with Danfoss to develop and certify a range of high-temperature fan/VSD packages that comply with the EN12101-3:2015 standard, making it easier to provide efficient, reliable smoke control in buildings during fires. The certified fan/VSD packages are the first of their type to reach the market.
Megger has launched a handheld instrument that combines all of the functions needed to test electric motors in a single easy-to-use device. The MTR105 static motor analyser provides a full range of insulation resistance tests, along with four-wire low-resistance measurements. It also offers capacitance, inductance and temperature measurements, as well as phase rotation and diode-checking functions.
Universal Robots has announced its most power cobot (collaborative robot) to date – a machine with a payload of 16kg, that has a reach of 900mm and a repeatability of ±0.05 mm. The UR16e cobot is designed to automate tasks such as heavy-duty materials-handling, heavy-parts handling and machine tending.
Rockwell Automation has announced a range of distributed motor controllers with built-in safety functions that can be mounted directly onto machines, allowing functional safety to be implemented with fewer components and saving cabinet space.
Yaskawa has announced what it claims is the smallest, lightest, six-axis industrial robot for handling and assembling small parts. The 7kg MotoMini robot can be installed close to workpieces and other machinery in production lines or cells. It can handle payloads of up to 500g and offers a horizontal reach of up to 350mm and vertical reach of up to 495mm.
Emerson and Cisco claim to have developed the world’s most advanced industrial wireless networking technology. They say that their next-generation system “fundamentally transforms data management to improve plant productivity, reliability and safety”.
Pilz has joined forces with the Italian radar specialist Inxpect to offer what they claim is the world’s first for monitoring safety protection zones, based on radar technology. The technology immune to dust, rain, light, sparks or even shocks, allowing safe, economical monitoring of protection zones in tough environments – such as dusty woodworking plants – where optoelectronic technologies may not work.
Rittal has developed an adaptor that retrofits its Blue e cooling systems with communications capabilities, allowing them to link up with smart condition-monitoring and IoT systems. The adaptor uses a similar interface to that available for the more recent Blue e+ systems. The older systems cannot communicate directly with e+ interface.
REO has developed a range of braking resistors that, it claims, overcome problems traditionally associated with using high-power resistors in drives cabinets. The REOHM series 155 braking resistors come in a closed, IP66-rated format that prevents the entry of dust and airborne materials. They are connected to the drive by a screened cable, thus ensuring that emissions are not an issue.
Baumüller has developed a compact, low-maintenance servo-pump that, it says, combines the advantages of hydraulic power transmission and servodrives. The pump is mounted on the motor and uses internal teeth, resulting in a short installation length that saves space in machines. Furthermore, the direct-mounting design dispenses with the need for couplings and other mechanical components.
Mitsubishi Electric in Japan has announced a new generation of general-purpose inverters which, it claims, will be the first to incorporate diagnostics functions based on AI (artificial intelligence). The first 44 models in the FR-E800 series, with ratings from 0.1–7.5kW, will be released in December 2019. They will be joined, from April 2020, by further versions with safety functions such as SLS (safely-limited speed) and STO (safe torque off). The family will eventually comprise a total of 120 models in ratings up to 22kW.
ABB has announced a range of large Nema-frame AC motors for hazardous area applications which, it says, deliver an average of 15% more power than conventional designs. The AXR 5000 and 5800 motors meet American Petroleum Institute 541 and 547 standards for motors used in the oil and gas industry.
Festo has developed what it claims is the world’s shortest pneumatic slide. The DGST slide has a twin-piston design and comes in diameters from 6–25mm and stroke lengths from 10–200mm. The slide houses an integrated guide and end-plate made from a single part, thus eliminating torsion and misalignment issues and providing precise movements. Impact shocks at the end-of-stroke are reduced by integral cushioning, while in-built stroke adjustment eliminates the need for additional parts.
Omron has announced a family of 164 new safety light curtains, with the claim that they form the industry's broadest portfolio. The F3SG-SR/PG curtains provide finger (10mm beam gap), hand (20mm), leg (40mm), and body protection (80mm), and cover protective heights from 160–2,480mm. They are IO-Link compatible, and can thus be linked into IoT systems on factory floors.
At the 2019 Hannover Fair, Schaeffler presented a series of ironless linear motors designed to reduce the mass of the primary part without compromising drive forces. The UPLplus motors are aimed, in particular, at applications where the maximum acceleration of linear drives has previously been limited by the relatively large proportion of the rotor mass to the total moving mass.
