Mechanical Technology March 2016

⎪ Automation, mechatronics and electro-mechanical systems ⎪

Above: Through facilities such as the HILLA shared R&D environments (SRE) VTT makes state-of-the-art tools such as 3D printing machines available to SME’s and start-ups. Right: The interactive solution takes advan- tage of a human’s observation capacity to help the robot carrying out the required task. owners and founders of 3DTech Oy, a company that has already carried out trials on 3D printed spare parts. The project of about € 1.4-million is part of Tekes’ Industrial Internet pro- gramme. The two-year project launched at the beginning of 2016 is funded by Tekes and the participating research organisations and companies: 3D Online Factory Ltd, 3DTech Oy, AM Finland Oy, Hetitec Oy, Kone Corporation, Laserle Oy, Materflow Oy, Multiprint 3D Oy, Patria

ponent. This stainless steel safety hinge switch, available from Countapulse Con- trols, offers an ideal solution for mechani- cally and hygienically challenging appli- cations such as the food and beverage, pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries. There are numerous applications for these high quality safety hinge switches. An example would be for the position monitor- ing of hard guards such as protective hoods that can rotate by means of a monitoring switch – without guard interlocking – inte- grated into the hinge. The switch does not requires an external actuator, which means it is also suitable for use in environments with high dust concentration levels or with heavy particle loads. Fault-free function is ensured, even with warped or misaligned doors, by means of a repeatable switching angle alignment setting. The actuator is integrated into the Big production plants maintain large inventories, where large numbers of spare parts may wait for long periods of time before being taken into use. “In companies such as marine and energy power solutions specialist, Wärtsilä, the capital tied up in materials and equip- ment may amount to hundreds of millions of euros. If we could release, say 5.0% of this capital by means of digitisation, the impact would be substantial,” says Jarno Salonen, business development manager at Wärtsilä, which is one of the companies participating in the project. “We expect the project to create new international business opportunities,” says Tomi Kalpio, who is one of the main and most critically, the creation of a functional service chain.

Aviation Oy, Raute Corporation, Rolls- Royce Oy Ab, Sacotec Components Oy and Wärtsilä Finland Oy. The Federation of Finnish Technology Industries functions as the co-operation partner for the project. The first joint ef- fort will be the open interactive workshop (in Finnish) for companies to be held on April 8, 2016, where the organisers pres- ent the content and goals of the project and the companies involved are invited to highlight their own views. q

Stainless steel safety hinge solution T he Leuze S420 safety hinge switch unites the safety switch and door hinge functions in a single com-

blocks or safety related switching outputs (OSSDs). This makes it possible to have a series connection of 32 devices without compromising the safety level. Countapulse Controls has over 40 years’ experience in specialist sensing technology and offers reliable, efficient

housing, while electrical connection is by means of a cable or an M 12 plug, with op- tional cable entry from above, below, from the wall or mounting side. This allows for the monitoring of all types of doors, hoods and flaps. The safety hinge switch has an opening angle of up to 180° that can be adjusted as many times as needed. The Leuze S420 stainless steel switch offers optimum cleaning options even with high pressure cleaning, thanks to a wall side cable outlet, a high-grade surface with a roughness of less than 0.8  µ m and an IP 67 or IP 69 K level of protection. In ad- dition, covered tamper proof screws reduce the risk of contamination. This safety hinge switch is also recom- mended for the wood product industry in situations where high availability is critical under dust and particle loads. Through the six-point bolting of the joint, even heavy doors can be guarded reliably and with extended service intervals. Users can se- lect from device versions featuring contact

and application ap- propriate sensing,

control and motion detec- tion solutions.

The Leuze S420 stainless steel switch from Countapulse Controls is ideal for industries where strict cleanliness and hygienic control are critical.

Mechanical Technology — March 2016

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