Features

Trescal, the global leader in calibration services, announced that it has acquired Unithree to open operations in Busan, Korea’s largest port. This brings Trescal’s Korean operations to 40M€ and 330 people over six locations. This is the first acquisition since EQT acquired a majority stake in Trescal this year.

Founded in 2011 and merged with KCDI in 2018, Unithree represents 2M€ in sales and employs 25 people. It performs accredited calibrations in several domains. Its dimensional, force and balance capabilities will complement Trescal’s Korean technical expertise in the southern part of the country. Unithree serves a diverse client base in the automotive, shipbuilding, energy and metal forging industries. 

Guillaume Caroit, Trescal CEO: “We are delighted to welcome Unithree to the Trescal family. Under EQT, we will continue to expand in the thriving Asian market as we aim to achieve 300M€ in regional sales by the end of 2027.”

Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division has announced the release of a new modular 3D laser scanner designed for large surface inspection, for use with both its laser tracker and portable measuring arm devices. The new Absolute Scanner AS1-XL is built on the same SHINE technology as its flagship Absolute Scanner AS1, allowing it to collect extremely clean 3D data at very high speeds from even the most challenging surface types. With a wider scan line, the new scanner is designed for inspecting large surfaces and deep cavities across inspection applications such as aerospace panels, marine propellers and large automotive castings.

The AS1-XL boasts an ultra-wide scan line of 600 millimetres at mid-range. Together with its 1.2 million points per second point acquisition rate and 300 Hertz frame rate, this makes it ideal for scanning large surfaces quickly without losing inspection detail. The scanner also features an extended measurement stand-off distance of 700 millimetres, which paired with its 600 millimetre working range allows for hidden point measurement capability of up to a metre.

“Since even before the launch of the AS1 we’ve wanted to deliver that same level of data collection quality and automation readiness in a device focused on large surface inspection,” says Daniel Moser, Laser Tracker Product Director at Hexagon. “We’ve seen with our previous generation of scanners that the appetite and applications for a dedicated large-scale scanning device are out there in the market. With the AS1-XL, we’ve been able to deliver on the promise of that large surface measurement concept in a far more satisfying way thanks to our new scanning technology that is ten times faster than our previous generation, the LAS-XL.” 

The proprietary intelligent exposure algorithms that make up Hexagon’s SHINE technology are key to the performance of the AS1-XL, allowing it to digitise almost any material, including multiple surface types and colour finishes, within a single scan pass with no need for settings adjustment. It is this and the scanner’s automation compatibility that set it apart from the previous generation LAS-XL, a handheld-only device. The high measurement speed and large stand-off distance of the AS1-XL make it ideal for a wide range of automatable inspection tasks – the former allowing the scanner to keep up with modern robot technology rather than being a bottleneck to robot path speed, and the latter minimising risk of collision by not requiring the robot path to pass so close to the inspection object.

As with the Absolute Scanner AS1, the AS1-XL has been designed with a modular concept that allows for compatibility with both Hexagon’s flagship laser tracker and portable measuring arm systems – the Leica Absolute Tracker AT960 and Absolute Arm 7-Axis respectively. The quick-mount design and minimal warm-up period make the AS1 and AS1-XL a hot-swappable combination, allowing users to move quickly back and forth between high-density detailed scanning and larger surface inspection using either a portable arm or laser tracker at a moment’s notice. 

“The Absolute Scanner AS1 has really been embraced by the market since its launch in 2021, and it’s great to be completing the 3D scanning toolkit of our portable measuring arm line-up with an equally impressive device in the AS1-XL,” says Anthony Vianna, Portable Measuring Arm Product Director at Hexagon. “Our Absolute Arm range offers a market-leading measurement volume of up to 4.5 metres in diameter, making it an ideal platform for a large-scale device like the AS1-XL. And even with our smaller diameter models, the hidden area coverage provided by that extended stand-off distance opens up a lot of applications that have previously been hard to cover, such as automotive, rail and aerospace interiors.”

As with the AS1 and latest iteration of the Absolute Arm range, the AS1-XL is IP54-rated, allowing for safe and reliable operation in the challenging shop floor environment into which quality inspection is increasingly being taken.

The AS1-XL is available to order now from local Hexagon representatives, and more information is available on the Absolute Scanner section of the Hexagon website.

Like automation, Contrinex sensors, available from PLUS Automation, are used in a wide variety of applications, and in this installation are trusted to ensure the safe and reliable control of weathertight doors on shipping.

Customer application

On ships, water-tight doors rely upon compressing seals around the perimeter of their frame, when they close. Double-acting hydraulic cylinders are used to open and close multiple linked latches that secure the doors when closed, maintaining their correct fit against the seals.

Designers required an affordable and highly reliable means of confirming the status of the latches, which would withstand the aggressive marine environment, being resistant to seawater, corrosion, vibrations and shock.

Contrinex has the advantage of offering a range of ‘Maritime’ inductive sensors which are approved to the DNVGL-CG-0339 environmental test specification for equipment to be installed on ships and offshore units. For example, the sensor’s EMC protection meets maritime requirements, particularly regarding power supply variations and low-frequency immunity, as well as being highly corrosion resistant, and IP68/IP69K rated.

DNV is an internationally accredited certification body that establishes and maintains technical standards for the construction and operation of ships and other offshore mobile structures in international waters. DNV is authorized by 130 maritime administrations to perform certification or verification on their behalf.

Customer solution

A high-pressure rated inductive sensor was selected which is capable of operating in installations of up to 500 bar (7,255 psi) and at a peak pressure of 800 bar (11,603 psi). The sensors are embedded into the side of the double-acting hydraulic cylinders which drive the door’s power locking mechanisms. The sensors are located at either end of the cylinder to monitor the presence of the metallic cylinder tie rod, as it reaches the end of its travel, showing whether the door locks are fully open or fully closed.

A member of Contrinex’s uniquely robust ‘700 Series’ of inductive sensors, the sensor features a front face and cylindrical housing which is machined from a single piece of stainless steel. It’s thick front face provides extraordinary abrasion resistance and the sensor’s unique technology gives it unmatched abilities to resist shock and impact damage. This impact resistance is typically demonstrated by showing how a sensor survives being used to hammer nails into a wooden block.

In the Maritime range of sensors, V4A/ AISI 316L stainless steel is used to provide high corrosion resistance to seawater and a salt-laden atmosphere. The sensor’s location inside metal doors on the perimeter of ships also meant that their wide temperature operating range (-25°C to +70°C) and Contrinex’s industry-leading temperature stability and temperature-resistance is important for reliable service.

The sensor also contains the IO-Link communication protocol so that parameters can be auto-updated from the PLC to a new sensor when it is installed. IO-Link is also ideal for implementing the sensors into Industrial IoT (IIoT) and Industry 4 systems, for example for the continuous monitoring of sensor status.

Combining exceptional durability in harsh environments with extended working life, Contrinex’s DNVGL-approved inductive sensors are an affordable, risk-free option for marine systems integrators and equipment designers.

Automotive designers are looking to replace legacy gateway subsystems with technology that can migrate applications to an Ethernet network to easily access information from the edge to the cloud. To provide OEMs with automotive-qualified Ethernet solutions, Microchip Technology today announces its first automotive-qualified Ethernet PHYs. This family of 10BASE-T1S devices with AEC-Q100 Grade 1 qualification includes the LAN8670, LAN8671 and LAN8672.

The LAN8670/1/2 10BASE-T1S Ethernet PHYs are functional safety ready and designed for use in ISO 26262 applications. These devices now make it possible to connect low-speed devices that previously required their own communication systems into a standard Ethernet system in automotive applications.

“Microchip continues to prioritize connectivity solutions for the automotive industry with the expansion of its line of 10BASE-T1S products,” said Matthias Kaestner, vice president of Microchip’s automotive products business unit. “This new technology will connect the sensors and actuators used in the physical world all the way to the cloud, and it will enable a seamless Ethernet architecture everywhere.”

The ability to connect multiple Ethernet PHYs to a common bus line makes it simpler to implement automotive applications on a single, well-known architecture and saves implementation costs by reducing cabling and switch ports. The LAN8670/1/2 enables the network edges to use Ethernet and Internet Protocol (IP) to easily communicate with the rest of the network infrastructure. These devices include advanced PHY diagnostics to provide the user with troubleshooting capabilities. In addition, sleep/wake functionality allows for low-power modes.

The 10BASE-T1S device specifications include 10 Mbps, half-duplex mode, flexible topology with multidrop bus line and point-to-point and use a single balanced pair of conductors. These devices also feature enhanced electromagnetic compatibility/electromagnetic interference (EMC/EMI) performance. Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) support allows for synchronized timing across far-reaching Ethernet networks. Time synchronization is critical for many applications throughout automotive zonal architectures.

Microchip was a key contributor in the development of the standards with IEEE for the automotive-qualified 10BASE-T1S technology. This technology simplifies system design by expanding the reach of Ethernet to the devices that are typically at the very edge of the network.

Low-cost cameras in industrial quality are an important growth driver for automation – after all, it does not always have to be the high-end solution. The low-cost portfolio from IDS specifically addresses price-sensitive applications and has so far included the camera families uEye XCP (closed zinc die-cast housing, 29x29x17 mm) and uEye XLE (different variants from board-level models to closed plastic housing). It is now being expanded to include the uEye XLS camera family. These are tiny board-level cameras with dimensions of only 29x29x7 mm, which are consistently reduced to essential camera functions and can therefore be offered at a particularly low price. They are available from 150 euros list price.

The new USB3 cameras from IDS Imaging Development Systems GmbH are compatible with the Vision Standard, have a Micro-B connector and are available exclusively as board-level versions with or without C/CS or S-mount lens holders. The board-level cameras are so small that they can be inserted directly into the lens holders. Users can choose between different sensors from 2 to 12 MP. Thanks to their minimal heat generation, uEye+ XLS cameras are particularly suitable for device construction and embedded vision applications.

With the low-cost portfolio from IDS, companies can now benefit from the advantages of industrial cameras even with a limited budget. The range of applications extends from rapid prototyping and the automation of previously unprofitable small series to image processing projects with a large number of cameras.

More information: https://en.ids-imaging.com/low-cost-cameras.html

Anritsu introduces the measurement function (MS9740B-020) for Optical Spectrum Analyzer MS9740B that evaluates a pulsed Laser Diode (LD) chip. New solution reduces the test time for pulsed LD chip, contributing to improved production efficiency of high-power LD chip.

Development Background

LD chip manufacturers and optical equipment vendors evaluate the optical spectrum of LD chips during manufacturing. Market demand for high-power LD chips is driven by higher communication bit rates and longer LiDAR detection ranges. In addition, new use cases, such as External Laser Small Pluggable (ELSFP) modules for Co-packaged Optics applications, are expected to accelerate demand. The continuous wave (CW) output from a high-power LD chip suffers power drift and wavelength shift as the chip temperature rises. This is prevented by suppressing the temperature rise by using pulsed LD chips. However, current testing of pulsed LD chips during production takes longer because an external trigger signal is required to synchronize with the pulsed LD chip.

Rugged Design for Any Environment

• Reduced tact time for pulsed LD chips

The new MS97040B-020 solution accelerates optical spectrum evaluation by eliminating the need for a trigger signal.

• Assured measurement reproducibility for even high-power LD chips

This solution assures measurement reproducibility of ±1.4 dB* for Side Mode Suppression Ratio (SMSR). Low SMSR variation improves the LD chip yield and helps production efficiency.

*±1.8 dB with MS9740B-020 installed.

TT Electronics, a global provider of engineered technologies for performance-critical applications, will showcase its extensive portfolio of sensors and passive components at the Shanghai International Industrial Automation and Robot Exhibition in Shanghai, China, July 26-28. Products displayed in TT’s booth (Hall 8, Booth H042) will include optoelectronic sensors, potentiometers, trimmers, encoders and fixed resistors.

The TT team will highlight its new FlexSense™ optical encoder sensors, boasting features such as auto-alignment, a closed-loop LED driver, on-chip diagnostics, a state-of-the-art 8x interpolator, and adaptability to multiple code-disk diameters and pulses per revolution. The Booth demo will also illustrate how simple it is to recalibrate the FlexSense chip to meet requirements in ever-changing scenarios.

“FlexSense is a highly flexible solution that can be configured quickly to meet optical encoder design requirements, including higher resolution, faster response, a smaller footprint, and greater intelligence,” said Walter Brooks, Global Product Line Manager, TT Electronics. “Our Shanghai demo will show how FlexSense can significantly accelerate time to market and reduce solution complexity for increased manufacturing throughput.”

Shanghai International Industrial Automation and Robot Exhibition attendees will have the opportunity to meet with TT Electronics experts, learn about FlexSense and other products in TT’s portfolio, and determine which solution is best for their unique application.

For more information about TT Electronics, please visit Shanghai International Industrial Automation and Robot Exhibition, Hall 8 Booth H042.

Embedded systems and display solutions provider, Review Display Systems (RDS) has announced the introduction of a new ATX motherboard from leading embedded computing solutions supplier AAEON. The innovative, high-performance ATX-Q670A supports 12th Generation Intel Core LGA1700 Socket Processors and is AAEON’s first ATX motherboard to offer DDR5 DRAM memory support.

Supporting up to 128GB system memory with four dual-channel DDR5 DIMMs, this provides users with an unprecedented 50% increase in bandwidth and a decrease in power consumption compared to previous generations. In combination with two PCIe x16 expansion ports and a bootable USB port feature, the ATX-Q670A offers industry-leading performance.

The ATX-Q670A is not only faster, but also provides additional expansion for high-performance modules, offering two PCIe x16 slots alongside both a PCIe x4 and PCIe x1 slot, in addition to a further three PCI slots. For enhanced data protection, the ATX-Q670A is equipped with a bootable USB feature that prevents bootable programs from accessing the system via a USB device.

These features, combined with the ATX-Q670A’s dual graphic card support mean that it can offer the ideal computing platform for vision-based applications. The capability to drive four independent 4K resolution (4096 x 2160 pixel) displays with HDMI 2.0 x 2, DisplayPort x 2 and VGA x 1 also enhance the effectiveness of the motherboard.

An extensive array of additional onboard ports, peripherals and I/O include Dual RJ-45 Ethernet support, M.2 2280/2242 M-Key x 2, M.2 3042/3052 B-Key x 1, Mini PCIe x 1, Micro SIM Slot x 1, and USB 3.2 Gen 2 x 2, USB 3.2 Gen 1 x 4, USB 2.0 x 3.

The AAEON ATX-Q670A motherboard provides customers with an array of performance features and industry-leading expansion capability as required for smart applications including IoT solutions, machine vision, healthcare, and industrial automation. The new AAEON ATX-Q670A motherboard is now available from Review Display Systems.

SPEAG has selected Anritsu’s 5G Base Station Simulator MT8000A for advanced integration in the company’s SAR measurement solution. SPEAG is a leading developer and manufacturer of advanced numerical tools and instrumentation for evaluating electromagnetic near-and far-fields.

The MT8000A is a flexible platform supporting 4G and 5G cellular technology for RF measurements, protocol, and application testing in the FR1 (sub-7.125 GHz), FR2 (mmWave) and LTE. According to SPEAG, integration of the MT8000A in the DASY8-3D V1.4 5G solution significantly simplifies the measurement workflow by enabling automatic 5G call establishment and handovers, enhancing the user experience and ease-of-use.

The MT8000A plays an important role of a “call box” to simulate an appropriate cellular network for a mobile device connection. Once connected, the cellular network then forces the mobile device to transmit at maximum power for subsequent SAR measurement. Creating the conditions for such measurements requires a wide dynamic range for stable connection in the radiated environment, as well as easy parametrization for quick and simple establishment of the connection.

Billions of people use cellular devices daily, so accurate evaluation of generated electromagnetic fields is vital for confidence in the safety and efficacy of the technology. This collaboration with the market leader in SAR measurement, SPEAG, demonstrates Anritsu’s continuing leadership, innovation, and expertise in the telecommunications field.