Motors & Drives Information

As you hop on your Harley-Davidson, Honda or Yahama and take to the open road, it is wise to invest in several pieces of protection. A cycle ride without some of sort of eye and face protection is pretty risky. What is a rider to do when he or she take a pounding from the elements, such as wind, dirt, rain, and dust? Without something to shield the face, such as a face shield or pair of glasses, insects and other nasty debris can obstruct his or her view.

Today, when it comes to choosing shields or a helmet for your motor ride, there are numerous options on the market to choose from. Different styles, colors and designs await a rider, whether they enjoy a motorcycle ride on the adult or junior level. Before choosing a face shield or helmet for your motorcycle gear collection, keep in mind that a helmet with a plastic face shield is one of the best choices you can make. This is because this type of support will protect the entire face. Sometimes motorcycles come with windshields and in this case, a pair of goggles may be best.

When selecting eye protection, you should choose a pair of glasses or goggles that offers a clear view on both sides. The product should be shatterproof, as well as possess an item that is free of scratches. Proper sealing should be taken into consideration so that wind does not cause watering of the eyes. For full-face coverage, there should be strong chin support and absorbing liners. Below are a few brands to keep in mind when you need to protect yourself on and off the busy road.

Scorpion

When it comes to trend setting protective motorcycle gear, some of the best-designed helmets in the world come from Scorpion. From all over the world, motorcycle lovers are using Scorpion helmets. Some of the helpful features that these helmets offer include the EverClear no-fog face shield, which also provides an anti-scratch hardened coating. Scorpion helmets also use a KwikWick moisture-absorbing liner and cheek pads. The convenience also extends to a product that is breathable and can be easily washed.

Nolan

Nolan helmets offer motorcycle riders top-notch protection through its Lexan face shield with desirable UV 400 Protection. With the Vision Protection System (VPS), there is a convenient clear shield, which offers three different positions. There is even extra neck roll to further reduce the effects of wind and noise. For those who suffer from allergic reactions and tend to experience irritation with some of the materials used to construct a helmet, a Nolan option provides an interior with anti-microbial hypoallergenic sanitation.

Vega

Offering nine different convenient face shield colors and sizes, Vega helmets are a great way to fashionable take to the road. The full-face Vega helmet option provides tons of loaded features. The superb construction and materials used to make this great item offers fully vented capabilities in the chin, rear and top areas of the helmet.

When looking for adult sizes, you may choose from XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL and XXL. Junior sizes are offered in S, M and L. When selecting a helmet, the size hat that you wear is an important determining factor. If you wear a size 7-5/8 - 7-3/4 in hat, then you will need an XL motorcycle helmet.

When you're getting ready to buy a new bike you have to think about what kind of riding you want to do, how much money you're willing to spend, and how dependable the motorcycle is that you're thinking of purchasing. It's also a good idea to take some special courses about riding a motor bike, if you've never done so before, and to get a special endorsement on your license saying that you have that training.

It doesn't matter if you're a novice or an experienced rider, you still probably have a lot to learn and going to a course can do you a lot of good. Another advantage is that you might get a reduced rate on insurance if you’ve been to one of these courses. In Ohio, the classes are required and it is not legal to operate a motorcycle without the special classification on your license. Check the list of organizations at the end of this article for information about where to take classes.

If you haven't had that much experience, according to one large dealer, it is a good idea to get a smaller bike. They are easier to maintain, and less likely to be seriously damaged in the event of a fall or a minor collision. Large, faster bikes have larger displacement engines and design that emphasize speed over durability in the case of a small collision, so they are not advisable for new riders. For example if you drop a small bike it might cost fifty bucks to fix, but one of the bigger bikes would run you several hundred dollars to fix if the same thing happens.

For those of you with a few years experience under your belt who want to step up to the next level of motorcycling, buy a motorcycle that suits your needs. Do you want to ride on a track, on dirt, or on the open road? How much are you looking to spend? What kind of payments are you able to afford after paying maintenance, gas and insurance? There's most likely going to be a loan agent right there at the dealership that can set you up with a loan. Get approved for a loan and you'll be able to figure out what kind of motorcycle you can afford.

Check in the Internet, magazines, and the dealership and ask your friends what they can tell you about prices and quality of motorcycles within your range. Find out what kind of report the bikes you like are getting from people who ride them every day. Ask around and make sure to get several opinions. It never hurts to hear what other people think.

Compare the benefits of buying new compared to buying a used cycle. New bikes come with a warranty, and old ones may have hidden problems that you can't see before you have ridden them for a while. The advantage, of course, is price.

If you want to avail of motorcycle shipping services, look for one who knows not only to deliver your motorcycle on the designated date and place, but also one who knows how to take care of it. You wouldn’t like for your motorcycle to have scratches on it and some dents during transit.

Motorcycle shipping is now made easy and convenient with the many businesses that now provide such services. There are a lot of service providers for motorcycle shipping, but you should get one, which you can trust. You will surely lose some sleep if you are not sure that you hired a company that can deliver your motorcycle safely and securely.

When you get a firm that provides motorcycle shipping services, go with an established name. It must be reliable with its promise and commitment to ship your motorcycle on time and deliver it on the specified place in its original condition.

Your precious motorcycle should be well protected during transit. A soft cover is preferred to keep the original finish and protect it from scratches. Soft ties are to be used when strapping the critical parts of your motorcycle. This would give the owner the peace of mind that his motorcycle is well taken cared of.

Insurance should be provided for each shipment, and an option for additional insurance if you should wish. It is also best that there is proper handling given to your motorcycle from pick up to loading to the vans, and until unloading and delivery.

You should also be able to track the status of your motorcycle shipment, so check for this facility before you get the services of a motorcycle shipping firm.

Among the firms in the Internet that provide motorcycle shipping services are motorcycleshippers.com, expressmotorcycleshipping.com, shippingmasters.com, moverquest.com, motorship.com, sterlingvanlines.com, and motorcycleexpress.com

Ask for a quote for each motorcycle shipping services provider, and probe deeper by asking what are the details of the service they provide. What are stipulated in the contract? What are their policies on cancellation of service, on damage of your motorcycle during their care, and on other things, which you feel is due to your side?

It is best that you consult their customer service and sales staff, and discuss the contract item by item if it should not be clear to you. Don’t ever take promises not put into writing. Consider every detail, and have an appropriate clause placed on the contract to address these.

I am constantly amazed at where bikers will spend money. I see fellow bikers spend thousands on chrome whatzits and whatnots but neglect one of the most important parts on their bike- the lowly air and oil filter. Simply assuming that all filters are the same, or the filter labeled by the bikes manufacturer is good enough, or worse yet, that the manufacturer's filters are the best you can get is a very risky mind-set.

Do the research. Check the brands. Good filters are not cheap. You get what you pay for. You would never use a product that would scratch or dull that fine chrome, but that is exactly what happens to engine components when you cheat on filters. No motorcycle manufacturer makes filters. Period. They buy them based on lowest bidder price and label them. They have no interest in quality and frankly, profit from your use of inferior filters.

As I said, do the research and check the brands. The best filters are made by companies that CARE about your bike. Purolator, Wix, K&N, Green and a few others have been in the filter business for years based on quality products. Others have also been in business for years and make a crap product (i.e. Fram) because they spend big money on advertising. When shopping for a filter, don't shop price, shop quality. Most companies even offer chrome filters to match the whatzits and whatnots you bolted on already!

Ride safe and support your local ABATE chapter. Helmet laws suck!

Here we have a few things you should check on your motorcycle on a regular basis. I assume you have a handbook with the specs for your bike, if not, go get one. You may be able to find some data for your particular motorcycle on the net. You can also pick up workshop manuals for various models on eBay in PDF or CD form for little money.

Whereas with a four wheeled vehicle you may get away with being lax with things like tire pressures etc, this is not the case with a motorcycle. You should not risk compromising the safety and stability of your motorcycle, for the sake of a bit of routine maintenance.

Pre-ride checks

• Tires – check condition and for foreign objects in the tread.
• Tire pressures – it is vitally important to keep your motorcycles tire pressures either on spec or very close to it.
• Oil level – always check with the bike on level ground.
• Coolant level – only if your bike’s liquid cooled, obviously.
• Chain – check the tension and make sure it’s well lubed.
• Brakes – check they work and that they feel good.
• Lights – check all your lights, especially the brake light, you don’t want to get rear ended, do you?
• Visual inspection – self explanatory.
• All ok – hit the road.

Periodical checks

• Check battery – see that the connections are tight; I dropped a bike once because of a loose battery connection, strange but true. Also check the electrolyte level on some batteries, a lot of newer batteries are gel filled, sealed for life types, so no need with these.
• Carb balance – if your bike is multi carbed get yourself a Morgan carbtune or similar. It can be a little tricky the first time you balance them, but when you’ve done it once, the second time will be easy.
• Ignition timing – only necessary on some bikes, most newer models have electronic ignition which does not need touching, normally.
• Valve clearances – unless you’re a good home mechanic, take it to a dealer.
• Wheel bearings – grab each wheel with it off the ground and see if there is any sideways play. There should be none or maybe a trace at most.
• Steering head bearings – with the front end off the ground, grab the forks and push and pull. There should be no play.
• Swinging arm bearings – with the back wheel off the ground, check for any sideways movement in the swingarm, there should be none.
• Brakes – check fluid levels, brake hoses for deterioration, and pads/shoes for thickness.
• Cables and levers – should operate smoothly. Get some grease on lever/pedal pivot points, and get some lube down the cables, if you can. A cable oiler is a handy tool.
• Nut and bolts – go all round the motorcycle with your spanners and check that all nuts/ bolts/screws are nice and tight.

Well, that’s about it for some basic maintenance, obviously, unless you’re a good home mechanic, any bigger jobs will have to go to a dealer. The problem can be finding a good one with skilled mechanics you can trust. I manage to keep my Yamaha Fazer 1000 running sweet just using the steps listed above. It does help that this model only needs the valve clearances checking every 26,000 miles.

Toshiba has a new motor controller and inverter chipset it claims will significantly reduce the acoustic and electrical noise of PWM motor drive applications as well as improving efficiency levels and minimising component count. Toshiba's TB6551F three-phase brushless motor controller provides a full sinewave PWM output without the need for an external microcontroller, and the new TPD4103AK is a single-chip 500V inverter. Together the devices deliver a compact, two-chip solution for the high-efficiency, low-noise driving of three-phase brushless DC motors or AC induction motors with ratings of up to 400V.

Electrical and acoustic noise can be introduced into PWM motor control applications by the rapid switching of motor coil current.

Traditionally this problem has been addressed using an external microcontroller and software that manipulates the PWM signal to generate a sinusoidal motor coil current waveform.

Now, however, the built-in sinewave function offered by the TB6551F provides an integrated hardware solution.

Toshiba's TPD4103AK chip inverter IC is rated for 500V/1A operation and switching frequencies up to 25kHz and accepts the sine wave input directly from the TB6551F IC.

As a result, the two ICs can be used to quickly and easily implement a 'silent' motor drive with all of the high-efficiency and low-power dissipation benefits provided by sinus modulated PWM control.

The TB6551F features a built-in triangular wave generator with a carrier frequency of fosc/252Hz.

An integrated lead angle control function allows the designer to move the lead angle between 0 and 58 degrees in 32 separate steps.

The ability to optimise lead angle electronically, rather than using conventional mechanical adjustment, allows designers to fine tune their application for optimum efficiency, facilitating the use of lower cost, lower power and smaller motors.

A dead-time function can be set for 2.6 or 3.8us to ensure safe operation of the power IGBTs in a push-pull configuration.

Additional onboard functionality includes overcurrent protection.

Functionality built in to the TPD4103AK inverter includes protection against overtemperature and undervoltage conditions.

A bootstrap system with an integral diode minimises the need for external power supply hardware for the high side drive.

Fairchild Semiconductor's Motion-Smart Power Modules (SPMs) offer a highly integrated solution for low-power (sub-100W), brushless DC (BLDC) motor applications. The Motion-SPM devices integrate multiple functions in a single compact package, offering a simplified motor drive solution to speed engineering design, reduce PC board space and enable energy-efficient and reliable designs in home appliances. Motion-SPM multichip modules combine six fast recovery MOSFETs (FRFET) and three half-bridge high-voltage ICs (HVIC) in one thermally efficient, ultracompact (29 x 12mm) Tiny-DIP package designed for BLDC motors with built-in control.

'The low-power appliance market is selecting high-voltage brushless DC (BLDC) motors over single-phase AC induction motors, due to their increased efficiency (from 50 to 90%), decreased acoustic noise and vibration, and higher power density per volume and weight'.

'Fairchild's Motion-SPMs make it possible to build the motor control into the BLDC assembly', said Taehoon Kim, Vice President of Fairchild's High-Power Product Line.

'By integrating power analogue and power discrete IC functionality into a single package, the SPM represents how Fairchild understands - and meets - the thermal efficiency, reliability and board space demands of the home appliance market'.

'In addition to offering advantages over nonintegrated solutions, the new Motion-SPM series makes Fairchild's SPM portfolio the industry's most comprehensive lineup of power modules covering inverter motors used in a full range of 50W to 3kW appliances'.

Each Motion-SPM uses advanced FRFET and HVIC devices to ensure the performance and long-term reliability of the end product, while simplifying motor inverter designs.

Open PC-based motion control technology from Nyquist Industrial Control is to be integrated with the advanced and fully digital servo drives from Maxon Motor. The need for high precision intelligent drive components is increasing on a worldwide basis. 'Nyquist was looking for an experienced low-power digital servo amplifier partner, manufacturing ever smaller, integrated and maintenance-free products that are also competitively priced', says Twan Smetsers, Marketing Director of Nyquist.

'With Maxon Motor as a competent system provider we can offer our semiconductor and electronics OEM-customers the design-in solution they need'.

Maxon was looking for a high-end synchronised motion control solution based on open PC standards.

'We were looking for a partner who can make digital high-end motion control work', says Gerwin Geukes, Product Manager of Maxon Motor.

'With Nyquist we found a partner with know how on high-end motion control technology.

With us they now can deliver tailor made solutions in the drive range up to 400W'.

Both companies have many years of experience in providing solutions for OEM applications.

The combined Maxon technology and Nyquist's NYCe product families provide an OEM solution using an industry-standard high-speed IEEE-1394 FireWire network to connect the open PC-based platform to the 'smart drives'.

On the top level, the Windows NT-based platform performs I/O processing, machine sequencing, GUI display, path planning and kinematics solutions.

This architecture optimises the use of PC technology while significantly reducing machine cabling.

Mayr Antriebstechnik have introduced an innovative series of modular safety brakes for use in conjunction with vertical axis drives specifically on machine tool applications. With the increasing number of functional safety directives , the ROBA - topstop series meets the requirements of DIN EN 954 - 1. The ROBA - topstop modular units are suitable for vertical axis drives where machine and personnel safety are paramount and are the result of Mayr Antriebstechnik many years experience in the design , manufacture and application of the well known ROBA - stop Electromagnetic Fail Safe Brakes .

Ideal for servo motor drive applications the modular units are available in 3 basic sizes up to 200 Nm brake torque complete with input and output flanges to suit all standard servo motors.

Four base types are available for assembly between the servo motor and ball screw spindle or servo motor and gearbox , either as hub - hub , hub - shaft or shaft - shaft fitment , with ROBA -ES backlash free blind assembly couplings or EAS - Compact backlash free torque limiting if required .

The modular units offer total brake enclosure complete with a terminal box.

For additional security brake wear or release monitoring is available.

The flexibility of the modular design lends itself to retrofit into existing machinery or for special applications where non standard flanges are required or space is at a premium.

Danfoss Drives and Pilz have announced that they will be working together on the development of combined drives and safety controls in the new Danfoss Drives' series, AutomationDrive. The partnership meets market demands for intelligent networking of safety technology and standard automation systems. Special safety implementations for drives ensure that people operating production equipment in, for example, the food, beverage and automotive industries, are not exposed to danger if faults develop in the drive control unit.

Danfoss Drives' new AutomationDrive series already has additional, integrated safety functions; however, when combined with Pilz safety technology, more functions can be added - such as safe speed and standstill monitoring.

Pilz and Danfoss Drives are both leading suppliers within their respective fields, and both are experts in jointly developing optimal safety systems for their customers.

Pilz is viewed by many as the world-leading manufacturer of safety equipment and a company of high standing within machine safety.

Its headquarters are located in Germany and the company has more than 1000 employees all over the world.

Danfoss Drives produces and markets frequency converters for the speed control of motors, and is a global business with sales and service activities throughout the world.

Use of the latest CNC tool production and grinding technology is enabling woodworking tooling maker to maintain its technical lead and rapid response to customers. The use of tool production and grinding technology supplied by Walter GB is enabling Carbide (UK) to maintain its technical lead and unrivalled rapid response in the production of a wide range of woodworking tooling for customers throughout the UK and abroad. Director Laurie Witherwick is adamant that the company's considerable investment over the past six years in three Helitronic five-axis tool grinders for the manufacture of solid carbide cutters - complemented by the Cyber grinding tool simulation software package - as well as two Woodtronic TCT circular saw blade grinders, has been money well spent.

'Indeed, our application of the Walter technology, coupled with the way in which we can handle every job from wood sample to CAD (AutoCAD) and complementary CNC machining, ensures our unprecedented lead in the design and production of tooling that other companies cannot, or will not, tackle,' he claims.

With production/sales accounting for 80 per cent of turnover, and the remainder on regrinds, Carbide (UK) is a specialist designer, manufacturer and supplier of saw blades, cutter blocks, solid carbide and diamond tooling, tips and knives, boring bits and router cutters used throughout the UK woodworking sector plus some users in the United States and Belgium.

Multi-national manufacturers of kitchens, caravans and furniture are included on its customer list.

While standard tooling is offered mainly via its agency agreements with Sandvik and Garnia, the focus at the site in central Hull is to offer a high-level of technical expertise in the design and manufacture of complex, special-purpose tooling - for example, specialised solid carbide cutters and disposable tipped tooling.

And this is where the Walter technology really comes into play, according to Witherwick.

Chains were probably conceived as early as the 15th century, when Leonardo da Vinci produced a series of sketches illustrating the basic principle. Some of the drawings closely resemble the actual form of modern day roller chain. However, like so many of Leonardo's ideas that were ahead of their time, it wasn't until much later - the late 19th century when bicycles became popular - that chains really started to be used on a large scale.

The amalgamation of Reinecker, Karstens and Kopp combines thegrinding know-how of the Emag Group under a single roof. Each ofthe three companies can tap into many decades of in-depthexperience in the manufacture of grinding machines and theapplication of its technology. This collective experience hasleft its distinguishing mark on the new design platform, whichallows for a number of machine variants to be configured strictlyin accordance with individual customer requirements.

The machinesprovided by the Emag Grinding Group cover everything from thegrinding of prototypes to the production grinding of largebatches of small or large, long or short shaft-type componentsexternally (know-how Karstens), and from the internal andexternal grinding of high-precision chucked components (know-howReinecker) to the grinding of cams and camshafts (know-how Kopp).To a large extent, the basic machines - even for very differentmanufacturing tasks - are identical, with all the advantages thisbrings the user: standardised operation, programming andmaintenance, resulting in a shorter learning curve and lowermaintenance costs.

It makes the use of available personnel moreflexible and easier to plan, and allows for multiple-machineoperation.

The machineis based on the new design platform (Figs.

4061, 4054) forgrinding lengths of max.

3000mm and grinding wheel diameters ofmax.

610mm (standard version).

The type 204 F is designed for thegrinding of chucked components of max.

400mm dia.

Grinding asfinish machining process - today and tomorrow - qualityrequirements, for ground components in particular, are increasingsteadily.

At the same time, the integrity of the processcapability is becoming the main criterion in volume productiongrinding.

Values of Cpk 1.67 / Cpk 2.0 are a reality.

Otherimportant objectives of production planning today are short,flexible production sequences.

Short retooling times must beachieved, to ensure that component manufacturing costs do notrise despite a steadily increasing workpiece diversity and theshrinking of batch sizes.

In addition to that, different batchsizes and workpiece contours require different automationconcepts.

The machining result depends, to a large extent, onchoosing the correct grinding tool.

Modern machine designs haveto take into account the demands made by different grinding wheelabrasives.

This applies to coolants too, which are of equallyfundamental importance to the machining results.

Although, in thepast, machine manufacturers (and frequently also the machineuser) have paid little attention to these matters, it isimperative that all future machine designs thoroughly addressthem.

The new modular design for cylindrical grinding - in the HGseries of machines from Reinecker Karstens Kopp the newgeneration of horizontal grinding machines from the Emag GrindingGroup takes account of all the demands made on modern cylindricalgrinders.

The basic assemblies, such as spindles, measuringdevices and drives are manufactured in large numbers within theGroup and assembled into working entities of modular design.

As a power transmission medium, chain is today generally viewed as a mature technology.

This is true if one looks at the general level of technical development, which is targeted on achieving increased operating life, greater reliability and reduced maintenance.

It is not the whole picture, however.

In many areas of chain technology, particularly in respect of conveyor and hybrid plastic/steel chains, there is a genuine product innovation.

Modern manufacturing has produced a whole new set of demands on chain.

Operating environments have to be cleaner and quieter to work in.

Power transmission systems generally have to be smaller while still being able to transmit equal or increased levels of power as the larger systems, which they replaced.

There are other considerations too.

Today, chain is used in precision indexing and conveying tasks.

Such tasks - assembly of PCB boards for example - cannot tolerate the initial levels of stretch, which in many other applications are taken for granted.

While lubrication is still employed with most chain drives, its necessity, especially on the factory floor, is increasingly being called into question by innovations like Tsubaki's new Lambda chain.

Lambda is lube-free yet it offers 7 to 30 times the wear life of standard lubricated roller chain.

It also offers 30% longer wear life compared with previous Lambda series chains, and up to 20 times the wear life of other lube-free chains.

This improved performance results from a construction, which comprises specially sintered, oil impregnated bushings, coated pins and extra durable rollers.

The durable rollers facilitate super smooth engagement on the sprocket for longer periods of time.

In anticipation of the demands from designers of future generations of machine tools, the INA Bearing Company has developed a range of innovative products to fulfill every increasing performance requirement. As well as introducing a series of high quality bearings - for which INA is internationally renowned - this time specifically designed for screw drives, the company has exploited its expertise in rolling bearing technology to come up with a range of telescopic struts and joints for hexapod operation, linear guidance systems, braking and clamping elements for linear motors, and measuring systems for rotary table bearings. The screw-drive ball bearing range embraces both Series ZKLF axial angular-contact types with two rows of balls, and Series DKLFA which has a third row of balls for heavy loads at high speeds.

Both types have holes machined through the outer casing for bolting to a flat surface, thereby enabling the screw drive to be bolted directly to its location in the machine tool frame and enhancing the design at a lower cost.

The telescopic struts and joints have been designed by INA to meet the demands of so-called 'parallel kinematics technology' which is having a big influence on the development of machine tools towards tripod and hexapod systems.

Three different joint designs have been incorporated in the components to provide two or three degrees of movement.

For ball joints, INA makes use of a traditional ball-and-cup arrangement.

In this case, however, hundreds of small balls are interposed between the surfaces, giving excellent friction behaviour while maintaining a low Hertzian pressure between the surfaces of the ball and cup.

Four Hurco machining centres will be introduced at MACH 2006, representing a completely new layer in its product range, positioned between its 'entry-level' VM series and its mainstream VMX machining centres. The new models will have a single-screen Ultimax control as fitted to the entry-level machines, rather than the twin-screen version on the company's higher-end VMX machining centres. However, performance will be only slightly different from that of the equivalent VMX, and the new models will have a spindle motor with higher acc/dec.

Compared with the VM range, key advantages are longer Y-axis travel and better swarf management.

The biggest benefit for some, however, will be the 14 to 18% price reduction compared with the VMX equivalents, according to machine size.

At the show, the '42' size machine with 1066 x 610 x 610mm working volume will be shown fitted with an example from Hurco's new range of four rotary tables, which are also being launched in the UK.

They are available with 160, 200, 250 and 320mm diameter face plates and cost around 40% less than other manufacturers' tables that Hurco offers.
Conversational rotary programming is a standard feature on all Hurco machines.

In the prismatic machining area there will also be a 3-axis VMX24 machining centre with Nikken 5AX150 2-axis rotary table, capable of producing a complex automotive part by interpolating all 5 axes simultaneously, showing that it is not just Hurco's full 5-axis VTXU machine that can perform this type of work.

The turning display at MACH will feature the company's TM6 and TM8 lathes, which until now have been available only with slotted disc-type tooling in the turret.

Due to customer demand in Europe, especially for driven tool applications, VDI tooling is now being offered and the availability of these machines will be announced at the show.

It is anticipated that, following HURCO's successful launch of its 2-axis lathes in 2004, a new range with C-axis lathes with driven tooling will be introduced before the end of this year.

For manufacturers whose work spans both rotational and prismatic machining, HURCO will be offering at the show a cell comprising a VM1 machining centre and a TM6 lathe for the special package price of GBP 60,000.

Completing the exhibits will be the new RXP 500 vertical machining from Roeders, Germany, for which Hurco Europe is sole agent in Britain and Ireland.

The machine is driven by linear motors at up to 40m/min in each of its 500 x 400 x 240mm axes.

Of rigid, bridge type design, the 5.5 tonne machine is designed for efficient production of moulds from hardened tool steel weighing up to 400kg.

Helping to achieve very high machining accuracy and a surface finish that does not require subsequent polishing are spindle head counterbalance in the Z axis, as well as integral cooling of the linear drives and of the 42,000 rev/min / 14kW / HSK E40 spindle.

NUM offers a family of cost-effective control systems well suited to address all aspects of cylindrical and surface grinding. Configured with a state-of-the-art CNC, motors/drives and very user-friendly software, these 'off the shelf solutions' can be used in new machines or to retrofit existing machines. The embedded grinding and dressing cycles are governed by a graphical and conversational menu-driven Human-Machine Interface (HMI) and wizard-guided wheel and diamond origin setup.

The NUM grinding control systems save the OEM or integrator years of software development effort, while lowering cost of employee training.

They are perfectly suited for the production of any size batch of precision parts requiring dimensional accuracy and high-quality surface finish at a reasonable setup cost.

The cylindrical grinding system includes full OD/ID grind cycle for two-axis (x, z) grinding machines and has inclined axis capability by tilting the grinding head or the table.

The dressing station can be table-mounted or rear-positioned to accommodate all existing machines.

Other capabilities include wheel dressing with single/double point or roller dresser and profile grinding.

More than 2000 Phoenix Contact rail-mounted reversing motor starters, with integrated Interbus facilities, are playing a key role in an innovative new fabrication system recently installed at one of the world's most modern shipyards. Located in Papenberg, Germany, the shipyard is operated by Meyer, whose main business is the building of large cruise ships and luxury liners. The new fabrication system is used in the manufacture of hull sections, which are traditionally formed from flat steel plates, with the aid of templates.

To replace this time-consuming and expensive method, Meyer uses a "hedgehog field" which is essentially an array of 2060 lifting elements arranged in the form of a grid covering a total area of 103 x 20m.

Each lifting element can be raised by up to 1m, with a precision of better than 1mm.

In use, one of the flat plates from which a hull section is to be formed is lowered onto the hedgehog field.

The individual lifting elements are then raised as necessary to produce the correct profile in the plate, using data supplied direct from a CAD system via an Ethernet link.

The plate deforms to the correct profile under its own weight, and frames are then welded to it so that this profile is maintained when it is lifted from the hedgehog field.

Although this fabrication technique is straightforward in principle, devising an economical control system presented a considerable challenge.

The standard approach would have been to use an ordinary reversing starter for each of the lifting elements, and to use parallel wiring to connect these starters to local programmable controllers with parallel wiring.

With 2060 lifting elements, however, the space required for the starters and the amount of wiring involved would have been prohibitive.

Instead, Meyer's engineers decided to use IB IL 400 ELR modules from the Phoenix Contact Inline range.

Each of these compact rail-mounting modules is, in effect, a solid-state reversing starter, with full motor protection facilities and a built-in Interbus interface.

Better still, the modules are designed to plug together, as far as possible, thereby greatly reducing the amount of wiring needed.

As an additional bonus, the modules also provide comprehensive real-time data about motor current and other operational parameters, available via the Interbus link.

This makes it possible for the control system to closely monitor the operation of each individual lifting element, without the need for additional equipment and wiring.

Providing control for the lifting element motors was, however, only part of the challenge.

The hedgehog field also incorporates 6180 sensors and other field devices which produce digital inputs for the control system.

Once again, conventional wiring would have been costly and difficult to install.

Phoenix Contact field-mounting Inline stations, each with 128 digital inputs, provided the solution, and helped to minimise the wiring requirements.

Dipl Ing Dieter de Boer, project leader for Janssen, the company which ran the hedgehog field project for Meyer, said: "Not only did adopting Phoenix Contact Inline solutions save money, it also helped us to minimise the overall project period.

The time needed for wiring was, of course, greatly reduced, but commissioning was also made much easier, as the plug-and-play design of the Inline modules virtually eliminated wiring errors".