New Universal Leak Detector Eliminates Part Volume Concerns

Posted by: gerald

(SKOKIE,IllinoisUSA– February 12, 2013) Now, one leak tester from InterTech does the job of many specialized instruments and is ideal for quality control in the lab: the new M1075-121y Universal Audit Tester. The difference between this test instrument and others in the industry is a design breakthrough that eliminates the need for part volume matching as required in pressure decay methods

“This is a transformative development in leak testing applications that require quick changeover and flexibility,” said InterTech President, Mr. Jacques Hoffmann. “It changes fundamental issues. We eliminate the need for specialized leak testing instruments in the lab. Now, the same instrument can be used for a large engine casting or a small solenoid – just change the part and go.”

Until development of the M1075-121y Universal Audit Tester, “small” parts required instruments with a “small” built-in reservoir, and “large” parts had to be tested on different instruments with correspondingly bigger reservoirs.

Specialized instruments are still best where application speed is paramount, according to Mr. Hoffmann, but he points out that as the instrument’s name suggests (Universal Audit Tester), this new instrument is for labs and quality engineers.

“Whether it is incoming inspection, product development or supplier development, this is how to control costs and stay flexible, and more elegant compared to custom instrumentation dictated by part size or material properties,” said Mr. Hoffmann. “Now, with one leak test instrument from InterTech, quality engineers have more flexibility than they’ve ever had.”

Leak gaging with the M1075-121y covers a much wider range than other models. It handles an amazing array of volumes from 5 to 800 sccm. A bar code scanner interface, simplified calibration and touch screen menus make operation easy and intuitive.

Communication Connection:

USB Ports to upload/download data files and program restore/backup
RS-232 Com1 Port – data and control
RS-232 Com2 Port – serial port available for additional capabilities or RS485 option
EthernetPortto connect with factory/host network (TCP/IP)
Embedded web page server for remote viewing of instrument data and files
User I/O Connection: 25-Pin male userI/OPort
Inputs: Start, Reset, Part Select
Outputs: In Test, Reject
Optional – additional (2) 25-Pin female user I/O connectors (machine/fixture controls)

Password protection is standard and users can select language settings from English, German, French, Spanish, Korean and Chinese. All functions are menu driven and up to 99 different test programs may be selected.

The leak detector may operate as a standalone instrument or interface with a PLC or PC by various methods including Ethernet control (IP/TCP).

12
FEB

News & Press

New Universal Leak Detector, specialized instruments, Universal Audit Tester

Reshoring, Jobs and Quality

Posted by: gerald

Jobs are coming back through “reshoring.” At least that is what we heard in a speech last May when President Barack Obama congratulated General Electric and Caterpillar for bringing jobs back to the United States. I suspect we will continue to hear this particular theme for a while.

Certainly, there are solid examples of reshoring. Not long ago, ASSEMBLY magazine gave us an in-depth look at the resurgence of jobs at Appliance Park, where GE now makes appliances that had been produced in China. It is hard to ignore the scale of this development and we can all appreciate the impact.

A report from the Boston Consulting Group indicates that 37 percent of big manufacturers (sales of $1 billion or more) are serious about shifting production back to the theUnited States. Much of the reasoning has been that rising costs in energy and offshore wages make homeland production more economically feasible.

Even as production returns home, we know China will continue to grow. So will South America, Europe and hopefully all our trading partners. We can applaud companies that bring jobs to people wherever they live. Since many of us at InterTech live in the United States (where the company was founded 40 years ago), we welcome the opportunity to work directly with manufacturers here.

As insourcing continues, I envision even more collaboration between local testing specialists and manufacturing engineers that share the same geography. It just makes sense as a way to improve and deliver smarter, more cost-effective manufacturing technology for test-centric assembly.

Take FDA regulations, for instance. It is easy to understand local expertise is best for that. If nothing else, go to your local leak testing expert to establish the correct physical measurements based on known standards. The importance of well-defined values for standardized leak measurement cannot be overstated, regardless of industry or geography.

The important thing is that our manufacturers adjust to new logistics that may arise from reshoring. Local expertise helps ensure quality does not suffer, and when it comes to leaking testing, the next challenge is to set up realistic and cost-effective quality control and test requirements for homeland manufacturing. It comes down to the fact that products made in Tennessee still have to compete with those made in Taiwan.

Let’s not just bring back jobs; let’s boost quality to ensure they stay in places likeAppliancePark.

What do you think? What do you think manufacturers should watch out for when bringing production back to the United States? Has your company recently reshored assembly? Is it planning to? What should engineers be thinking about before and after reshoring?

11
FEB

News & Press

cost-effective manufacturing technology, leak testing expert, Reshoring, test-centric assembly

Testing Proportional Valves for Brakes

Posted by: InterTech

The proportioning valve reduces the pressure to the rear brakes. Regardless of what type of brakes a car has, the rear brakes require less force than the front brakes.

The amount of brake force that can be applied to a wheel without locking it depends on the amount of weight on the wheel. More weight means more brake force can be applied.If you have ever slammed on your brakes, you know that an abrupt stop makes your car lean forward. The front gets lower and the back gets higher. This is because a lot of weight is transferred to the front of the car when you stop. Also, most cars have more weight over the front wheels to start with because that is where the engine is located.

If equal braking force were applied at all four wheels during a stop, the rear wheels would lock up before the front wheels. The proportioning valve only lets a certain portion of the pressure through to the rear wheels so that the front wheels apply more braking force. For example, if the proportioning valve were set to 70 percent and the brake pressure were 1,000 pounds per square inch (psi) for the front brakes, the rear brakes would get 700 psi.

To ensure that the Proportional Valves you manufacture are capable of handling pressures such as above consistently, test your parts with the InterTech patented Mass Flow technology based leak and functional testing systems. Our robust and efficient systems handle varied pressure ranges and test settings, customised completely to suit your production and testing requirements.

proportional valves for brakes testing solution

Testing solutions for proportional valves

A few features of the testing systems are;

Low pressure leak test
Differential valve shuttle test
High pressure leak test
Proportional valve output test
Bypass valve test
Input / output functional test

The InterTech functional test system automatically tests, gages, marks and sorts different proportional valves at 800 pph.

Follow the InterTech India blog for more solutions on leak and functional testing. For sales enquiries, you may contact us at;

Mobile: +91 994 032 0718

eMail: ajay@intertechdevelopment.com

Land phone: +91 44 4211 2525

Sales & Support: Chennai, India

Source: Howstuffworks.com / Intertechdevelopment.com

5
FEB

India

braking system, chennai, India, InterTech Development Company, mass flow, proportional valve

Functional Testing Solutions For Brake Calipers

Posted by: InterTech

The brakes are the most important safety feature of any vehicle, and the calipers are one of the most important components of the braking system. They apply the force necessary to slow and stop the vehicle. Producing quality calipers that stand the test of time, wear & tear and is essential to safe operation. If the calipers aren’t working, the car will just keep on going—even when one doesn’t want it to.

History

Disc brakes came on the commercial vehicle market in the 1950s. They represented an improvement over older drum brakes, which were prone to overheating and deteriorating performance over a short amount of time. Nearly all cars and trucks known have front-end disc brakes; some less expensive models still use drum brakes on the rear axle.

The standard brake caliper contains metal plates on both the outside and inside face of the rotor. The plates are faced with brake pads, which are the point of contact between the calipers and the rotors. When you depress the brake pedal, brake fluid flows through a master cylinder, which is linked to a piston housed within the calipers. The piston presses against the pads and forces them against the rotors. The action of friction slows down the rotor and the wheel.

Floating and Fixed

Floating calipers have their hydraulic pistons on the inboard side of the rotor; they move in and out as the brake pedal is depressed. Fixed calipers have their pistons set up on both sides of the rotor and apply pressure directly from both sides, allowing them smoother operation and more braking power; the floaters, however, are less tolerant of any defects or warping of the rotors.

Construction

Brake calipers can be one or two pieces and contain pistons or cylinders made of aluminum or steel. Two-piece designs are less expensive to manufacture, but have some disadvantages, which includes flex, less present in one-piece designs. Brake calipers hold the brake pads and have channels that accept the hydraulic brake fluid that activates the piston to push the brake pad against the rotor.

Materials

Most brake calipers consist of aluminum, as aluminum is very strong, but a light material that can handle the constant wear that exists in the braking system. Minimizing weight is crucial to the design of any vehicle and using forged or cast aluminum brake calipers helps accomplish this goal. Sometimes magnesium alloy is used, but it is expensive and often reserved for race cars. The brake rotors are made of a harder metal, as the friction against the rotor face during braking can bend or warp lighter metals.

The InterTech Solution for Testing Brake Calipers

Here’s one example of a turnkey system designed and built by InterTech Development Company in the USA. Do bear in mind that this technology is now available in India to best ensure that your products are tested with a robust and reliable system while ensuring that your parts meet the standard and quality requirements of your Customers.

brake-caliper-testing-system-test-stand

Features

Components are leak tested to a 3 sccm. limit at 5 psig.

Piston retraction is gaged within a 0.010˝ window after venting down from 200 psig.

An InterTech M-1075 Mass Flow Leak Detector controls the leak test cycle.

Benefits

Reliability: System operates in a fail-safe mode with self-check features.

SPC Capabilities: Test results may be transmitted via RS232 interface or stored on disk.

Measurement Capabilities: Test R&R meets QS9000 requirements.

The Brake Caliper Functional Test Cell automatically tests and marks r.h. and l.h. calipers at a rate of 211 pph.