INFLUENCING RUGBY RULE CHANGES
STEMMER IMAGING has published the program for the 2014 Machine Vision Technology Forum which will be held on the 22nd May 2014 at the Silverstone Wing Exhibition and Conference Centre - home of the British Grand Prix. This event features over 40
seminars plus machine vision training tasters from the European Imaging Academy, hands-on workshops with 2D and 3D vision systems and an exhibition by over 25 leading machine vision manufacturers. Anyone wishing to attend can
download the full program and register online at
www.stemmer-
imaging.co.uk/page/forum-uk.
www.stemmer-imaging.co.uk
Rockwell Automation has unveiled the 2014 tour dates of its regional Automation University. The tour will stop at Nottingham on 3rd June, Peterborough on 5th June, Aberdeen on 10th June and will end in Warrington on 12th June. Professionals in the fields of
management, engineering, maintenance, purchasing and IT from the areas are invited to take part to discuss current and emerging industry challenges with industry colleagues, technical specialists and business consultants. The tour will also feature multiple, live demos, seminars and industry sessions.
www.automationuniversity.eu
Yokogawa Electric Corporation has received the Frost & Sullivan 2014 Global Enabling Technology Leadership Award in the wireless solutions category. The Enabling Technology Leadership Award is presented to companies around the world that are best-in-class in a specific category. Frost & Sullivan selected Yokogawa
for this award because of the company’s efforts to develop ISA100 wireless solutions that enable high reliability, openness and interoperability. Frost & Sullivan evaluated companies based on whether they enabled the creation of new products, enhanced current products, enabled new applications, had potential for market acceptance, and had a breadth of access to technology.
www.yokogawa.com/eu
AUTOMATICA, held in Munich from 3rd-6th June, will present a separate exhibition area for professional service robotics for the first time. The service robotics section at
the show will be in Hall A4. The focus will be on marketable service robots and components, among others, from medicine, logistics, inspection and maintenance. The AUTOMATICA Forum in Hall B5 is dedicating a separate series of talks to the topic.
www.automatica-servicerobotics.com
6 APRIL 2014 | AUTOMATION
show that this new engagement sequence reduces initial scrum forces by 25%, making scrummaging safer and less prone to collapsing with time consuming restarts. With a view to establishing safer engagement
A
three year research project, completed by the Rugby Science Group at Bath University and funded by the
International Rugby Board (IRB), has contributed to recent changes in the law of scrummaging, with a new ‘crouch, bind, set’ engagement sequence. Data collected from cameras, player mounted pressure sensors and accelerometers, using National Instruments’ CompactRIO,
techniques, the IRB selected the Bath University research team to investigate the forces and motion of scrum mechanics in order to determine the causes of injuries suffered throughout the sport. As a result, the findings supported the decision to change the laws of scrummaging and create the new engagement sequence which has now been implemented across all national and international rugby competitions, including the Rugby World Cup and European Six Nations Championship. IRB chief executive Brett Gosper commented, “The
feedback that we have been getting from coaches and players around the world is that this is a positive change that enhances player welfare and scrum stability.” The full case study can be viewed at
www.connectingindustry.com/rugby.
www.ni.com
SURVIVING THE LIONS’ LAIR AT MAINTEC 2014
Alpine Components has been crowned King of the Jungle at this year’s Lions' Lair competition, which took place at Maintec at Birmingham’s NEC. The company was one of four who braved the Lair to pitch its most innovative products in a bid to be announced best at show. The expert panel of judges (lions) included Mark Yates from Bultch
UK, John Ford, a maintenance consultant and professor Andrew Starr of Cranfield University. Alpine Components won with the new Ultraprobe, which uses
ultrasound to economically and effectively detect leaks on equipment such as compressors. The easy to use kit is fast, typically taking just 30 seconds to detect a problem. Its performance impressed the judges, indeed Yates admitted his company uses the equipment. Alpine Components distributes the Ultraprobe in the UK on behalf of UE Systems. On winning the Lions’ Lair award,
Micky Jackson, sales engineer at Alpine Components, commented, “Ultraprobe is the front line tool to combat energy loss within the industry. I am thrilled to have won and receive this recognition. It was a fantastic experience to be involved in and a privilege to attend.” Lions’ Lair took place on the first day of Maintec 2014. The three day show included a wide array of exhibitors,
covering the whole maintenance spectrum, as well as a HAZEX area. In the show’s Business Strategy Forum, expert speakers addressed the key industry challenges. Maintec 2014 also included The Business Exchange programme featuring 20 content rich seminars delivered by some of the show’s most innovative exhibitors.
www.alpine-components.co.uk
ROBOT STEALS THE SHOW
Programming a brand new conventional robot to perform a pick and place sequence would typically require considerable time and even the services of an expert. To integrate a second robot - so the two would perform that task in tandem - takes the complexity to another level of magnitude. Yet for a team of apprentices at Honda of the UK
Manufacturing (HUM), all it took was a short training course to give them the necessary skills to set-up not one, but two Universal Robots to create their own version of Countdown’s Rachel Riley for the company’s Technical Festival. The HUM Technical Festival is an annual event, introduced to allow engineers throughout Honda in the UK and mainland Europe, to showcase and share technological discoveries and developments. The Swindon site has recently invested in a Universal
Robot from R. A. Rodriguez that is currently being assessed for a variety of applications. Supplied and supported in the UK by R. A. Rodriguez, the Universal
Robot provides six axes of movement and is quick to install. The Polyscope software and user interface is easy to learn - even in the hands of an operator with little or no programming experience, the robot can be set-up to do simple tasks very quickly. “We were delighted and proud to be invited to be part
of this prestigious in-house event,” commented Andrew Mason, Automation Systems, R. A. Rodriguez. “It gave HUM a great opportunity to demonstrate the significant production benefits of the Universal Robot concept.” Read the full story at
www.connectingindustry.com/hum.
www.rarodriguez.com
/AUTOMATION
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56