Feature Test systems Lab invests in auto hardness testing
Maintaining its policy of continuous investment in technology and facilities, Keighley Laboratories has added a Zwick Roell ZHV-10 automatic micro and macro hardness tester to its Test House resources
The new equipment was supplied by Indentec of
Stourbridge, part of Zwick Roell AG and a worldwide centre of excellence for hardness testing machines
F
eaturing fully automatic Vickers indentation measurement and dedicated hardness testing soft- ware, the new equipment will bring about measurable improvements in accuracy, repeatability and produc- tivity, to the benefit of the company’s internal Heat Treatment division and clients of its Technical Services department. Used for the precise mea- surement of surface hardness and case depth of metallic materials, with test loads between 100g and 10kg, it will introduce considerable time savings over previously manual routines, free- ing up highly skilled operators for other analytical duties.
The new equipment was supplied by Indentec of Stourbridge, part of Zwick Roell AG and a worldwide centre of excellence for hardness test- ing machines, which has a business relationship with Keighley Labs that dates back many years. A UKAS accredited calibration laboratory, Indentec has been additionally con- tracted to service and recalibrate this and other hardness testing equipment on a long term basis, which will be carried out at the West Yorkshire site by trained UK-based engineers to ISO 6508-2 and ASTM E384 standards. Such is the sizeable footprint of the new hardness tester, Keighley Labs also took the opportunity to enlarge its exist- ing Test House microscope room, creat- ing a spacious new optical suite. This also houses the advanced zoom stereo metallurgical microscope acquired pre- viously and allows for the installation of further state-of-the-art equipment. Part of Keighley Labs’ comprehen- sive mechanical testing and metallog- raphy services, the hardness of a material is determined by its resis- tance to indentation by a hardened ball or diamond indenter, then mea- suring the size of the permanent impression produced. With loads,
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Keighley Laboratories T: 01535 664211
keighleylabs.co.uk Enter 208
pressures and temperatures constantly increasing in modern machinery, metallic parts are subject to increas- ingly arduous operating conditions and hardness testing is often the best way of establishing that components will survive such stresses, becoming a critical part of the quality control process. Keighley Labs employs this physical testing method as quality assurance for its in-house Heat Treatment division, handling up to a dozen test samples daily, as well as undertaking case depth and surface hardness evaluation of materials and components for external clients. Vickers testing, using a pyramid- shaped diamond indenter, is suitable for all types of materials and surface treatments and Keighley Labs’ new Zwick Roell ZHV-10 machine is equipped for micro and macro Vickers testing to ISO 6507, although it can be fitted with an alternative Knoop indenter. It features a built-in measur- ing microscope with four objective lenses, a motorised turret with 1.3 megapixel USB camera, an automatic motorised XY table with 150 x 50mm travel, for precise positioning of sam- ples, with automatic focus providing an additional motorised Z axis for bringing the test surface into sharp res- olution without operator involvement. It also includes a high definition 24in LCD monitor, a microprocessor run- ning Windows XP, flatbed scanner and Indentec ZHµ HD automatic indenta- tion software, with sample scanning facility and a report generator for out-
putting data to spreadsheet programs, enabling further statistical analysis. Employing this configuration, Keighley Labs’ technicians can either view and measure test impressions manually, by focusing with the joy- stick and clicking on indentations with the mouse, or allow the machine itself to intelligently follow predefined patterns, indent the sample, then mea- sure and generate test results, all entirely automatically. They can also set up templates of indentation points, for performing hardness tests on rou- tine samples, and program straight line and transverse patterns for automating case hardness routines and testing welded seams.
Apart from freeing up technicians for other tasks, this ‘click and walk away’ functionality ensures precise sample positioning and imaging, enhanced accuracy, an extremely high level of repeatability and overall increased productivity, reducing stan- dard testing procedures from more than an hour manually, to less than 20 minutes automatically. It also elimi- nates operator-related errors caused by eye strain, fatigue and inevitable inconsistencies, which can be a common problem in microhardness testing especially.
“The time savings made possible by this automatic hardness tester will enable us to offer faster turnaround times and deliver even more accurate, repeatable and reproducible data,” says Keighley Labs’ Test House manager, Matthew Mellor.”
Automated testers save techicians time F
luke Networks has released OneTouch AT Network Assistant, a new tool for network technicians that automates troubleshooting of the most common end-user issues in about a minute, greatly reducing the time it takes to close network trouble tickets and ensure end-user satisfaction. Traditionally, network technicians spend more than an hour using a variety of tools such as protocol analysers, PC utilities, and cable and network testers to solve network
connectivity and performance issues, which provide limited, non-consolidated information. The OneTouch AT tester combines that functionality into a customisable, handheld tool with a one-button auto test feature that offers users a quick way to troubleshoot end-user issues that are said to generally take up 25 per cent of a network technician’s workday to resolve. Fluke Networks’ vice president of the enterprise network analysis business, Gary Ger, says: “Connectivity and performance problems can hide in a variety of places throughout the network, and today’s frontline technician cannot be an expert in them all. When a trouble ticket is submitted, most organisations deploy a technician to fix the problem, but many do not have standardised testing processes, and today’s tools can be complex and time consuming. The automated OneTouch AT was specifically designed to address these challenges, saving an organisation, on average, approximately one man-week of troubleshooting each month.” Fluke Networks
T: 020 79420721
www.FlukeNetworks.com
Enter 209 JUNE 2012 Automation
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