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answers. Something went “wrong” - was it the test article or was it the test? What can you trust? This immediately leads to scrutiny of the testing process, and undoubtedly, instrumentation calibration is on that checklist of scrutiny. In these situations, time and money are saved with a confident and certain response. For calibration, confidence is born from adherence to international standards, repeatable and reliable calibration processes, as well as quick and reliable access to the data or documentation (usually realised with a robust calibration database). A response that combines these things quickly “checks the box” for the calibration question. Performing regular recalibrations can help you to
avoid a time- and labour-intensive review. With an in-house calibration system, you have the ability to control your calibration process from start to finish. Perhaps you have a critical test to perform on a satellite prior to launch. In this case, you may want to calibrate both before and after your test to ensure the accuracy of your invaluable data set. Perhaps you have taken data that will be used in legal proceedings where the measurement must be correct rather than just suitable output. Being able to demonstrate that your equipment has been calibrated per ISO 17025 offers a significant payback in both resource cost and peace of mind. The Modal Shop and PCB Piezotronics are here to help you maintain your instrumentation, so you can focus on your main priority: growing your business.
When damage occurred to the shaker, repairs were made and the design updated. An ongoing investment was made in PhD-level engineering and subsequent redesigns to ensure an optimised calibration shaker. As of today, the Air Bearing Shakers in PCB Piezotronics’ production lines have performed over a million calibrations. Only once the shaker had been fully vetted did
Traditional vs modern air bearing shaker
The Modal Shop begin to make the 9155 Accelerometer Calibration Workstation and Air Bearing Shaker commercially available. Today, 9155 Systems are installed on six continents running calibrations in private facilities, major corporations, research institutions, and national standards laboratories. PCB couples its systems with a commitment to Total Customer Satisfaction. It is the company’s ongoing mission to simplify people’s lives with smart sensing solutions.
required by the PCB production line. At this point, the investment was made to internally develop PCB’s own calibration-grade air bearing shaker, optimised for both the highest precision and production line ease-of-use, rather than to purchase commercially available flexure or air bearing shakers. The resulting Air Bearing Shaker Model
K394B31 is now at the heart of vibration calibration systems from The Modal Shop, offering a broad frequency range of 5Hz to 20kHz. The shaker minimises transverse bending and rocking motions as compared to traditional flexure-based shakers, improving uncertainty with the high stiffness, frictionless support in the transverse directions. A Lorentz force coil simplifies transducer mounting by eliminating the use of rubber bands. In traditional air bearing shakers, the use of rubber bands is equivalent to an experiment yielding varied results each time the shaker is adjusted, making truly repeatable production-line tests a challenge. The K394B31 Air Bearing Shaker simplifies test setup and allows for confidence in the resulting measurements, making it ideal for calibration applications ranging from the high volume production environment of a sensor manufacturer to a much smaller research and development lab.
relIabIlITy Is Key
In the iterative development process of The Modal Shop’s Air Bearing Shaker, PCB used the shaker in its world-leading, high volume accelerometer production line to evaluate both reliability and ease-of-use. As the shakers were used across multiple shifts every day, PCB were able to make improvements based on real-time, real-world input.
The ImporTance of precIsIon In calIbraTIon
At the core, PCB Piezotronics is a sensor company focused on delivering the very best accelerometers, pressure sensors, and microphones available. With a commitment to continual improvement, twenty years ago PCB evaluated the available calibration shakers on the market. It was determined that while these shakers offered adequate precision in calibration, they did not offer the usability and reliability that was
Instrumentation Monthly February 2019
Precision Calibration Workstation Model 9155
sysTem UsabIlITy maKes calIbraTIon easIer
While a reliable product ensures its longevity as part of your process, usability makes it a tool rather than a hindrance. From software designed to simplify calibrations axis after axis, to a typical cycle time of one minute, the 9155 Calibration System is an ideal calibration solution. With high-powered users of PCB’s own system in its facilities across the globe, the company has been able to maintain a high standard of user friendly functionality with regular feedback from technicians and engineers. This, coupled with the vetting by use in our high - volume production facilities, allows us to deliver a proven system and the best possible user experience to you. With system capabilities ranging from laser
primary to low frequency options, The Modal Shop and PCB Piezotronics are here as your partner to create a reliable, repeatable, controlled calibration process. The experts from the locally-based PCB Piezotronics UK Team are available to assist with all of your sensor (
pcb.com) and calibration system (
modalshop.com/calibration) needs. Contact the company today –
uk@pcb.com / 01462 429710.
The Modal Shop PCB Piezotronics
www.modalshop.com
www.pcb.com
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