Author: Serkadis

The neue relay board for PCI Express by Addi-Data is fitted with 8 or 16 electromechanic relays with change-over contacts. This enables every relay to be wired as a make, break or change-over contact. The board has been developed for a use in harsh industrial environment. The contacts are equipped for switching voltages up to 125 VDC/125 VAC. The maximum switching current is 2 A with a maximum switching capacity of 30 W. Up to 16 digital opto-isolated inputs are available. Transorb diodes and EMI filters protect the inputs, which are optically isolated up to 1000 V, from high-frequency interference radiation. Numerous drivers are delivered with the board.

Pre-printed die-cut labels for CLP-GHS – CLP Labelling

The new pre-printed die-cut labels for CLP-GHS (Classification, Labelling and Packaging – Global Harmonized System) hazardous substances labelling are now available.

These labels are for use with the Markware Facility Identification Software v3.7.6 and the MiniMark Industrial Label Printer.

They are supplied with pre-printed red diamonds (colour reference PMS Warm Red), ready for you to print the required warning, compliant to the latest regulations.

Adande Refrigeration has chosen heavy duty Accuride telescopic slides to give movement to their innovative refrigerated drawers for commercial catering applications.

Drawers provide practical and intelligent use of space in the kitchen and give excellent access to the refrigerator contents. Adande’s drawers are unique; their patented design ensures any temperature from fridge to freezer is held at the desired level even when opened frequently in hot busy kitchens.

When Adande approached Accuride they had already been using telescopic slides for the drawers but were using screws to attach the slides to the drawers and chassis. This was awkward and time consuming. Although the drawer itself weighs only 8kg they can be loaded with an additional 45kg.

The telescopic slide needed to be robust enough to cope with the standard load rating plus user abuse. Easy drawer removal for cleaning was also crucial, requiring a slide with over-travel to fully clear the drawer void.

Accuride was able to design and manufacture a heavy duty slide, based on their 5321 profile, with over-extension and bayonet lancing fixing. The addition of bayonet fixing has reduced assembly time for Adande; an important factor in the selection of this solution. As well as the practical considerations, the slide also needed to offer the user a high quality experience; an area where both Adande and Accuride are very firmly in accord. Adande approved the runners after accelerated testing of drawer opening with operating loads.

Adande’s refrigerated drawer units can be found in many high end restaurants, as well as in the fast food sector, providing energy and space efficient refrigeration solutions.

MODERN in design INNOVATIVE and versatile RELIABLE performance. These are the results of decades of experience in designing and constructing compressors.

DRE – Efficient and Effective
Air end
The new generation air end has two asymmetrical profile rotors of equal diameter mounted on superior-quality long-life bearings from our own factories.
Low rotation speed minimizes noise by reducing vibrations, and increases the unit’s life by reducing mechanical stress on all moving parts.

Electric Motor
High performance Eff. 1 standard IP55 model positioned near air inlet to ensure maximum ventilation under all operating conditions.

Coupling
Coaxial model makes the motor-driven compressor unit more reliable, more efficient, more compact and less noisy. Flexible coupling transmits torque and absorbs any torque stress that may occur during start-up and shutdown. Special bell protects coupling, ensures correct alignment and accommodates any shaft misalignment.

Cooling system
Combined aluminum air-oil cooler has large surface area for heat transfer and effectively cools air and oil. Easily accessible for all maintenance operations. Special mountings facilitate assembly and dismantling. Horizontal cooler position improves unit’s balance and facilitates oil changes.

Ventilation
Prefilter with panel filter specially designed to provide maximum protection of internal working parts by filtering all incoming air.
6-pole motor-driven fan and low-noise, high-capacity, high-performance turbine fan.

Condition Monitoring with DSC Sensors

Proactive maintenance offers enormous potential for cost savings. Equipment and machines having this feature provide significant competitive advantages. Reliable function diagnostics is especially important in high-dynamic machines, used for example in the printing and paper industry and in cigarette manufacturing. With their Dynamic Sensor Control (DSC), sensor specialist and networking provider Balluff offers a completely new and cost-effective way to detect quality deviations in the manufacturing process in real time indirectly through the sensors. Here Balluff boasts not only a complete portfolio of inductive, capacitive and photoelectric sensors, but also the matching full range of connectivity and networking products.

With Dynamic Sensor Control the value of a machine design can be significantly increased, since the user profits from greater up-time, simpler startup and more efficient maintenance. This is made possible through DSC-compatible sensors, a special Balluff version of already proven standard binary sensors which can output not only the switching and an error signal, but also warning and trend messages. The increasing contamination of a photoelectric sensor, wandering of a target in the direction of the inductive sensor and much more, which indicates a status change in the machines, can be reported in real-time to the controller. The icing on the cake: A simple 3-conductor standard cable is all that is needed to connect and send the switching signals, error messages and warning, because the dynamic information is modulated over the standard binary signal. Multi-conductor cables are never needed. In addition, the sensors are even much less expensive than so-called “intelligent sensors” with similar functionality.

All that is required is a connection to a DSC sensor hub. This collects and condenses the information from up to eight DSC ports to one IO-Link port on the Master, which passes the signals on to the controller over the field bus.

DSC sensors with their warning and trend messages offer users not only greater added value compared with standard binary sensors, they are also a cost-effective way to fill the gap that used to exist between Desina sensors with their error message and the configurable and diagnostics-capable IO-Link sensors.

The shockproof digital load cell is based on a capacitive measurement principle where a non-contacting ceramic sensor is mounted inside the load cell body. As the load cell contains no moving parts and the sensor is not in contact with the load cell body, the load cell tolerates shocks, torsion, and very high overloads and sideloads. Therefore, the mechanical installation of the load cell can be done without expensive and complicated mounting kits and overload protection devices.

The electrical installation of the digital load cell is pure plug-and-play as the signal from the non-contacting sensor is directly converted, compensated and calibrated by a microprocessor to a digital load cell output in grams, kilograms, or Newton. Measurements and status codes are transmitted as RS485 data on a single wire coaxial cable (RG-58) which may be up to 100 meters long.

Compression load cells from Eilersen Electric
IP68, ATEX, OIML

-Robust technology and design
-High tolerance of up to 1.000 % overload
-Plug-and-play installation
-High accuracy, High resolution
-Hermetically sealed to IP68
-Interfaces: RS485, Profibus DP, DeviceNet, 4-20 mA, 0-10 V
-Digital filters
-ATEX certified
-3 years warranty
-Patented worldwide

The technology and mechanical design of the Eilersen load cells is covered worldwide by a number of patents.

We were among those who were disappointed that EA — a company that has tried to suggest it had learned that DRM was bad — decided to move forward with a required internet connection on Command & Conquer 4, even after many people had complained last summer, when such plans were leaked.

However, now it appears that it’s even pissing off EA employees. Slashdot points out that the editor of EA.com got really frustrated over the game kicking him out because his DSL was flakey:

“Booted twice — and progress lost — on my single-player C&C4 game because my DSL connection blinked. DRM fail. We need new solutions.”

He later warned people to beware if their connection wasn’t solid:

“Well. I’ve tried to be open-minded. But my ‘net connection is finicky — and the constant disruption of my C&C4 SP game makes this unplayable. The story is fun, the gameplay is interesting and different at least — but if you suffer from shaky/unreliable DSL — you’ve been warned.”

Perhaps next time EA just focuses on giving people a reason to buy, rather than treating them like they’re criminals-to-be?

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A bunch of folks have sent over the recent NY Times article about the “Mardis Gras Indians” — a group of folks in New Orleans who create elaborate costumes that they wear to a few events each year (with Mardis Gras being a big one, obviously). With the costumes being so elaborate, they’re often photographed, and the Indians are so pissed off that these photographs are then sold that they’re trying to claim copyright over their costumes, in order to threaten any photographer who does anything with such a photograph.

As the article notes, this is a pretty questionable copyright claim. As we’ve discussed at length, there is no copyright protection on clothing, but the lawyer who’s been pushing this copyright plan is claiming that these outfits aren’t really clothing, but sculptures — which can be covered by copyright.

Of course, the whole thing is pretty ridiculous. These costumes are designed to be worn in public and shown off. At some point you have to simply expect people to photograph them. The costumes were created to be noticed, and it’s pretty obnoxious to then get upset that they actually did get noticed. Furthermore, let’s look at this from the perspective of what copyright law is here for: it’s to create an incentive to create. Being able to copyright these outfits doesn’t change the incentives to create. Already there are strong cultural and community incentives for this group of folks to create these outfits (apparently, each year they create a new one). What becomes clear in reading the article is that they’re not using copyright law as an incentive, but simply as a way to prevent others from doing things with the photographs. This seems to go against the very purpose of copyright law.

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Tom Kintop was the first of a few of you to send in the news that LEGO, makers of the plastic bricks — and rather well known for its overly aggressive intellectual property enforcement attempts, which often get shot down — has sued a small non-profit organization in Minneapolis called Project Legos, where the Legos stands for Leadership, Empowerment, Growth, Opportunity, Sustainability. While both are targeted at children, it’s hard to see that the two compete in any way in the same “market.” It’s difficult to see how there’s any confusion here, or how it does LEGO any good suing a small charitable organization. They should send over some LEGO bricks and apologize.

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Filed under: Car Buying, Wagon, Etc., Videos, BMW, Humor

If this isn’t the very best used car ad ever, it is certainly up there – definitely the most inspired we have seen in a very long time.

Young Casey wants to move this 1994 BMW 530i Touring, and he’s using a bit of Michael Ceraesque geekiness to do it. He’s totally honest about its 194,218 miles, leaky sunroof and broken cigarette lighter, as well as its Ultimate Power and Extreme Sound. Except for that rear seat speaker. Follow the jump for a beautiful dose of entertainment. We do one question for Casey, though: um, what’s that sign in the trunk about? Hat tip to Jon!

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Best used car classified ad ever?

Video: Best used car classified ad ever? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Article Tags: Alan Siddons, CO2 Level, Headline Story, Reply To Article, Updated

A couple of days ago we received a Physorg.com article via Alan Siddons, Even soil feels the heat: Soils release more carbon dioxide as globe warms, [LINK], this was a summary article for a report that appeared in Nature (Bond-Lamberty and Thomson, 2010. Temperature-associated increases in the global soil respiration record, Nature March 25, 2009).

Alan included the following comments.

More evidence that a climbing CO2 rate is the result of warming, not the cause. There are two other ramifications as I see it.

2. This latest natural emission estimate shows that previous source/sink models have been inadequate, as usual. – AS

The following then appeared in the comments section of CR by Ben Bond-Lamberty and Allison Thompson, the authors of the said article.

Updated below from Western Institute for Study of the Environment Commentary

Read in full with comments »   

Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Europe

Spring is in the air, and if any car shouts “Spring!” the loudest it’s a Se7en. If you happen to be in the unfortunate position of not knowing what makes a Se7en, they are modern day interpretations of the legendary Lotus 7. Only because of a long fought, still-running legal battle, they’re called Se7ens. Featuring no roof, no doors and practically no weight, there’s almost nothing between you and the road ahead. Many people take to describing Se7ens as four-wheeled motorcycles, a definition we can’t argue with.

Speaking of Se7ens, Holland-based manufacturer Donkervoort has just released their newest, the D8 235 E. Donkervoot is probably best known to Autoblog readers for the hardcore, closed coupe D8 GT. A stud of a performance monster, no doubt, though we must say that enclosing any Se7en’s cockpit is kinda not the point. But hey, different folks, strokes, etc. Thankfully, Donkervoort also sells open top cars, including the new D8 235 E.

The big news vis-a-vis the D8 235 E is that power is up. By reworking the intake and exhaust, and remapping the ECU the Audi-sourced 1.8-liter inline-four now makes 235 horsepower, up from 210 hp. If that doesn’t sound like much, remember that the D8 weighs around 1,300 pounds. Having driven a number of Se7ens in the 125-hp neighborhood that car crest 60 mph in five seconds flat and we can tell you that 235 hp is a much more than adequate amount of power. But hey, need more? Donkervoort will happily sell you a 270-hp version called the D8 270 RS.

[Source: Donkervoort]

Dutch Delight: Donkervoort launches D8 235 E originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 19:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: Hennessey V700 is crazy, fast [w/video]

Silly. Insane. Brutal. Pick the descriptor and they all fail to describe the lunacy of Hennessey’s 700+ hp Cadillac CTS-V.

Five days to the Ford Focus RS500

500 is an interesting number and Ford’s released a teaser video of the Focus RS500 a few days ahead of its official release. But what is it?

Spy Shots: Ferrari 599 GTO spotted again, still looks awesome

With a leaked ordering guide and a never-ending string of spy shots, the debut of the Ferrari 599 GTO is obviously just a few weeks away.

Also of interest:

• Hyundai releases first teaser shot of the Sonata hybrid ahead of NY debut
• Video: Hennessey Venom GT spied out in the open
• Lewis Hamilton busted for doing burnouts in public?
• Bloomberg survey says Americans turning away from Toyota, liking Ford
• Speed Channel to bring “My car is better than yours” internet forum wars to the tube [w/video]

Browse our archive of Daily U-Turn posts or subscribe to the RSS feed

Daily U-Turn: What you missed on 3.26.10 originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 19:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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For a long time, we’ve noted that while class action lawsuits do serve a useful purpose, it seems like all too often they’re abused. Quite frequently, we see the only “class” that really benefits from such lawsuits are the lawyers who file the lawsuit, who end up taking the bulk of any “settlement.” In some cases, it’s even worse — where not only do lawyers get the bulk of the settlement, the rest of the class actually gets pushed into buying more products from the company that was sued. Such class action lawsuits not only make the lawyers richer, they actually act as marketing for the company that was sued. One of the worst such cases we can remember involved Netflix, which “settled” a class action lawsuit by giving current customers a “free” one-month upgrade — but if you didn’t manually downgrade your account, they started charging you the higher price the following month. That’s not a “settlement” so much as a way to get a bunch of customers to upgrade. If I remember correctly, that settlement was actually thrown out.

Eric Goldman points us to an interesting profile of Ted Frank, a lawyer who is focusing on trying to stop such bad class action lawsuits and settlements by objecting to the settlements when they seem so far over the line. While, as the article notes, there have been a bunch of “professional settlment objectors” in the past, most have been doing it for money (getting some of the attorney’s fees). Frank, however, hasn’t taken attorney fees (though he says it’s a possibility in the future), and is funded by a charity:

“The whole reason I started this is because there is a high probability of district courts rubber-stamping settlements,” Frank says. “I think these are very bad settlements that the [9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals] will … provide guidance for when judges should or shouldn’t approve settlements.”

Again, the concept of a class action lawsuit isn’t bad, but it’s definitely been widely abused — so it’s nice to see someone pushing back from within to try to stop the worst abuses.

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Filed under: Hatchback, Hyundai, India

While the Tata Nano isn’t sold here in the U.S., the $2,500 uber-economy car, along with its acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover, has put Tata Motors on the international map. The reason for the Nano’s celebrity has everything to do with its ridiculously cheap price tag, which gives many buyers in India a four-wheeled vehicle they can actually afford. But the Nano also gives the competition a low-ball target to shoot for, and rumor has it that Hyundai has the little Tata in its crosshairs.

Indian Autos Blog quotes unnamed sources within Hyundai’s India operations saying that the Korean automaker is working on a Nano-sized microcar that could carry a two lakh rupees ($4,400 in U.S. dollars) price tag. The report goes on to say that the low-cost, sub-i10 ride, reportedly called the H800 project, is powered by an 800cc petrol engine and priced to compete withe the SAIC microcar, the Suzuki Alto and the Nano. Further, the site claims that Hyundai will have a working prototype ready for real-world testing by the middle of 2010.

Since Hyundai hasn’t officially announced the existence of the H800, we don’t know how realistic looking IAB’s rendering really is. But we can tell you that the ice-blue rendering is a whole lot more attractive to our eyes than just about anything else in the sub-$5,000 price range.

[Source: Indian Autos Blog]

Rendered Speculation: Hyundai’s Tata Nano competitor cometh originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 18:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing, Crossover, Chevrolet, GM, GMC, Canada

Continued strong demand for General Motors‘ new Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain has triggered the automaker to add extra production capacity for the crossovers at the its Oshawa, Ontario assembly plant. As you may recall, last year, GM added an extra shift of production at the Ingersoll plant that has always built the Equinox, but apparently that still isn’t enough bandwidth. Thus, the body shop at Ingersoll will be expanded over the next several months to provide the extra stamping capacity needed to supply Oshawa. The bodyshells will then be shipped 120 miles east to Oshawa where a third shift will build the Equinox alongside the Impala.

With the new production capacity, all laid off employees at Ingersoll will be back at work and 70 workers will be hired. The Oshawa ramp-up will lead to the recall of 600 employees there, many of whom lost their jobs when full-size pickup truck production ended there last year. Production of the Equinox in Oshawa will start this fall.

Photos copyright (C)2009 John Neff / Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading General Motors adding Chevrolet Equinox production at Oshawa, move boosts GMC Terrain too

General Motors adding Chevrolet Equinox production at Oshawa, move boosts GMC Terrain too originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 18:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Illustrator Gary Kelley said it well when he said that this book about Eleanor Roosevelt, “In this age of celebrities and politicians in the headlines for all the wrong reasons, [is] not only refreshing but essential”.  This book about Eleanor Roosevelt’s life is not only a biography but a book of life lessons and things Eleanor Roosevelt strongly believed in.  Throughout the story of her life told in this book there are many inspiring quotes from her about life, being a good person, and believing in oneself.  Some examples of quotes throughout the book include “You must do the things we cannot do” (19), “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights” (34), “I have never felt that anything really mattered but knowing that you stood for the things in which you believed and had done the very best you could” (37), and “We must cherish and honor the word ‘free’” (back cover).  I felt that this book not only talked about Eleanor Roosevelt’s life but had another purpose in helping students to understand how important it is to appreciate freedom and the idea of being a citizen in this country.I also liked that the book had a timeline of important dates in Eleanor’s life for student’s to look at.

Curriculum Connections

This book can be used in the classroom during talk of the first world war as well as to show Eleanor Roosevelt’s role in history as a strong woman.  Specifically, this book could be used with SOL USII.5 while students are studying WWI and discussing Franklin Roosevelt.

Additional Resources

This website had a lot of good ideas for ways to incorporate Eleanor Roosevelt activities into the classroom, such as drawing pictures of her or findings pictures of her helping people and hanging them up in the classroom to remind students that being a good citizen is important.

I felt the activity on this page entitled “Special Activities for Children” could be a great way for older students in elementary school classrooms to write about Eleanor Roosevelt with some friendly competition involved as well. This would encourage them to write well as well as learn more about this important figure.

Lastly, students can find out more interesting facts about Eleanor Roosevelt on this facts page.

 General Information

Book:  Eleanor Roosevelt: Quiet No More.  The Life of Eleanor Roosevelt

Author:  Doreen Rappaport

Illustrator:  Gary Kelley

Publisher:  Disney Hyperion Books

Publication Date:  2009

Pages:  37

Grade Range:  Grades 3-5

ISBN:  978-0-7868-5141-6