Eco-friendly servo presses
PRODUCT REVIEWS
“ With a global focus on environmental protection and reduction in energy consumption , our mission is to produce a world-class servo press , utilising the latest technology to provide our customers with sophisticated , energy-saving and intelligent products . SEYI servo presses feature a Direct Drive transmission and a rigid frame design to reduce total clearance ,” press specialist , SEYI , told ISMR .
“ All SEYI servo motors are designed and manufactured specifically for press-forming applications , using low revolution speed to produce extremely high levels of torque . These retain maximum efficiency with the pinion shaft integrated into the motor to provide a true Direct Drive transmission . Direct Drive servo technology can reduce energy consumption by up to 50 % when compared to a traditional mechanical press , and up to 75 % when compared to a hydraulic press ,” it added .
SEYI Direct Drive servo presses perform stamping applications such as drawing ; blanking ; progression ; coining etc . all on one servo press . The Taiwanese manufacturer supplies medium and large servo presses designed for high precision and performance , environmental sustainability and energy efficiency .
“ By combining the advantages of a hydraulic press ’ s fully programmable slide stroke with mechanical press speeds , manufacturers can control tonnage and speed at any point in the stroke . This makes it possible to form more complicated geometric parts , while dwell profiles can be programmed to eliminate spring-back in hightensile materials and produce higher quality parts ,” SEYI explained .
Servo application solutions , automated peripheral integration solutions and smart stamping management systems are the three main pillars of SEYI ’ s development
strategy . In addition to actively marketing its servo presses , SEYI has developed solutions such as intelligent stamping production lines and the seamless integration of automated peripheral systems . At the same time , it is embracing the challenges of Industry 4.0 in the manufacturing industry . n
Faster scanning for dual-material assemblies
The Industrial Metrology Business Unit of Nikon Corporation has introduced a new reconstruction algorithm allowing scanning times to be reduced typically ten-fold . Dual . Material CT software , as its name implies , achieves this dramatic increase in efficiency on assemblies featuring two materials of different densities .
“ It significantly improves the ability to distinguish between the two materials in the voxel ( 3D pixel ) image reconstructed from 2D X-rays taken as the component rotates in the chamber of a Nikon X-ray CT machine ,” outlined the metrology specialist .
The benefits of X-ray CT for non-destructive inspection and measurement of both the interior and exterior of components are well known . Traditionally , however , CT scanning of assemblies made from two materials ( such as metal and plastic ), which is common in the industry , can be unsuited to quality control ( QC ) in a production environment .
This is because long scan times are required to generate datasets that are sufficiently clear to be processed , which is contrary to the requirements of real-time inspection . Alternatively , if scanning speed is raised , manual post-processing by highly skilled operators is needed to remove artefacts that appear in the images to achieve accurate results . Again , this slows the procedure and introduces variability due to human intervention .
“ Depending on the size and complexity of the component , pre-launch trials demonstrated that Dual . Material CT performed an order of magnitude faster on a typical metal and plastic connector , making production line integration on the shop floor a possibility alongside sample inspection . Core applications will be found in factories producing over-moulded connectors , for example , or medical assemblies such as inhalers or adrenaline pens . Dual . Material CT is also likely to find uses in non-industrial environments , such as research ,” explained Nikon Metrology .
During each image reconstruction , the software engine reduces the degree to which streak artefacts , caused by the higherdensity material , obscure the lower-density areas . Typical systems on the market use reconstruction engines that assume the X-rays are monochromatic , when in fact they are polychromatic . This means they
must use X-ray filtration , which lengthens exposures and slows image capture . Nikon ’ s reconstruction engine overcomes the effects of a polychromatic X-ray beam by adjusting the attenuation for the different material combinations in dual-material assemblies , greatly improving the contrast-to-noise ratio . Consequently , the X-ray source with a Dual . Material CT scan does not require filtration , so the detector can be used at much shorter exposures , resulting in faster frame rates and scan times .
“ As it is automated , reconstruction by Dual . Material CT is highly repeatable from component to component and does not require advanced knowledge of scanning techniques when inspecting assemblies comprising two materials of different densities . QC productivity is raised by enabling better visualisation and more accurate definition of defects ( on the surface or inside a component ) in a fraction of the time taken by traditional CT image reconstruction ,” outlined Nikon Metrology .
“ The high-speed scanning , and the fact that no manual data editing is required thanks to the new software and automated part handling , enables fast and automated quality control of dual material assemblies in a production environment , consistent with the requirements of Quality 4.0 ,” it added . n
. industry . nikon . com