Axiomtek introduced the ICO320-83C, a fanless DIN-rail embedded system with four RJ-45 Gigabit PoE ports for facility monitoring systems, IP video surveillance, Access Point and intercoms. This industrial IoT gateway has an IP40-rated heavy-duty aluminum extrusion and steel enclosure for use in harsh environments. It can operate under temperatures ranging from -40°C to 70°C and withstand vibration up to 2G. It is powered by the Intel Celeron processor N3350 or Pentium processor N4200 and has one DDR4-2133 SO-DIMM for up to 8 GB of system memory.

The ICO320-83C offers expandability and I/O, including four RJ-45 Gigabit PoE ports or four RJ-45 LAN ports, two RS-232/422/485 ports, two USB 3.0 port, one VGA port, one CANbus 2.0 A/B port, and one 8-bit programmable DIO. It also offers one full-size PCI Express Mini Card slot (USB/PCIe) and one half-size PCI Express Mini Card slot (mSATA/USB/PCIe) for wireless modules. It has a SATA drive and half-size mSATA shared with PCI Express Mini Card slot for storage. The industrial-grade embedded platform is compatible with Windows 10 IoT and Linux operating systems. To fulfill the requirement of remote monitoring at factory, the ICO320-83C supports Axiomtek’s exclusive AMS.AXView software. This DIN-rail embedded system is certified with EN60950, CE and FCC. It offers an RTC battery onboard. It also supports a 12 to 24 VDC terminal block power input with various power protections, including OVP, UVP, OCP, and RVP.

For more information, visit Axiomtek website.

The next generation CEMC Series electro-mechanical actuator, with inverted roller screw technology, has been designed by Ewellix to help car manufacturers develop IoT-ready welding lines.

The CEMC Series actuator has a set of built-in sensors which stops them from being exposed during the manufacturing process without impacting on the overall dimensions of the actuator. The sensors provide manufacturers with precision force measurements to ensure the force is being applied by the welding gun to maintain a high-quality weld.

It is also 10 percent lighter than previous versions of the actuator, has a capacity of 25kN and linear speeds up to 300mm per second providing increased productivity. In addition, the actuator delivers up to 20 million spot welds over its lifetime which has doubled the period of time provided before needing to replace the welding gun.

The relubrication period has also been extended from every two to every 10 million spot welds, which means there is now only one relubrication required during the lifetime of the actuator.

For more information, visit Ewellix website.

Kollmorgen has introduced the next generation of Motioneering, the company’s servo sizing tool. Motioneering was introduced more than 20 years ago – the first tool of its kind – to help mechanical design engineers find the ideal motion products to build into their machines. It streamlines and simplifies the design process by incorporating 100+ years of Kollmorgen expertise about which motion solutions work best for specific applications such as factory automation, robotics, material forming, and many others.

The next generation of Motioneering is faster and more intuitive, offers customizable-to-application requirements, allows the side-by-side comparison of multiple systems, and enables user access to the latest products and updates.

Key updates include:

• Enhanced product filtering that allows engineers to pinpoint which product family or families are most suitable for an application.
• New details for each potential design solution, giving users a more complete picture of each option’s relative advantages. For example, safety margins (% margin) show how much speed and torque are available beyond what is needed for the application.
• The ability to customize parameters and units of measurement for each project. Once defined, these parameters will carry through each axis in a project.
• Updated S-curve profile: Jerk reduction can be adjusted from 0 to 100% (linear to full S-curve acceleration).

Motioneering is part of a full suite of online design tools that Kollmorgen has created to help engineers accelerate design cycles and simplify the process of selecting an optimal motion solution. The full toolset also includes:

• Product Selector: Allows users to enter parameters, such as motor torque and speed requirements or enter current and voltage requirements for a drive to identify and compare Kollmorgen products and find the best fit for an application.
• Performance Curve Generator: Adjusts winding factor, ambient temperature, drive current, and more to generate speed/torque curves for frameless and housed motors.
• Interactive 2D/3D Modeling: Configures 2D & 3D drawings that can be imported into users’ CAD systems.
• Engineer’s Toolbar: Provides quick and easy reference to material densities, trigonometric functions, inertia calculations and unit conversions.

Motioneering can be accessed at: motioneering.kollmorgen.com.

For more information about Kollmorgen, visit website.

Balluff’s precision laser sensors guarantee precise positioning of small parts, as well as dark, transparent or complex-shaped objects.

Their background evaluation mode makes them a choice for detecting reflective or shiny parts. And their intelligent ambient light suppression function allows them to filter out interference and ambient light.

These laser sensors’ different detection and processing modes enable detection of complex-shaped objects. While their enhanced background suppression capability allows them to detect and measure dark and transparent objects, such as plastic film or products.

For teach-in, the switching point and the analog output curve can be taught using a simple push button key on the sensors if not using IO-Link. When using IO-link, these features and settings can be accessed using the convenient Balluff IO-Link Device Tool USB GUI interface window.

Key features include:

•     Various measuring modes (dark measurement, multiple measurement, transparent object detection mode)
•     Enhanced detection of dark and transparent objects
•     Selectable detection modes: background suppression or background evaluation
•     Intelligent data pre-processing in the sensor, and IO-Link capabilities

For more information, visit Balluff website.

^{Automotive Switching Regulator}

The STMicroelectronics A7987 automotive switching regulator has an input-voltage range that allows use in trucks and buses, and an adjustable output voltage that ensures flexibility and stable performance to power the numerous voltage rails in automotive applications such as body infotainment and telematics.

With maximum input voltage of 61V, the A7987 can operate from a 24V battery in a conventional or hybrid/electric vehicle and maintain a regulated output despite disturbances such as load-dump. The output is adjustable from 0.8V up to the input voltage, with low dropout, and can provide up to 3A for a variety of loads from logic to lighting.

The current limit and switching frequency up to 1.5MHz are set with external pulldown resistors, letting designers create compact power modules by optimizing the output-inductor size. Pulse-by-pulse current sensing with digital frequency foldback in short-circuit minimizes stress on power components Thermal protection is built-in, with shutdown and auto-recovery to minimize reliance on external intervention.

The A7987 embeds a low-resistance N-channel power MOSFET. At light load, pulse skipping maintains output regulation and a bias-voltage input with integrated switchover allows powering analog circuitry from an external source for optimum efficiency.

A synchronization pin allows up to five regulators to coexist by switching out of phase to avoid noise effects and reduce the RMS current flowing in the input capacitor. An Enable pin and a Power-Good indicator with adjustable delay permit power-up sequencing. There is also an adjustable soft-start function to limit inrush current.

AEC-Q100 certified, the A7987 switching regulator is in production now, in a 5mm x 6.4mm HTSSOP16 exposed-pad package.

ST has also released the STEVAL-ISA207V1 evaluation board to accelerate new projects leveraging the A7987.

For more information, visit STMicroelectronics website.

^{with Potentiometer Adjustment}

AutomationDirect’s line of sensors now includes capacitive proximity sensors with potentiometer adjustment for sensitivity. Capacitive proximity sensors allow sensing of metal and non-metal objects through insulating materials such as wood or plastic and are often used to sense fill levels of liquids or powders.

18mm and 30mm capacitive proximity sensors have a potentiometer sensitivity adjustment. Operating voltages are 10 to 30 VDC; shielded and unshielded versions and NO or NC units are available. Existing capacitive sensors have a pushbutton teach function.

CK2 series 18mm capacitive sensors have IP65/IP67/IP69K ratings and provide an unshielded sensing distance of up to 15mm.

30mm DC-powered CT2 series capacitive sensors have metal (IP65 rated) or plastic (up to IP69K rated) housings with sensing distances up to 25mm.

The sensors are cULus and CE approved. AutomationDirect offers a complete line of sensors and encoders for proximity, pressure, temperature, level, flow, current and voltage sensing applications.

For more information, visit AutomationDirect website.

^{Through Acquisition of Root Robotics}
iRobot Corp. has announced the addition of the Root coding robot to its product lineup through the acquisition of Root Robotics. With technology initially developed by a founding group within the Wyss Institute at Harvard University, Root is a fun and easy-to-use educational robot that uniquely teaches coding and 21st century problem-solving skills to children as young as four years old. This acquisition supports iRobot’s plans to diversify its educational robot product offerings, further demonstrating its commitment to make robotic technology more accessible to educators, students and parents.

Kids as young as age 4 can learn to problem solve by coding Root to draw, scan colors, play music and make games.

The Root coding robot is a two-wheeled, mobile platform. The robot operates on flat surfaces at home, like tables, floors, and countertops, and vertical surfaces in a classroom, like a magnetic whiteboard. When paired with the companion mobile application, users can instruct Root to draw artwork, scan colors, play music, respond to touch and sound, climb whiteboard walls, and explore the fundamentals of robotics. Root uses three levels of coding language, from simple graphical blocks for young children to full text coding for more advanced users.

The acquisition of Root Robotics is not expected to contribute materially to iRobot’s 2019 financial performance. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The Root coding robot is currently available for purchase at https://root.irobot.com for $199 USD. Photos, videos and information can be found at: http://media.irobot.com/.

About iRobot Corp. 

iRobot designs and builds robots that empower people to do more both inside and outside of the home. iRobot created the home robot cleaning category with the introduction of its Roomba Robot Vacuum in 2002. Today, iRobot is a global enterprise that has sold more than 25 million robots worldwide. iRobot’s product line, including Roomba vacuuming robots and the Braava family of mopping robots, feature proprietary technologies and advanced concepts in cleaning, mapping and navigation. iRobot engineers are building an ecosystem of robots and technologies to enable the smart home.

For more information about iRobot, please visit www.irobot.com.