A two-axis stainless steel servo motor driven mechanism mounted on the front of a truck, carrying a runway cleaning head.
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OEM custom 19” 3U rack assembly featuring 6 axis of motion control system forms a basis of a sample manipulation process housed in a vacuum chamber The system uses customer specific connectors and mechanical mountings and is built and tested to conform to all CE requirements.
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A servo driven three-axis palletising robot with pneumatic carton collation.
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In order to count the bacterial colonies in a random sample traditionally required many dilutions of the sample deposited on a plate to allow the microbiologist to count the colonies. The spiral plating system greatly reduces that number by creating a dilution across the plate. SmartDrive designed the “WASP” electronics, with almost 1000 units sold, the WASP plating system is the world leader in this field. WASP is a successful demonstration of SmartDrive working in partnership with our customers to achieve long term stability, product updates and OEM product success.
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SmartDrive supplied The institute of Sound and Vibration Research at the University of Southampton with two very long linear slides connected to gearbox and stepper motors driven by a panel mounted SA 46 unit. The linear slides move the semi-circular gantry system which carries a microphone array to measure the noise from all directions. The movement is archived by programming a series of movements on an attached PC application which allows the user to program a sequence of moves and delays to automatically perform an entire experiment unattended.
Antenna Positioning System
To test an antenna’s frequency response our customer need to rotate it in an sealed chamber but also need to access it outside the chamber too. SmartDrive supplied two connected linear slides and a rotational housing to allow the antenna to be rotated and moved in and out of an anechoic chamber.
Swimming Pool Door
A prestigious hotel spa in the Cotswold underwent a major refurbishment and rebuild, at the heart of which is a new indoor/outdoor hydrotherapy pool. In order to reduce heat loss whilst allowing bathers to move between the indoor and outdoor sections, SmartDrive worked with the glazing manufacturer to provide a motorised door. With the public use of such an installation it was necessary to implement a safety critical approach; radar based person detection and a collision detection/back-off system were implemented to prevent the door from injuring bathers. SmartDrive worked with the glazier, architects, site contractor and the end customer to design, install and commission an elegant solution. The system comprised a servo based control system, servo motor, right angled gearbox, DLS3 linear belt slide, custom mounting components and operator controls, with the drive electronics located 20 meters away from the moving door.
Terrace Roof-light Door
A multi-million pound property in the fashionable London district of Belgravia was
refurbished adding a new roof terrace. Access to the new terrace from the kitchen
has been facilitated by a roof-light door operated by a control system designed by
SmartDrive. The system is based around a Taranis stepper drive with a motor, gearbox
and DLS3 linear belt slide, with interfaces to a Crestron home management system,
PIR safety sensor and a roof mounted rain sensor to automatically close the door
in the event of a rain storm.
A leading manufacturer of artificial replacement arteries approached SmartDrive to try to improve its production line. SmartDrive provided a linear slide and a rotating spool whose speed is controlled by sensing the width of the PTFE tape being wound with an LED micrometer. The finished product is providing a much more consistently high quality artificial blood vessel at significantly higher yield.
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Touch screen endurance testing
With ever increasing use of touch screen computers in medical environments, a major manufacturer commissioned a custom machine to allow endurance testing on random production units. The machine cycles back and forth across the screen area applying pressure to simulate either a finger or a cloth carrying a cleaning agent. SmartDrive worked with the machine builder and the end user to design and implement a Taranis based control system with HMI, allowing easy access to configure test parameters such as cycle count, operating speed and wipe area.
A fully automated roulette wheel that can be operated largely unattended was build by a leading manufacturer. SmartDrive supplied its Taranis combined controller and drive system to provide the programmability required by most customers and the stepper motors to “fling” the ball to the outside of the wheel where it meets a random puff of air also controlled by the Taranis.
Linear slides are being used on a novel system that helps libraries digitise the pages of delicate books by achieving perfect focus. The operation of the cradle depends on the synchronised movement of two platforms as the pages are turned. The camera is mounted on a linear slide driven by stepper motors which allows the camera ‘s focus to be adjusted electronically.
Slicing system
To slice a thick block of material into many even thickness tiles required a complete solution to drive the board past the rotating saw and raise the material the correct height for the next slice. SmartDrive supplied a custom panel containing an SA drive and controller assembly connected to two motor and gearbox combinations driving a linear slide and a screw jack. An HMI was used to control the tile thickness, the height of the original block and the number of tiles required.
A new, fully automated, fine art infrared scanning system isn’t just a prime example of what modern technology can achieve. It also shows how a scientific tool with micron positioning accuracy can be created from standard industrial automation components. The system is the brainchild of motion control specialist, SmartDrive®. Working in league with the linear motion company, HepcoMotion®, it has optimised the process of infrared scanning, greatly extending the scope of the technology. And the benefits of the system aren’t confined to infrared. The system control and specifically developed image stitching software also enables distortion-free digital photographs of large works to be taken for further study and record. For the art conservation world this system represents a significant imaging breakthrough.
