WIKA has been an internationally recognised partner for all measurement tasks for many decades. The product portfolio includes pressure, temperature, force and level measurement, along with flow measurement, calibration and SF6 gas solutions. In the next article, we wish to take a closer consider the measured variable of force. These five reasons show why force measurement is of particular importance.
Reason 1: Protection of individuals and machinery
Protecting folks from harm is the highest priority in virtually any workplace. Likewise, the machinery should remain undamaged in order to minimise downtime and repairs. In this context, force measurement ensures a safe working environment, especially through overload protection. In cranes, for example, this prevents heavy loads from falling. With Know It All and robots, on the other hand, uncontrolled machine movements are prevented. This can help you work safely, and completely harmlessly, close to sufficient reason for machinery. In production lines, for example, the machinery is prevented from pulling, pushing or pressing unchecked, and thereby destroying both components and itself. Another example is port logistics, for which WIKA offers a globally unique, certified system.
Added value: Safe working environment
Reason 2: Ensuring system stability and production safety
Just collecting data is not enough. The correct measured values are also required to have the ability to monitor processes seamlessly. Using force measurement in linear drives, for instance, thus improves process control as well as automation, while simultaneously ensuring quality. Force measurement also supplies the right data for the right functioning of brakes and drives, conveyors, presses and weighing systems. A crucial point here is to lessen running costs. The higher the caliber of the measured data, the higher the data analysis. The look of a tool change is thus more precise, in order that changing it prematurily . doesn?t cause increased costs nor does unplanned maintenance cause longer downtimes. The savings in consequential costs alone pay for it many times over.
Added value: Full process control
Reason 3: Optimisation of production conditions
The savings potential, and thus the maximisation of profit, have already been mentioned in the last section. Only through the perfect usage of materials and machinery can margins be increased. An integral issue in manufacturing plants is machine availability. As well as reducing downtime, the focus is on minimising maintenance costs. A good example of this are welding tongs. With these, the contact force of the electrodes can be precisely monitored by using tension/compression force transducers. In this way, optimum quality is permanently guaranteed and, as well, wear is minimised. Higher profits can even be achieved through saving time, for example, when containers are weighed ?on the fly?.
Added value: Maximum profits
Reason 4: Improving product quality and saving materials
The utilization of force measurement in welding tongs ? as explained in the section above ? is a very good example of improving product quality and saving materials. Force measurement provides the right data for the most accurate process control. Due to this fact, machine tool wear is only minimal. In addition, force measurement offers many other areas of application. For instance, spreading fertiliser where this step is adapted to the soil conditions is one way to save material. This also protects the surroundings. Furthermore, it is beneficial to know the (supporting) forces acting on mobile cranes. The automobile?s centre of gravity can thus be calculated exactly, meaning that the safety margin could be reduced. In this case, loads can be lifted further, yet accidents, e.g. because of slipping or tipping, could be avoided.
Added value: Lowering costs
Reason 5: Ensuring quality
Finally, the use of force measurement also offers many advantages in your community of quality assurance, which has recently been touched upon. On the one hand, the machinery could be optimally controlled by registering the force. However, by recording the values, live together with saving them for later use, conclusions can be drawn for specific batches. In addition, probably the most precise force measuring instruments meet the highest requirements, for example, in materials testing machinery or in medical engineering. Incidentally, WIKA offers a DAkkS-accredited calibration service for force measuring instruments.
Added value: Exact measured values
Note
Further details on our portfolio of force measuring instruments are available on the WIKA website. There you will also find home elevators our calibration service for force measuring instruments. Furthermore, our brochure on force measurement: ?Force measurement is a matter of trust? is also available. Do you want to buy force transducers? In our WIKA online shop you?ll find some of our standard versions. Should you have any questions about force measurement, please ask your contact person.
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The ELMS1 overload protection saves lives
Force measurement in linear drives