March 2021

SKF HAS ANNOUNCED three handheld tachometers designed to monitor rotational and linear speeds of machinery, and to help maintenance staff spot emerging mechanical problems. Data gathered by the three devices can give insights into machine and component health, helping to cut maintenance costs and boost efficiency. Two of the devices are digital tachometers, while the third is mechanical. All are compact, have large displays, can be operated using one hand, and are supplied with contact adaptors. n The TKRT 21 uses laser or contact measurement to determine rotational and linear speeds. It allows fast, easy measurement at a safe distance from machinery. The instrument offers several measurement modes, uses standard or rechargeable batteries, and has a large LCD screen. n The TKRT 31 is a more advanced model that measures distances as well as rotational and linear speeds. A large colour screen shows the measured values. The laser-based TKRT 31 and TKRT 21 models both allow easy measurement in locations where straight-line access is difficult. n The TKRT 25M mechanical tachometer uses precise contact measurement to determine rotational and linear speed of equipment such as shafts, conveyor belts and engines. It does not need any batteries and has a large, easy-to-read dial display. “Our condition monitoring equipment helps plant workers reduce the chance of catastrophic failure and help to minimise maintenance costs,”says SKF’s instrument products development manager, Sylvain Humbert.“It also helps them to order parts in advance, schedule maintenance procedures and plan other repairs during downtime.” www.skf.com n TECHNOLOGY Tachometers expand options for gathering machine data SKF’sTKRT 31 tachometer measures distances as well as rotational and linear speeds p NUM has launched AI software that provides conditionmonitoring for CNC machine tool users. The NUMai software is compatible with NUM’s Flexium+ systems. It does not need any extra sensors, and runs on the same PC as the CNC’s HMI. It can be used on new or existingmachine tools. It initially acquires data over several hours, while the machine is running normally. It uses this to teach a neural network to detect and predict any deviations from the“good”performance. A PC program for online performance monitoring and diagnostics is generated automatically. www.num.com p Moog Animatics has announced a digital servodrive that can be controlled by the company’s SmartMotors via a network that uses its Combitronic communication protocol. The single-axis DS2020 drive can act as a follower, allowing it to work in SmartMotor-basedmachines and applications, and simplifyingmachines and making them smaller. The drive is designed for use with Moog’s CD high-torque motors. www.animatics.com p The Swiss machine vision specialist Photonfocus has launched a UV camera with global shutter technology and a 40%-plus quantumefficiency at wavelengths from170- 820nm.While optimised for UV, the camera can also be used in the visible and near- infrared spectra, opening up new applications.The device has a frame rate of 140 fps at a full resolution of 1280 x 1024 pixels, and can deliver high-res images of fast- moving objects in complex inspection tasks. www.photonfocus.com