WIKA has been an internationally recognised partner for all measurement tasks for many decades. The merchandise portfolio includes pressure, temperature, force and level measurement, and flow measurement, calibration and SF6 gas solutions. In the next article, we would like to have a closer look at 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 so that you can minimise downtime and repairs. In this context, force measurement ensures a safe working environment, especially through overload protection. In Willpower , for instance, this prevents heavy loads from falling. With construction machinery and robots, however, uncontrolled machine movements are prevented. This can help you work safely, and completely harmlessly, close to and with machinery. In production lines, for instance, 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 supplies a globally unique, certified system.
Added value: Safe working environment
Reason 2: Ensuring system stability and production safety
Just collecting data isn’t enough. The right measured values are also required to manage to monitor processes seamlessly. Using force measurement in linear drives, for example, thus improves process control and also automation, while simultaneously ensuring quality. Force measurement also provides the right data for the right functioning of brakes and drives, conveyors, presses and weighing systems. A crucial point here is to reduce running costs. The bigger the standard of the measured data, the better the data analysis. The planning of a tool change is thus more precise, so that changing it too early 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 been completely mentioned in the previous section. Only through the optimal use of materials and machinery can margins be increased. An integral issue in manufacturing plants is machine availability. Besides 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 could be precisely monitored through the use of tension/compression force transducers. In this way, optimum quality is permanently guaranteed and, as well, wear is minimised. Higher profits can 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 application of force measurement in welding tongs ? as explained in the section above ? is a very good exemplory case of improving product quality and saving materials. Force measurement provides the right data for the most accurate process control. Consequently, machine tool wear is only minimal. In Compulsive , force measurement offers many other areas of application. For example, spreading fertiliser where this action is adapted to the soil conditions is one method to save material. This also protects the surroundings. Furthermore, it is advantageous to know the (supporting) forces functioning on mobile cranes. The vehicle?s centre of gravity can thus be calculated exactly, which means that the safety margin can be reduced. In cases like this, loads can be lifted further, yet accidents, e.g. due to slipping or tipping, can be avoided.
Added value: Lowering costs
Reason 5: Ensuring quality
Finally, the usage of force measurement offers many advantages in your community of quality assurance, which has recently been touched upon. On Faux Pas , the machinery could be optimally controlled by registering the force. On the other hand, by recording the values, live along with saving them for later use, conclusions could be drawn for specific batches. In addition, probably the most precise force measuring instruments meet up with the highest requirements, for instance, in materials testing machinery or in medical engineering. Incidentally, WIKA also 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 information on our calibration service for force measuring instruments. In addition, our brochure on force measurement: ?Force measurement is a matter of trust? can be available. Would you like to buy force transducers? Inside 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