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Engineer's Toolbox: Critical inspection of airplane parts with a SVS-Vistek 10GigE camera

Manufacturers of aviation engine components are being impacted by Industry 4.0's emphasis on quality control, which is challenging them to rethink outdated processes and to embrace new technologies. A new system developed by researchers in Italy uses a Kuka robot, a SVS-Vistek 61-megapixel 10GigE camera, and AI to detect defects in honeycomb aerospace parts faster and with more accuracy.
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What's new in MATLAB and Simulink?

Release 2024b from MathWorks offers hundreds of new and updated features and functions in MATLAB and Simulink including several major updates -- including 5G Toolbox, Simulink Control Design, System Composer, and more -- that streamline the workflows of engineers and researchers working on wireless communications systems, control systems, and digital signal processing applications.
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COTS-based space-ready orbital systems

Aitech Systems' solutions can meet the growing demands for shorter development times and lower costs among satellite buses, subsystems, and payloads. Using a Space Digital Backbone (DBB) approach, which provides a flexible, scalable communication pathway for the increasing number of Internet of Things technologies being implemented into space missions, the company provides a selection of space-rated subsystems for common space platforms including: Earth observation, communications, power control, navigation, and robotics.
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Circuit breakers have magnetic module option

SCHURTER has upgraded its 2-pole classic TA35 and TA36 thermal circuit breaker models with an additional, optional magnetic module. From now on, no additional fuse is required when using a thermal-magnetic type. Depending on the application, the magnetic modules are available either with a slow- or a fast-acting characteristic. Both models are designed for snap-in mounting and with finely graduated rated currents. A variety of colors and lighting options make the designer's choice easier.
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All about magnetic rotary encoder

The precision and reliability offered by modern rotary encoders are essential in many product categories. These include robotics, machine tools, printing presses, motion control systems, medical equipment, aerospace, gaming and entertainment, and automotive. Learn all about magnetic rotary encoders -- and important developments in the technology's future.
Read the full Avnet article.

High-res image sensor for automotive ADAS and AD

OMNIVISION has expanded its TheiaCel™ product portfolio with a new OX12A10 12-MP high-res image sensor for automotive cameras. This sensor, with the highest resolution in its line, improves automotive safety by eliminating LED flicker regardless of lighting conditions. It is ideal for high-performance front machine vision cameras for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving (AD).
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Durable, full redundant angle sensors for automotive and off-highway

Novotechnik's new RSK-3200 Series angle sensors are designed for harsh automotive and off-highway applications. Measurement range is 0 to 360 degrees, and the temperature range is -40 to 125 C. This unit's built-in coupling accepts D-Shaft, with shaft customization available. The sensors are sealed to IP 67 or IP 69k depending on version. RSK-3200 Series sensors are extremely durable with MTTF of 285 years for each of the two channels! Applications include throttle control and EGR valves, transmission gear position, and accelerator position. Very competitive pricing.
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Great design: Handle with integrated lighting/signaling

Signaling and indicator lights, switches, and buttons -- elements that hardly any machine can do without. The new JW Winco cabinet U-handle EN 6284 integrates all these functions into a single, compact element. The new U-handle is designed to enhance the operation of systems and machines. It features an integrated button and a large, colored, backlit area on the handle. These elements can be used individually or in combination, providing a versatile tool for system control and process monitoring that can be seen from across the room.
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World's most popular 3D multisensor metrology systems get next-gen addition

Offered in two benchtop and two floor-model options to handle nearly any size part, the SmartScope M-Series systems from Optical Gaging Products usher in the next generation of enhancements in image accuracy, optics, and throughput to the world's most popular 3D multisensor video measurement platform. SmartScope M-Series features fixed optics with a 20-megapixel camera and proprietary Virtual Zoom, combined with advanced sensors, illumination, and accessories, to achieve class-leading optical measurement speeds. Lots more features.
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SOLIDWORKS Tips: 3 easy ways to focus on your model

SOLIDWORKS Elite Applications Engineer Alin Vargatu demonstrates his top tips for focusing on your model: finding planes the easy way inside your assembly with the Q key, breadcrumbs, and a better way to use the component preview window. Very helpful. Lots more tips on the SOLIDWORKS YouTube channel.
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Push-pull transformer drivers for automotive power supplies

Nexperia's AEC-Q100 qualified, push-pull transformer drivers (NXF6501-Q100, NXF6505A-Q100, and NXF6505B-Q100) enable the design of small, low-noise, and low-EMI isolated power supplies for a range of automotive applications such as traction inverters and motor control, DC-DC converters, battery management systems, and on-board chargers in EVs. Also suitable for industrial applications such as telecommunications, medical, instrumentation, and automation equipment.
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Mini linear position sensor for drones, robots, aero, more

H. G. Schaevitz LLC, Alliance Sensors Group is now offering a miniature, lightweight LZ SERIES linear position sensor product line utilizing LVIT Technology™. These sensors are designed for tight spaces that require excellent stroke-to-length ratio. They are contactless devices for use by drones, OEMs, aerospace, robotics, factory automation, or assembly machinery applications where precision in position sensing is crucial.
Learn all the specs.

What is a Heatric Printed Circuit Heat Exchanger?

According to Parker Hannifin, "A Printed Circuit Heat Exchanger is a robust, corrosion-resistant, high-integrity plate-type heat exchanger manufactured using diffusion bonding." Learn about the technology and why Heatric, a Parker brand, "can manufacture a unit up to 85% smaller and lighter than traditional technologies such as shell and tube heat exchangers."
Read this informative Parker blog.

Tech Tip: Mastering sheet metal bend calculations in Onshape

Mastering bend calculations in sheet metal design is a key skill that can impact the accuracy and manufactur-ability of your designs significantly. Explore the various options available to become a pro in this Onshape Tech Tip: K Factor, bend allowance, and bend deduction, with guidance on when each should be used. You may learn something even if you don't use this software.
Read the Onshape blog.

Seifert thermoelectric enclosure coolers from AutomationDirect beat the heat

Automation-Direct has added new high-quality and efficient stainless steel Seifert 340 BTU/H thermoelectric coolers with 120-V and 230-V power options. Thermoelectric coolers from Seifert use the Peltier Effect to create a temperature difference between the internal and ambient heat sinks, making internal air cooler while dissipating heat into the external environment. Fans assist the convective heat transfer from the heat sinks, which are optimized for maximum flow.
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Is it worth investing in solar PV with batteries at home?

Researchers looked into some of the issues that hamper the uptake of solar energy and proposed different policies to encourage the use of this technology.

Installing solar panels to offset energy costs and reduce the environmental impact of their homes has been gaining popularity with homeowners in recent years. On a global scale, more and more countries are encouraging the installation of solar photovoltaics (PV) at residential buildings to increase the share of renewable energy in their energy mix and enhance energy security. Despite the promising advantages this mode of electricity generation offers, there are still a number of challenges that need to be overcome.

Batteries to store excess electricity
Solar PV electricity generation peaks during the day when electricity demand is low, resulting in overproduction -- especially on weekdays when people are usually not at home. Currently, this excess electricity supply is typically exported to the central electricity grid, but ideally, homes that have solar panels should be able to store overproduction of solar electricity using batteries and consume it in the evening when demand is high and there is no solar electricity generation.

The problem is that the investment cost for batteries is currently quite high, which makes it economically unprofitable for consumers to pair their solar PV with a battery. In their new study published in the journal Applied Energy, researchers from the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), University College London (UK), and Aalto University (Finland) looked into this challenge and proposed different policies to encourage residential electricity consumers to pair solar PV with battery energy storage.

"We wanted to determine whether investing in residential solar PV combined with battery energy storage could be profitable under current market conditions for residential consumers and what kind of support policies can be used to enhance the profitability of stand-alone batteries or PV-battery systems. On top if this, we also wanted to compare the system (or regulatory) cost of each PV-battery policy to the benefit of that particular policy for residential consumers who invest in these technologies," says lead author Behnam Zakeri, a researcher with the IIASA Energy, Climate, and Environment Program.

Benefits of using battery storage
The study shows that without a battery, homeowners only use 30 to 40% of the electricity from their solar PV panels, while the rest of the electricity is exported to the grid with very little to no benefit for the owner. With a home battery, the self-consumption of solar PV in the building almost doubles, allowing the residents to reduce electricity imports from the grid by up to 84%, which can, in turn, help the owner to become less dependent on the grid and electricity prices.

In addition, the researchers found that while PV-batteries are presently not really profitable for residential consumers, they can become so with the implementation of slightly different policies and regulations, even in high-latitude countries where solar irradiation is relatively low.

Energy policies for a decentralized energy system
The authors propose some novel energy storage polices that offer a positive return on investment between 40 and 70% for residential PV-battery storage, depending on the policy. These include, among others, that national renewable energy policies adopt more innovative incentives to enhance the economic profitability of decentralized green energy solutions based on the contribution of these systems to the grid. The results indicate that this can be easily achieved by, for example, rewarding consumers for using their solar PV generation onsite, instead of encouraging them to export the excess solar energy they produce to the grid.

The researchers further posit that the way utility companies and electricity distribution firms generate income today may itself be a hindrance to promoting the self-consumption of renewable energy in buildings, as these companies generally charge consumers for each unit of electricity imported from the grid. If consumers become independent from the grid, grid operators and utility companies would lose a significant part of their income. Such a scenario calls for new business models and operating modes to guarantee that central utilities do not see decentralized solutions as a threat to their revenues.

In today's renewable electricity-generation environment, capital subsidies are one option to partly pay for investment in batteries. The study points out that these policies are costly for the system, and may not automatically result in system-level benefits as they do not reward the optimal use of batteries. In this regard, Zakeri and his colleagues propose a "storage policy" that rewards residential battery owners to store and discharge electricity whenever the system needs it. The profitability of PV-battery systems also depends on the type of retail pricing mechanism in the system.

The findings indicate that dynamic electricity pricing at the consumer side, such as hourly electricity prices with an enhanced gap between off-peak and peak prices, will encourage consumers to use home batteries to benefit from charging at low-price hours and discharging the battery when the electricity price is high. This way of operating a home battery could help reduce the pressure on the electricity grid at peak times, which has significant benefits for the system.

"Traditional, central energy structures are transitioning to new systems based on decentralized, renewable energy solutions. This requires more flexible, modern, and effective policies that can guarantee the social and economic benefits of the energy transition. We hope our analysis contributes to a better understanding of the role of some energy policies that can promote decentralized energy solutions," Zakeri says.

Reference
Zakeri, B., Cross, S., Dodds, P., Castagneto Gissey, G. (2021). Policy options for enhancing economic profitability of residential solar photovoltaic with battery energy storage. Applied Energy DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2021.116697

Source: International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)

Published April 2021

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