WIKA has been an internationally recognised partner for several measurement tasks for many decades. The merchandise portfolio includes pressure, temperature, force and level measurement, and also flow measurement, calibration and SF6 gas solutions. In the following article, we wish 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 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 instance, this prevents heavy loads from falling. With construction machinery and robots, however, uncontrolled machine movements are prevented. This makes it possible to work safely, and completely harmlessly, close to and with 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, that 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 right 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. An essential point here is to lessen running costs. The bigger the standard of the measured data, the higher the data analysis. The planning of an instrument change is thus more precise, in order that changing it prematurily . doesn? Legendary 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 therefore the maximisation of profit, have already been mentioned in the last section. Only through the perfect use of materials and machinery can margins be increased. A key issue in manufacturing plants is machine availability. Besides reducing downtime, the focus is on minimising maintenance costs. Among this are welding tongs. With these, the contact force of the electrodes could be precisely monitored by using tension/compression force transducers. In this way, optimum quality is permanently guaranteed and, simultaneously, wear is minimised. Higher profits can also 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 use of force measurement in welding tongs ? as explained in the section above ? is an extremely good example of improving product quality in addition to saving materials. Force measurement provides the right data for probably the most accurate process control. Because of this, machine tool wear is minimal. Furthermore, 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 environment. Furthermore, it is advantageous to know the (supporting) forces functioning 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 could 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 utilization of force measurement offers many advantages in your community of quality assurance, which includes already been touched upon. On the main one hand, the machinery can be optimally controlled by registering the force. On the other hand, by recording the values, live together with saving them for later use, conclusions can be drawn for specific batches. Furthermore, the most precise force measuring instruments meet up with 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 can be found on the WIKA website. There additionally, you will find information on our calibration service for force measuring instruments. Furthermore, our brochure on force measurement: ?Force measurement is really a matter of trust? is also available. Would you like to buy force transducers? Inside our WIKA online store you?ll find some of our standard versions. If you have any questions about force measurement, please ask your contact person.
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Force measurement in linear drives