Advantest develops test capabilities for 5G medical devices, mobile electronics
December 15, 2018
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Advantest Corp., Tokyo, has developed advanced test solutions that enable 5G connectivity for such diverse applications as mobile electronics, medical devices, automotive systems, retail business, and big data.
“The product portfolio that we have – and are continuing to develop – is designed to meet the global market’s requirements for 5G in applications from next-gen smart phones to connected cars,†says Judy Davies, Advantest’s vice president of global marketing communications.
Wave Scale RF and Wave Scale MX cards help to create paths for testing 5G devices by delivering high-efficiency test solutions for the ICs used in both today’s and emerging LTE, LTE-Advanced, and LTE-A Pro smart phones, as well as LTE-M, WLAN, GPS, ZigBee, Bluetooth and IoT applications. The cards’ advanced architectures allow for highly parallel testing of multiple communication standards or multiple paths within each device, resulting in high multi-site efficiency and a much lower cost of test.
The company has announced eight new systems and enhancements the past year. These include three new members of the B6700 product family of burn-in memory testers: models B6700D, -S and –L, which are designed to boost parallel testing capacity and lower the cost of test for NAND flash devices.
www.advantest.com
Advantest Corp., Tokyo, has developed advanced test solutions that enable 5G connectivity for such diverse applications as mobile electronics, medical devices, automotive systems, retail business, and big data.
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Ford’s $45 million Advanced Manufacturing Center has 23 additive manufacturing machines
December 14, 2018
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Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, Mich., announces that it has opened an Advanced Manufacturing Center dedicated to developing advanced technologies for improving the company’s approach to building cars and trucks. The $45 million complex houses 100 experts working on integration strategies for various cutting-edge manufacturing technologies, including 3D printing, augmented reality and virtual reality robotics, and digital manufacturing.
It features 23 additive manufacturing machines, and Ford is working with ten AM manufacturing companies to develop applications with a range of different materials, from nylon powder to sand to carbon. One application currently under development has the potential to save the company more than $2 million.
The soon-to-be-released Ford Shelby Mustang GT500 features two 3D-printed brake parts, while the F-150 Raptor includes a 3D-printed interior part. The company believes that as this technology becomes more economical, the use of such parts will become more and more prevalent. Assembly line workers at the Michigan Assembly Plant, where Ford builds the Ranger pickup, use five different 3D-printed tools that played a critical role in the launch of the Ranger. In fact, the company says that these tools knocked off weeks from an already tight timeline.
Engineers are working on augmented and virtual reality to help in simulating and designing assembly lines. With specialized gaming equipment, engineers can configure a virtual reality production line without leaving the center, allowing engineers to identify potentially unsafe processes and fine-tune workflows long before an assembly line is built.
AR and VR can also allow manufacturing teams to work collaboratively in facilities around the world, meaning employees on different continents could work in the same virtual space, at the same time.
https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en.html
Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, Mich., announces that it has opened an Advanced Manufacturing Center dedicated to developing advanced technologies for improving the company’s approach to building cars and trucks.
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Triumph to manufacture fuselage frames for Gulfstream aircraft via stretch forming
December 13, 2018
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Triumph Group Inc., Berwyn, Pa., announces the selection of its Aerospace Structures business by Gulfstream to manufacture a new order of fuselage frames for the Gulfstream G500 and G600 aircraft via stretch forming.
Under terms of the agreement, which will run through 2020, Triumph Fabrications in Hot Springs, Arkansas, will produce the fuselage frames with stretch-formed extrusions that will then be machined into final configurations. The contract continues a strong relationship with Gulfstream. In recent years, Triumph has also provided various wing, fuselage, and componentry for the Gulfstream G280/G450/G550/G650 programs.
As original equipment manufacturers such as Gulfstream transition away from hydroformed frames in favor of the newer stretch-form technology, Triumph’s expertise with this technique provides a viable option for aircraft manufacturers.
http://www.triumphgroup.com
Triumph Group, Inc., Berwyn, Pa., announces the selection of its Aerospace Structures business by Gulfstream to manufacture a new order of fuselage frames for the Gulfstream G500 and G600 aircraft via stretch forming
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Massive precipitation of nanoscale AlTi particles strengthens multiple-metal alloy
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City University of Hong Kong (CityU) researchers report that they have developed a novel strategy to design new high-strength alloys that are also ductile and flexible. The strategy overcomes the critical issues of the strength-ductility trade-off dilemma, paving the way for developing innovative structural materials in future.
Multiple-principal element alloys, generally referred as high-entropy alloys (HEAs), are designed with equal or nearly equal quantities of five or more metals. They are currently the focus of attention in materials science and engineering due to their potential for structural applications. Yet most of the alloys share the same key detrimental feature: the higher the strength, the less the ductility and toughness.
Recently, a research team led by Professor Liu Chain Tsuan, University Distinguished Professor of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at CityU, has found a breakthrough solution to this daunting decades-long dilemma -- by making high-entropy alloys both strong and yet also very ductile through massive precipitation of nanoscale particles. The research has just been published in the latest issue of the journal Science, titled "Multicomponent intermetallic nanoparticles and superb mechanical behaviours of complex alloys."
"We are able to make a new high-entropy alloy called Al7Ti7 ((FeCoNi)86-Al7Ti7) with a superior strength of 1.5 GPa and ductility as high as 50% in tension at ambient temperature. Strengthened by nanoparticles, this new alloy is five times stronger than that of the iron-cobalt-nickel (FeCoNi)-based alloy," says Professor Liu.
"Most conventional alloys contain one or two major elements, such as nickel and iron to manufacture," he explains. "However, by adding additional elements of aluminum and titanium to form massive precipitation in the FeCoNi-based alloy, both the strength and the ductility have significantly increased, solving the critical issue of the trade-off dilemma for structural materials."
Moreover, high-strength alloys usually face plastic deformation instability, known as the necking problem, meaning that when the alloy is under high pressure, its deformation would become unstable and very easily lead to necking fracture (localized deformation) with very limited uniform elongation. But the team has further found that by adding "multicomponent intermetallic nanoparticles," meaning complex nanoparticles made of atoms of different elements, it can greatly strengthen the alloy uniformly by reducing the deformation instability.
And they have found the ideal formula for these complex nanoparticles, which consist of nickel, cobalt, iron, titanium, and aluminum atoms. Professor Liu explains that each nanoparticle measures 30 to 50 nm only. The iron and cobalt atoms, which replace some of the nickel atoms, help to reduce the valence electron density and improve the new alloy's ductility. On the other hand, replacing some of the aluminum with titanium largely reduces the impact of moisture in air, to avoid induced embrittlement.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/11/181127092520.htm
City University of Hong Kong (CityU) researchers report that they have developed a novel strategy to design new high-strength alloys that are also ductile and flexible by causing massive precipitation of nanoscale particles.
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GE Additive company to offer aluminum alloy F357 powder for aerospace and automotive
December 12, 2018
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AP&C, a GE Additive company located in Saint-Eustache, Canada, announces that it will begin production of aluminum alloy F357 powder to meet increased demand from aerospace and automotive sectors in Q1 2019. Customer deliveries are expected from April 2019.
The product is known for its good weldability with high strength and toughness, while offering a good corrosion resistance and heat conductivity. AP&C will use its proprietary Advanced Plasma Atomization (APA) for production at its recently expanded facility in Saint-Eustache, Canada. The new, automated plant offers a full production capacity of 1,000 tons.
Aluminum shares similar characteristics with titanium, and aluminum alloy F357 powder has the same quality signature as APATM titanium powders, providing the processability, high flowability, high packing, low porosity and high purity required by the additive manufacturing industry to enhance performance and reliability for the aluminum printing process.
www.ge.com/additive
AP&C, a GE Additive company located in Saint-Eustache, Canada, announces that it will begin production of aluminum alloy F357 powder to meet increased demand from aerospace and automotive sectors in Q1 2019.
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Powder coating conveyor oven preheats and coats steel couplings for oil and gas equipment
December 9, 2018
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Wisconsin Oven Corp., East Troy, Wis., has delivered a natural-gas-fired conveyor oven to a supplier of the oil and gas industry for the preheating and powder coating of steel couplings. It has sufficient capability to heat 1000 pounds per hour of steel parts from 70°F to 1000°F, provided that the workload is configured in a manner that is capable of absorbing the heat that is generated within the time available.
The powder coating conveyor oven has a maximum temp of 1000°F with guaranteed temperature uniformity of ±10°F at 1000°F. The work chamber dimensions are 2 x 10 x 1. 2 ft., and the chamber was designed with bottom-up airflow to maximize heating rates and temperature uniformity of the part load configuration. A roller chain conveyor system with cross flight attachments is utilized to transport the product through the system, and a variable frequency drive provides adjustable speed control. Fabric ribbon curtains are located at both ends of the conveyor to prevent heat spill-out.
“This conveyor oven will be used for both preheating and powder coating, so it was important to provide design features to handle both applications,†says Gene Vetter, Senior Applications Engineer. “One of those features is an Allen-Bradley variable frequency drive that allows the operator to adjust the conveyor speed based on the application or part being processed.â€
https://www.wisoven.com/products/conveyor-ovens
Wisconsin Oven Corp., East Troy, Wis., has delivered a natural-gas-fired conveyor oven to a supplier of the oil and gas industry for the preheating and powder coating of steel couplings.
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Oerlikon Balzers receives Airbus Qualified Supplier status for its Balinit WC/C coating
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Oerlikon Balzers, Switzerland, announces that it has received Qualified Supplier status from Airbus for its two customer centers in Great Britain and France for copper-alloy substrate coatings using Balinit C. Both locations are already certified as qualified suppliers of coatings on steel, titanium, and Inconel substrates.
Balinit C is a WC/C-based (tungsten carbide/carbon) coating that is a mixture of metal and diamond-like carbon. It reduces surface fatigue and tribo-oxidation on many aerospace components. Tribological coatings are mainly used to reduce adhesive wear that is associated with problems such as seizing or cold-welding. A low friction coefficient and good sliding properties make them ideal for low-lubrication and even dry-running applications.
The coating helps reduce surface fatigue and withstand wear and high loads when applied to aerospace components made of steel, titanium, and its various alloys. The coating is lightweight and exhibits low-friction. Its technical qualification as a non-hazardous and REACH-conforming option to hard chrome plating, completes the Airbus Industrial Qualification Process for both Oerlikon Balzers customer centers in Great Britain and France.
Oerlikon Balzers’ customer centers Milton Keynes (Great Britain), Ferrière-en-Brie (France), Guelph (Canada), and Niedercorn (Luxembourg) are all Nadcap-accredited and provide world-class coating solutions and services to the aerospace industry. Nadcap, National Aerospace and Defense Contractors Accreditation Program, is a worldwide industry-controlled global cooperation program, designed to achieve a cost-effective consensus approach to special processes and products and to provide continuous improvement within the aerospace industry.
www.oerlikon.com/balzers
Oerlikon Balzers, Switzerland, announces that it has received Qualified Supplier status from Airbus for its two customer centers in Great Britain and France for copper-alloy substrate coatings using Balinit C, a tungsten carbide/carbon coating.
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GKN Powder Metallurgy and EOS partner to advance metal additive manufacturing
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GKN Powder Metallurgy, DuBois, Pa., has formed a strategic partnership with EOS GmbH, Germany, with the goal of designing a new, high-productivity process for laser-based metal additive manufacturing to reduce production time by 70% and overall cost by up to 50%.
The combination of GKN’s innovative metal powder, EOS Stainless Steel 316L VPro, and its additive manufacturing expertise, should make it possible to create high-performance parts designed for end-use at scale.
“In order to expand our footprint in the automotive industry, we were looking for a strong partner with a high level of expertise in the field of steels and typical industry grade materials combined with a proven track record of further industrialising technologies together with customer applications,†says Dr Adrian Keppler, CEO at EOS. “We found a perfect partner in GKN Powder Metallurgy. Based on this partnership, our customers will benefit from higher build speeds and lower material costs resulting in significantly optimized cost per part. This is going to lower the entry barrier and will enable completely new application fields.â€
www.gknpm.com
www.eos.info
GKN Powder Metallurgy, DuBois, Pa., has formed a strategic partnership with EOS GmbH, Germany, with the goal of designing a new, high-productivity process for laser-based metal additive manufacturing to reduce production time by 70% and overall cost by up to 50%.
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Seco gas nitriding furnace enables production of high-performance steel surfaces
December 8, 2018
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Seco Vacuum, Meadville, Pa., reports that a growing American manufacturer has recently ordered a new precision gas nitriding furnace with ZeroFlow. The furnace will allow the company to offer engineered steel surfaces that exceed, in many cases, its competitors’ product performance, giving it an edge via heat treating that few other companies in their competitive sphere can replicate. The customer is involved in high-end manufacturing of various transportation components.
ZeroFlow solves a broad array of heat processing needs, such as lower operating costs, attractive return-on-investment (ROI), precise control of case depth, and control of nitride layer formation.
“ZeroFlow refers to precision gas nitriding, but the Seco Vacuum retort line of furnaces offers so much more," said Piotr Zawistowski, Managing Director of Seco Vacuum Technologies.
The vacuum purge provides inexpensive processing atmospheres, and the vacuum-tight construction assures clean heat processing for tempering, annealing, and precipitation hardening. This retort furnace can be paired with a oil quench hardening and low pressure carburizing furnace for extreme flexibility.â€
The furnace is equipped with all options, including accelerated turbo cooling. In addition to gas nitriding, it also has ferritic nitrocarburizing capability and pre- and post-oxidation. Unique to its design is the ability to clean temper and clean anneal to temperatures up to 1400°F.
https://www.secovacusa.com/product/zeroflow-furnace
Seco Vacuum, Meadville, Pa., reports that a growing American manufacturer has recently ordered a new precision gas nitriding furnace with ZeroFlow.
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Wisconsin Oven ships belt conveyor oven for preheating aluminum forging billets
December 6, 2018
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Wisconsin Oven Corp., East Troy, has shipped a forging company a natural gas-fired conveyor oven that will serve as a preheating oven for aluminum billets.
The oven has sufficient capability to heat 3000 pounds per hour of aluminum from 70°F to 950°F, as long as the workload is configured in a manner that is capable of absorbing the heat generated within the time available. It has a maximum temperature of 1000°F with guaranteed temperature uniformity of ±10°F at 950°F.
The work chamber is 3.5 x 25 x 1 foot high. The oven was designed with both top-down and bottom-up airflow to maximize heating rates and temperature uniformity of the part load configuration. The conveyor system utilizes a stainless steel flat wire belt, and a variable frequency drive provides adjustable speed control.
“The oven utilizes a chain style curtain to minimize heat spill-out, which increases operator comfort and reduces wasted energy,†says Gene Vetter, Senior Applications Engineer.
https://www.wisoven.com/products/conveyor-ovens
Wisconsin Oven Corp., East Troy, has shipped a forging company a natural gas-fired conveyor oven that will serve as a preheating oven for aluminum billets.
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