Product category:
Pneumatic Valves and Controls
News Release from: Asco Numatics | Subject: Compact 8
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 30 September 2004
Valve islands save size, weight and
installation
The Compact 8 range are claimed to be the smallest and lightest 8mm section valve islands on the market, consuming less than one third the space of competing units for an eight-station island.
The Compact 8 range of valve islands are claimed to be the smallest and lightest 8mm section units on the market, consuming less than one third the space of competing units for an eight-station island, and weighing in some cases, just half as much These benefits make the Compact 8 the ideal system for OEMs looking to downsize their machines while, at the same time, enjoying the advantages of high flow performance (280 litre/min), plus the flexibility of simplified assembly and connection and Fieldbus communications
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 12 Mar 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Short form catalogue for process valves
New short form catalogue from Asco Joucomatic is a single source for all process valve requirements.
Innovative pneumatic cylinders are ultra-compact
Asco Joucomatic's new compact PEC cylinders are designed with innovative flat end caps and female piston rods which reduce their volume by a massive 65%, compared to an equivalent standard cylinder
Small enough to fit into the palm of the hand, an eightstation Compact 8 island consumes just 490cm3 of machine or panel space and weighs in at only 600g, yet the unit offers enough flow to operate 50mm bore cylinders, directly, and the ability to pilot piston and butterfly process valves.
The key to this performance is the use of computer simulation in the design of the Compact 8 Series of valves.
This optimises the position and orientation of the holes in the valve sections to ensure that optimum flow paths are achieved.
The design keeps the change of flow direction down to an absolute minimum, thus maximising the volume of air through the valves.
The same modular design also enables the Compact 8 islands to offer the OEM total flexibility in construction, mounting and in the type of control which they perform.
Further reading
New brass-bodied general purpose solenoid valves
A new range of general purpose, brass bodied, direct acting solenoid valves from Asco Joucomatic is designed to provide fast, efficient and reliable on/off, feeding, piloting and venting functions
Precision guiding from off-the-shelf mini slides
By combining the functions of actuation, guiding and anti-rotation into a single product, ASCO Joucomatic's new TUB slide units provide a comprehensive off-the-shelf multi-purpose handling package
Short stroke cylinders designed for auto industry
Asco Joucomatic's new KN range of short stroke cylinders have been designed with the needs of the automobile industry in mind and comply with the new European AFNOR NF E 49-004 standard.
Supplied with IP65 ingress protection as standard, the islands can be mounted directly onto machines, in panels or near pneumatic actuators, thus fulfilling industry specific requirements in environments such as assembly, food processing, packaging, process control, textiles, paper, printing and pharmaceuticals.
In addition, with just one key required to assemble up to sixteen 8mm wide valves, the majority of industry requirements can be satisfied quickly, usually from a single manifold platform, which is compatible with standard fieldbuses such as Profibus and DeviceNet.
Key to the ability to assemble Compact 8 units quickly is a design that optimises OEM stock profiles by including the smallest number of parts.
Latest job opportunities
(Embedded) Electronics Design Engineers - Graduates to Senior
(Embedded) Electronics Design Engineers - Avon Ongoing business growth at this worl leading company has created a number of challenging and rewarding career opportunities to appeal to exceptional Electronics Design Engineers with varying levels of...
Multi Skilled Maintenance Engineer, Maintenance Engineer
Maintenance Engineer (FOOD/FMCG)
Job Title: Multi Skilled Maintenance Engineer, Maintenance Engineer
Area: Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, London, Middlesex, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Essex, Kent, Surrey, South East
Salary: ...
Electrical, Mechanical, Maintenance Engineer
Mechanical Fitter, Diesel Fitter, Mechanical Technician, Maintenance Engineer X4
Job Title: Electrical, Mechanical, Maintenance Engineer
Area: East London, Essex, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, London, Berkshire, Middlesex,...
In addition, the Compact 8 offers the benefit of singular expansion, in contrast to many competing islands, which expand in steps of two valves.
This enhances competitiveness, as OEMs do not have to pay for redundant functionality that they will not use.
The cost benefits to OEMs of singular expansion are complemented by the choice of spool valves that make up the Compact 8 valve islands.
These can be monostable or bistable, 3/2, 5/2 or 5/3 units, single or double pilot operated with low power (0.15W) coils.
As an added means of enhancing flexibility, the Compact 8's monostable and bistable spool valves are of the same size.
This allows the islands to be equipped with intermediary modules for additional pressure supplies or blanking plates, enabling them to be supplied with two or three different pressure levels.
Importantly, the user saves much installation time and effort as the Compact 8 valve sections clip together simply in a matter of seconds to form finished islands.
Moreover, once complete, further installation time is saved by the Compact 8's optimised, addressable pinning system, which automatically assigns connector pins to each spool valve in accordance with its function.
In programmable mode, this feature offers the advantage of the pin assignment being easily adaptable to existing installations, which for OEMs producing serial machines, is a real production bonus.
The flexible design philosophy employed to create the Compact 8 range offers the OEM and user the best possible range of connection options to meet almost all requirements.
These include: Multipol with 25 sub-D connector (IP40 or IP65) for use with up to 16 valves as standard; ASi interface network electrical connection with M8 and M12 connectors - extenable up to two bistable or four monostable valves; and connection via fieldbuses.
the Compact 8 system can be used with both Profibus-DP, DeviceNet in configurations up to 16 valves. Request a free brochure from Asco Numatics ...
• Asco Numatics: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Engineeringtalk email newsletter
• Engineeringtalk Home Page
