Product category:
Machine Safety Components
News Release from: Fortress Interlocks | Subject: Safety interlocks
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 29 August 2001
Robust new slidebar on safety interlocks
Fortress has extended its range of interlocks with the launch of a robust new design of its slidebar, designed to control access to enclosed areas or machines where hazards may be present
Fortress has extended its range of interlocks with the launch of a robust new design of its slidebar As part of a modular interlock system, the slidebar is designed to control access to enclosed areas or machines where hazards may be present
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 19 Oct 2000 at 8.00am (UK)
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Fitted to machine guarding on the factory floor, the slidebar can be used in conjunction with the Fortress AmGard 2000 range of interlocks, to ensure operator protection.
As the tongue of the slidebar is extracted, the handle on the front latches so that it cannot be reinserted without being manually reset.
For maintenance use, padlocks have been incorporated into the design.
When the tongue is out, a padlock can be used to prevent the machine from being restarted while operators are still within the hazardous area.
The new interlock is suitable for a variety of applications.
If combined with Autostop*, operating the slidebar from within the guarded area will immediately shut down machinery.
The slidebar's tongue cannot be reinserted from within the guarded area, so workers cannot be locked in and restart machinery.
*Autostop is an ideal lock for controlling safe quick access to machines without run down cycles.
The slidebar is also offered without an internal release handle.
When used with either Autostop or Autolok*, operators can no longer slam doors shut; closing the door must be a deliberate action.
Having benefited at the development stage from the use of 3D CAD software, the new slidebar can now be produced to the customer's specification as a cast design.
The customer can detail any of 12 possible configurations for their slidebar interlocks, cast from the same standard set of products.
Casting has also meant that the slidebar's constituent parts cannot be readily separated, and that integral moving components stay hidden.
In this way, the new slidebar's spring is not exposed to external wear and tear.
*Autolok is a solenoid-controlled lock designed for restricting access to machines with run down cycles.
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