Where small is BEAUTIFUL

Size matters at this year's Drives and Controls show. Compactness is a recurring theme of the new launches, with major suppliers such as Eurotherm, ABB, Hitachi, Rockwell and Mitsubishi deciding that small is definitely beautiful.

Hitachi, for example, is using the show as a European launchpad for its SJ100 flux inverter, half the size of its predecessor, which was already one of the smallest units in its class, it claims (enter 300 on enquiry card). Delivering constant high torque at low speeds, the SJ100 is intended for applications such as conveyors, mixers and extruders. Regenerative braking is a standard feature, as is PID control and 16-speed operation.

Danfoss is also promoting size-consciousness with its VLT2800 series, which spans the 0.37-7.5kW range (301). Intended for applications such as centrifugal pumps, fans, displacement pumps and centrifuges, the drives are modular in design, with a standard base unit and a factory-fitted option module. These can include motor coils, 1B and RFI filters, and serial links using either Profibus or CANbus. Standard features include software to ensure that the drive will automatically tune itself to any standard motor.

Size matters too at Eurotherm, where the 631 series of micro-servos are designed for compactness and low cost. Prices have been kept low by using many common parts and high-volume manufacturing methods, the company says. Other new products include a rack-mounted configuration for the existing 635 and 637 brushless servo drives. The company has also extended its 600 series sensorless vector to cover power ratings up to 15kW (302).

In the control field, the show features a new control platform from Allen Bradley, the MicroLogix 1500 micro-PLC, which has the capability of digital and analogue I/O expansion (303). The unit is suited for applications for 24 to 128 I/O, says product manager Richard Sturt. `Just the right amount of I/O can be selected to fit the application,' he explains. The system uses the same programming environment and instruction set as the company's larger SLC 500 PLC.

GE Fanuc, meanwhile, is using the show to launch the VersaMax system which, it claims, combines the power of micro-PLCs, distributed I/O and distributed control. The company will also be showing off its PC Control software, which provides PLC functionality on a PC platform (304).

Pantek is also exhibiting software, with demonstrations of the Wonderware FactorySuite software, which picked up two awards last year (305).

Although the focus of the exhibition is naturally drives and controls, other suppliers will also be represented. Omniflex, for example, is presenting its Omni range of alarm annunciator panels; and the Maxiflex programmable remote terminal unit, which is designed for industrial data acquisition and control (306).

Asco Joucomatic is presenting more products to fit into field communications strategies, with a Generation C Buslink system of integrated valve manifolds (307). Fitting in with the overall theme of compactness, the system `offers enhanced levels of control over previous Buslink systems but with a space envelope approximately 33 per cent smaller,' the company claims. The saving is achieved by using push/pull low-wattage solenoids, which are smaller than the conventionally-used bistable solenoids. PE