How to Improve Aerodynamics with single point load cells and digital indicators.

Challenge – To Evaluate the Aerodynamics of Scale Models
Scale Engineering design and manufacture wind tunnels, industrial test rigs and research equipment for schools, universities and the commercial sector.  Their newly designed Scale Wind Tunnel can test the aerodynamics of scale models using the same principles as a full sized version, without the need for a huge test laboratory.  Recently used at Purbeck School’s Science Fair, the Scale Wind Tunnel uses two single point load cells and Intuitive2-L digital indicators, from Applied Measurements,  enabling students to evaluate, amend and improve their LEGO model design.

How Does It Work?

The Scale Wind Tunnel has two OBUG-5kg single point load cells fixed at 90˚ to each other installed on a base plate inside the tunnel.  Once the scale model is mounted inside the tunnel, the air is forced into the tunnel through the laminar air intake and along a honeycomb structure to decrease the air turbulence.  As the tunnel narrows, the airspeed increases, allowing one OBUG single point load cell to measure the lift force and the other to measure the drag force (the resistance generated by the model inside the tunnel).  The results are relayed to two separate Intuitive2-L digital indicators for analysis, enabling the students to make necessary adjustments to their design.

OBU Single Point Compression Load Cells

• Dual Cantilever Design
•  IP65 Protection Rating as Standard (IP67 Optional)
• High Accuracy <±0.03% of Rated Capacity
• Sense Wire Facility
• Moment Insensitive
• Aluminium Construction – Light Weight and Low Cost
• Customisation Available
• Optional Integration on Finished Weighing Platform

Their range of OBU single point load cells are extremely resistant to off-centre loading thanks to their dual cantilever design.  They are moment insensitive meaning that only one unit is required centrally positioned to make a weighing system, or, as in the case of Scale Engineering, allows them to be used in tandem to create a dual-axis measurement system with minimal crosstalk.  This makes them incredibly cost-effective and ideal for applications where a low cost is essential.  Our single point load cells have an IP65 protection rating with an option to increase to IP67 on some capacities if you need them for an even harsher environment.  Their common uses include low force measurement applications such as manufacturing, testing, research and development such as the Scale Wind Tunnel application.  Their aluminium construction makes them very lightweight, while still delivering highly stable and accurate results to <±0.03% of the rated capacity.

Intuitive2-L Load Cell Digital Indicators

•  6 Digit Display
• Simple and Easy to Use – No-Menu Programming
• IP65 Protection Rating
• 20-Bit A/D Converter
• Can Power up to Four 350Ω Strain Gauge Load Cells
• Modular Construction
• Variety of Display Colour Options

The Intuitive2-L digital indicators are easy to use and simple to set-up giving you a fast effortless installation.  The 4 panel buttons, on-display prompts and no-menu programming really does mean you can quickly and easily calibrate and install the digital indicator straight into your application for immediate use.  The display also has a 10Vdc excitation supply which can power up to four 350 Ohm load cells giving you a versatile complete monitoring system.  Its modular construction means you can configure the Intuitive2-L digital indicator to match your needs, making it unique to you and your application.

The indicator’s bright 6-digit LED display offers superb resolution and stability all thanks to its fantastic 20-bit A/D converter and highly stable strain gauge bridge excitation source.  The Intuitive2-L digital indicator is IP65 protection rated and comes with a variety of digit colour options to suit your application environment.  For example, to easily differentiate the lift force and the drag force results the Scale Wind Tunnel used one indicator with a red display and the other green.  We chose the Intuitive2-L digital indicator because of its modular construction and variety of optional alarm relays, analogue and digital outputs, enabling the Intuitive2-L to be tailored to the exact specification of the Scale Wind Tunnel.

@AppMeas #PAuto #Lego

Lego League Tournament!

Seven teams of children from schools in various part of England recently competed in a FIRST^® LEGO^® League (FLL^®) regional tournament, organised by the Institution of Engineering and Technology and hosted by National Instruments UK & Ireland in the company’s Newbury headquarters. 

FLL is a team-based robotics programme and competition for 9-16 year olds, designed to excite children about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and real-world issues, as well as teach them valuable life, career and teamwork skills. The key aim is to encourage students from primary and secondary school into science and engineering. National Instruments LabVIEW graphical programming software powers the LEGO^® MINDSTORMS^® robotics platform, which is used by hundreds of teams of schoolchildren in the UK & Ireland, and over 250,000 young people globally, in the FLL robotics competition. 

With “Nature’s Fury” the theme for this year’s tournament, the teams deployed their robots to address a real-world challenge on the game tables, showcasing their creativity, technical skills and enthusiasm with topics such as a volcano eruption, zombie apocalypse and a plan to minimise forest fire devastation.  Each team was tasked with three challenges, judged by NI employees: a robot game, where pre-programmed robots moved around the FFL table to complete tasks for points; a presentation about their project; together with a  demonstration of their team working skills in the Core Values section of the tournament. 

“From building better medical devices to providing renewable energy, engineers will play an important role in improving our future. As such, the current global deficit of engineering talent is a big problem for society.  At National Instruments, we believe that events like FLL will play a key role in inspiring and nurturing the UK's next generation of engineers, which will lead to a better future for us all” said Robert Morton, Managing Director, National Instruments UK & Ireland, who attended the tournament. “FLL provides children with a real insight into the wonderful world of engineering. On the run up to the event, the student teams had to identify a real-world problem, before combining software and hardware to create a solution. That is exactly what many professional engineers do every day." 

The winning team, Abingdon School from Oxfordshire, is now through to the national finals, where the British winner will proceed to compete in the global tournament, held in the United States later this year. 

Collegiate-level competition in Robotics

National Instruments and World Robot Olympiad (WRO) announced a collegiate-level competition to inspire innovation among students around the world. The pilot for the competition will take place at this year’s WRO world championship held in Jakarta, Indonesia from November 15 to 17. Since the robotics competition was founded in 2004, it has used NI technology via LEGO^® MINDSTORMS^® and now opens a new level of competition to give students an advanced programming option using the same software as professional engineers in virtually every industry. 

LEGO Mindstorms

“NI shares our belief that the best way to inspire students to pursue careers in science and engineering is to encourage them with fun, hands-on experiences,” said Johnson Jan, WRO Chairman of the Board. “The new collegiate-level competition at WRO engages students using real-world robotics platforms powered by LabVIEW to teach engineering fundamentals and creative problem solving skills.” 

NI, a WRO sponsor, worked with the organisation to develop an advanced pilot competition based on NI LabVIEW system design software for students age 17 and up. The Mars Colony-themed competition is a pilot in 2013 and becomes an official part of the global competition in 2014, when it opens to all WRO member countries. Approximately 100 collegiate-level teams participated in this pilot and teams from 15 countries will advance to the final competition in Jakarta. This collaboration builds on the previous NI partnership with WRO. In 2012, NI was a global sponsor of WRO and supported regional teams and events in Costa Rica, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria and Singapore. 

From Lego to space ships

LEGO^® MINDSTORMS^®

In a session at SXSWedu, National Instruments and LEGO Education demonstrated the power of robotics and the new EV3 platform to change the landscape of STEM education.

LabVIEW – the software powering EV3 – also powers feats of engineering such as the Red Bull Stratos supersonic free fall project and the Large Hadron Collider, a machine that is fundamentally impacting our understanding of the laws of physics. This means students as young as kindergarten are learning the exact same technology used by some of the world’s most prolific scientists and engineers.

In the session, LabVIEW K-12 Group Manager Nicole Richard and a panel of other STEM education advocates discussed what’s needed to inspire students to pursue science and engineering careers.

“LEGO platforms build technical literacy. Kids take complex engineering concepts and scale them down,” Richard said. “They're not just using technology, they're creating technology.”

Panelists also examined the need to help educators access the tools necessary for developing project-based curricula using real-world technologies. They noted that introducing students to critical thinking and problem solving in their first few years of education plays a pivotal role in helping them develop the confidence to continue engaging in STEM activities.

“LEGO and National Instruments have been collaborating for over a decade to create technology that puts tools used in industry into the hands of students. That type of collaboration is crucial to building a foundation for generations of future engineers,” said NI Vice President of Marketing Ray Almgren. “We must focus on creating future STEM industry professionals in Texas and around the globe who are ready to tackle the science and engineering challenges our world faces.”