Recently, Pinpoint Scientific of Bridgend, Wales, U.K. set out to develop an innovative active air monitoring and sampling system — the ImpactAir®-140. This sampler works by drawing in air at high speeds. Particles and microbes impact and stick onto an agar surface in a Petri dish, where the unit measures them as colony forming units (CFU) per cubic meter and then displays the results.

The ImpactAir-140 Slit-to-Agar microbial air sampler offers several advantages versus conventional monitoring systems such as stainless steel construction with no particle shedding, low vibrations, easy operation and higher sampling efficiency. Its most important breakthrough is a built-in system that constantly monitors and adjusts the distance between the indent and the agar surface — a factor that causes significant performance variations in other samplers.

Enabling Easy Control of the Lid

Pinpoint Scientific decided to make the ImpactAir-140 more user-friendly than previous generations of microbial air samplers. To make the lid to the Petri dish easier to operate, the company turned to a local ACE distributor, Applied Automation, to provide a motion control device. Although the distributor could have recommended industrial gas springs, the customer’s specific requirements made hydraulic dampers the optimal choice. These dampers provide a constant feed rate, combined with easy adjustability, and only have to be tapped lightly to trigger the lid to open. They also allow gentle closure without additional damping.

With the help of the ACE distributor, Pinpoint Scientific equipped its sampler with HB15-50 type hydraulic dampers. A 15-millimeter outer body diameter and 50-millimeter stroke make these components an ideal choice for easily opening and keeping the lid at the desired, 60-degree opening angle. Making adjustments at the end position is easy, and these dampers offer a compressive and extension force adjustment range from 20 to 800 Newtons.

Additional features include:

• A coated body
• Piston rods with rear-resistant surface treatment
• Long service life
• Maintenance-free and ready to install

Since the ImpactAir-140 is intended for critical laboratory and cleanroom environments, mineral oil could not be used as a damping medium. Instead, ACE engineers filled the dampers with a specially refined vegetable oil with a similar viscosity and service life. Pinpoint Scientific also engineered stainless steel sleeves to cover the outer bodies of the dampers to adhere to strict hygienic requirements.

Lids Without Limits

The ImpactAir-140 Slit-to-Agar microbial active air sampler is positioned as the new gold standard in active air monitoring and sampling. And, due to the high quality and long service life of the HB15-50 hydraulic dampers, there are no limits to how often the lid of this high high-end instrument can be opened or closed. “Working together quickly with our distributor, Applied Automation, led to the desired result for Pinpoint Scientific,” says Wyn Gordge, Area Manager for ACE Fabreeka UK.

For more information about our HB15-50 hydraulic damper, visit our product page. 

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Hydraulic dampers are ideal anytime you need doors, flaps or hoods to close in a smooth, controlled way. Similar to industrial gas springs, these components provide single or bidirectional motion control for a range of applications. They are also adjustable—letting you stabilize movement in both the push and pull directions—and easy to mount.

In this post, we’ll provide you with some helpful tips on how to best mount your hydraulic damper—ensuring it operates safely and with minimal wear.

Choosing Your Damper
Hydraulic dampers come in a wide range of sizes with different end fittings, strokes and compression and extension forces. Choosing the right one depends on the required damping direction—out-stroke only, in-stroke only or both directions—as well as the mounting conditions and weight of the flap. To assist you, experts can provide you with mounting points so the only thing you’ll need to adjust during installation is velocity. If the damping is too fast, simply turn the piston rod in the end position to the right to close the orifice. If the damping is too slow, turn the rod to the left to open the orifice.

Accounting for Mounting Variables
If you need to mount your damper outside, bear in mind that drastic temperature changes can change the viscosity of the hydraulic fluid. Fortunately, ACE dampers let you easily adjust your device to account for these changing conditions.

ACE tips: To avoid free travel in the damping stroke, we recommend choosing a damper with a longer complete stroke or using an HBD damper, which does not allow for free travel. Improper assembly can cause damaging end-position wear. Proper assembly, on the other hand, ensures your flap will close with uniform velocity.

Selecting the right hydraulic damper for your application has never been easier. To get started, check out our free calculations service.

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Here’s how hydraulic dampers from ACE Controls overcame that challenge—while helping both farmers and the environment in the process.

Reducing Agricultural Drift
Drift creates a number of problems. For one, farmers require more costly chemicals. Because the amount that reaches the crops isn’t guaranteed, plants also tend to receive too much or too little—resulting in smaller yields. And finally, the excessive, wasteful spraying is harmful to the environment.

The Wingssprayer solves these problems. The concept is simple: the Wingssprayer integrates wings—much like the ones on an airplane— that push the plants down during spraying, creating downward streams of air that steer the chemical droplets into the deepest parts of the plants. In addition, these aerodynamic airstreams form a blanket of air over the crops behind the machine, preventing the drops from escaping. And finally, it sprays small droplets which, as opposed to the traditionally sprayed large drops, completely cover the crop with a fine mist.

ACE Hydraulic Dampers To The Rescue
But the Wingssprayer doesn’t just rely on wings. To operate safely, it utilizes hydraulic dampers (type HB-15-25) from ACE Controls. Otherwise, the sheer size of the Wingssprayer would cause it to shake during operation—to the point where the machine could damage itself.

The dampers, which resemble industrial gas springs, are adjustable—enabling engineers to stabilize movement in both the push and pull directions. ACE delivered a double-acting variant capable of a maximum compression force of 179.85 pounds, stabilizing the machine even on very windy days. Since integrating these components, the machine has operated safely and efficiently—and to this day, continues to have a positive impact on the environment.

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With its wheel-truing machine, Dutch company Holland Mechanics BV specializes in making sure the spokes on bicycle wheels are loaded with the correct tension, avoiding rim warpage. By integrating ACE hydraulic brake cylinders into the machine’s design, the company discovered it can better control the machine’s motion, resulting in several benefits.

Avoiding rebound. Initially, during operation, rubber buffers were used to absorb the movement of the truing machine, causing a rebound. This effect, combined with stricter customer requirements, prompted the designers to look for a different solution. They decided to switch out the rubber buffers for hydraulic brake cylinders from ACE Controls, which would prevent any rebound from happening.

Reducing tolerance. The addition of ACE brake cylinders into the wheel-truing machine, along with improvements to the machine’s drive unit and the integration of other, more precise components, lowered tolerance values from ±0.4 mm to ±0.1 mm.

Increasing production speed. Thanks to the cylinders, production speed also increased by 10 percent. With the machine’s movement under control, gripping accuracy has improved. No longer does the machine’s grippers miss the spokes, bringing production to a grinding halt.

ACE hydraulic brake cylinders (model HB-12-20-EE-P), which resemble industrial gas springs in terms of their structure, have a small, compact design, meaning they can be easily integrated into your existing system. With diameters of 12 mm and stroke lengths of 20 mm, these components can apply compression forces of up to 180 N and have an operating temperature range of -20 to +80°C for use in virtually any environment.

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