While the boss is away......

The boss has gone away, and left us to fend for ourselves for a week. 

Time to sit back, watch some virals on YouTube, drink copious amounts of tea and generally relax. 
Right?

Wrong.

It’s easy to feel a bit inattentive when the boss is away, but we don't have time to put our feet up - this week is another busy one for Sarsen. We have quotes to send out, customers to visit and new enquiries to follow up. It’s also a good time to start looking at 2013, with marketing plans to be drawn up, and exhibitions schedules to look at. 
 

And speaking of exhibitions, the next one on the Sarsen calendar is the Advanced Engineering UK Show on 7th /8th November at the NEC in Birmingham. Tim Norris will be representing Sarsen Technology at the show, if you would like to meet up with him to discuss a new project, or one of our products in particular, please drop us a line.

Oh. And FYI, there are only 8 weekends left before Christmas!!

Particle Accelleration Controls Ghostly Activity..... In Theory!?

As All Hallows Eve approaches, vampires, witches and things-that-go-bump-in-the-night are at the forefront of every kid's (and us bigger kids) imaginations.  A crucifix on the door and a garlic rosary might scare off old Dracula, but what about the ghosts and ghouls that aren't so frightened of a humble vegetable? Who ya gonna call? 

Ghostbusters use a specialized set of equipment to aid in the capture and containment of ghosts.

The Proton Pack, designed by Dr. Egon Spengler, is an unlicensed, man-portable, nuclear particle accelerator system, that is used to create a particle beam composed of protons which polarizes with the negatively charged energy of a ghost, allowing it to be held in the stream while active. The beam allows a Ghostbuster to contain and hold "negatively charged ectoplasmic entities". The stream "lassos" the entity until it can be contained in a trap. The trap is a box with a hinged lid, remote-controlled by a simple pedal switch, attached to the end of the box by a long cable. When a ghost is brought close to the trap in the particle beam, the ghost trap is activated, its lid opens, and a force field draws the ghost inside.

In order to understand the technology behind the proton pack, you need to understand the basics of quantum physics...... At its most basic (and let’s face it, that’s about our level) - all materials in the universe are composed of atoms, with each atom consisting of three individual subatomic particles: protons, (positive) neutrons, (neutral) and electrons (negative). It’s pretty tough to split an atom, but it can be done.....

As the proton pack is initially powered, the booster begins to provide heavily-charged power to the system; accentuators just below the booster cylinder provide amplification, and alignment of power for use in particle collision within the cyclotron. (FYI - A cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator in which charged particles accelerate outwards from the centre along a spiral path. You probably knew that already…).

As particles are fed into the cyclotron, they are guided via alternating magnetic currents through the spiral, increasing particle speed exponentially. At the point of ideal speed, the atoms are ‘smashed’, breaking them down into their individual parts. As the loose particles are guided through an electromagnetic channel to the neutrona wand, they go through a filter, removing the negatively-charged electrons and neutrally charged neutrons. As the neutrona wand is fired, the stream of positively-charged protons is released from the wand tip, and the “negatively charged ectoplasmic entity”, more commonly called ‘a ghost’, is caught and trapped.

"Theres something very important I forgot to tell you! Don't cross the streams... It would be bad!"

Of course, this is all just theoretical. As are Ectoplasmic Entities. Or are they?

It doesn’t matter - I’m with Ray Parker Jr. on this one.

I Ain’t Afraid of No Ghost!!

Automotive Test and Measurement from Sarsen Technology Ltd

Automotive Testing.

It’s a pretty broad spectrum, covering everything from prototyping through to stress measurement, dynamometer testing and NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) data logging.

With the UK Automotive industry enjoying a resurgence over the last year, it’s more important than ever to provide customers with the latest, most reliable technology for all their testing needs.

Here at Sarsen, we represent a number of US based manufacturers with a host of products designed with the Automotive Test and Measurement industry in mind.

United Electronic Industries (UEI) is a leader in the PC/Ethernet data acquisition and control, Data Logger/Recorder and Programmable Automation Controller (PAC) and Modbus TCP markets. Their Cube and RACKtangle chassis can be configured in 5 different ways, to maximise potential usage. They will function as I/O slaves under control of a host PC, may be run as fully standalone data loggers or embedded controllers, or can be run as a hybrid, running applications locally, but taking direction from, or sharing data with a host PC on the network.

Deployment options –

• Ethernet I/O – PowerDNA
• HIL
• ULV control
• VME replacement
• Embedded control – UEIPAC
• Dynamometer control
• Prototype/production test
• Battery testing
• Data logger – UELogger
• NVH
• CAN/ECU logging
• Vehicle Health monitoring
• Simulink I/O – UEISIM
• Model verification
• Rapid prototyping
• HIL testing
• Modbus TCP I/O – UEIModbus
• Controller modernization
• Production test
• PLC Augmentation

VersaLogic Corp has recently released the Falcon EPU - a complete embedded computer in an extremely small/rugged format. The Falcon runs on an Intel Atom E6x0T processor, giving 1.6 GHz performance with low power consumption. 
Roughly the size of a credit card and less than one inch thick, the Falcon is designed to withstand extreme temperature, impact, and vibration. A wide input voltage range of 8 to 17 volts (12V typ.) simplifies system power supply requirements, meaning it is fully compatible with 12V automotive applications. The Falcon is a great choice for all kinds of requirements -  

Rugged HMI and Control 
Robotic Systems

Mobile Fixed Function 

Security / Surveillance 

Predictive Maintenance

 

 

 

If you would like any more info, please give us a call on +44 1672 511166, or email us - info@sarsen.net