Articulating snowboard
When learning to snowboard, making linked turns--one right after another--is the hardest technique to master. Turning involves a tricky combination of shifting weight and rotary movements. The new design, from Seattle-based Hyarc Technologies, only requires shifting weight, and reportedly can have a novice snowboarder linking turns in a matter of hours.
The heart of Hyarc's patented snowboard design is a control bar that connects two in-line board sections, the board provides snowboarding excitement with the edge control and precision carving of skis.
At the heart of the design is a control bar, connecting two sections of the board end-to-end. Control Tech Northwest of Kent, WA manufactures the light-weight aluminum frame and cable system. It attaches to the top, and runs parallel to the wood, epoxy, and fiberglass boards to support the bindings.
Control Tech turned to Thorofare, NJ-based Garlock Bearings Inc. for the control-bar pivot and binding mount bearings. Garlock recommended DU bearings that could operate for years without lubrication in cold wet environments. Moreover, the bearings offer high strength in a low profile.
Joseph Fults, Garlock Bearings Inc., 700 Mid Atlantic Blvd., Thorofare, NJ 08086, (609) 848-3200.
Moisture-proof photo sensor
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| With 3608 rotation in two axes, the patented mounting bracket system enables screw or rod-mount and makes alignment quick and easy. Sensor ‘learns’ the signal strength characteristics of target present and target non-present conditions, then automatically adjusts its switching point for maximum safety margin. |
High-humidity environments produce condensation that's tough on photoelectric sensors. Once moisture infiltrates the sensor's body--the lens gets cloudy, and the sensor can fail.
To address contamination problems, this sensor has a one-piece molded body filled with polyurethane-resin. Clear LED window and flexible switch membrane, formed during the molding process, seal the push button and LEDs. The lens actually resides in a separate, ultrasonically-welded housing that is sealed with O-rings.
Flexible-film circuitry protects the microprocessor and miniaturized electronics from vibration and thermal expansion. And simple, push-button gain adjustment reduces set-up time. Moreover, a unique mounting system makes perfect sensor alignment quick and easy. Infrared units range from $70 to $92, or for more critical applications, laser-diode units provide 100 X greater axis gain and cost only $135 to $250.
Christine Perkins, efector, inc., 805 Springdale Dr., Exton, PA 19341, (610) 524-2000.
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