As portable phones continue to evolve functionally, their physical appearance has changed commensurately, with plastic body shells giving way to slim and lightweight metal casings. Despite its appeal to consumers, the sleek design adds to complexity of the manufacturing process, with cutting and machining of the casing demanding extreme precision, where even slight deviations can result in scrapped work pieces, eroding profit margins.It is necessary to frequently change cutting tools so that the CNC equipment can maintain a constant yield rate. However, this runs up machinery supply costs, affecting profit margins. Furthermore, equipment availability is of utmost importance to phone case manufacturers, with sudden CNC machine failures compromising productivity and delaying delivery. This chain of events can decrease customer satisfaction and, commensurately, the operator's reputation. Manufacturers thus not only allocate human resources to conduct regular checks but also engage third-parties to back up maintenance support. Such passive approaches, however, provide only limited levels of prompt and effective response in the event of equipment failure.The manufacturing process of phone cases is one scenario where CNC equipment is used. With CNC cutting being used in a wide range of processing operations, manufacturers across diverse sectors all attempt to address the same CNC machining challenge in order to stay profitable.Manager Louis Hsu of ADLINK's Measurement and Automation product segment, submits that, alternatively, monitoring cutting operations during process, particularly vibration activity thereof, can directly address the root of the problem, whether to increase machining precision or boost equipment availability. This is mainly because, once problems such as imbalance, resonance, or misalignment increase machine vibration beyond an acceptable range, equipment may not be able to continue normal operation and malfunction or even failure can result.By capturing even minor vibration signals, a PC-based monitoring solution surpasses PLC solutionsWhen CNC machinery incorporates constantly running vibration monitoring, equipment conditions are readily available, increasing intelligence of the operation. No longer being forced to wait until production is completed to determine the cause of problems, they can conduct preventive inspections to instantly detect equipment irregularity as it starts and promptly take responsive actions. Slight deviations can be resolved in no time by adjusting process parameters (e.g. modifying spindle speed) or changing cutting tools to ward off potential future disasters.Vibration monitoring of CNC machinery is far from a new concept, with PLC solutions featuring plug-and-play simplicity and convenience working with CNC equipment in the field for some time. As such, the need for PC-based vibration monitoring over existing PLC solutions may be questioned.Even so, considering that some minor vibration or high frequency signals can actually indicate distinct problems, such as when a connector begins to lose balance, a spindle ball bearing may have developed a crack, affecting dynamic performance, or a fastener is coming loose. In such instances, the CNC machine's exhibiting signs of "illness", the specific nature of which can be identified by specific behaviors due to different machine characteristics, can be difficult for PLC solutions, with low sampling rate, limited frequency range, and fixed algorithms, to detect. If a CNC monitoring solution can be fully cognizant of such minor indicators, it will allow users to instantly be made aware of critical issues that can result in a decrease in precision or productivity, so that they can execute timely responses.Accordingly, ADLINK has developed the MCM-100, highlighting around-the-clock continuous data collection and vibration measurement with maximized precision and sampling rates for rotating machinery and equipment. Combining data collection, vibration analysis algorithms, computation and network connection in one system, the MCM-100 not only allows users (process manufacturers) to overcome challenges in traditional cutting process but also presents the most streamlined approach to increased connectivity in CNC machinery.Preventive maintenance achieved through high-precision monitoring works wondersHsu explains that there are generally three scenarios where process manufacturers can make good use of monitoring solutions on their CNC equipment. In spindle vibration detection, RMS values of time domain signals are measured. If the values are found to exceed a predetermined threshold, the spindle will be decelerated or stopped. The second, bearing quality diagnostics, assess bearing health when the CNC machine is not performing cutting but only idling at a high speed. Finally, spindle collision detection watches for spindle collisions by checking vibration waveforms against certain predefined conditions. If a match is found, it is determined that a collision has occurred and the spindle is stopped immediately.Monitoring efficacy in the first and second scenarios is closely related to the precision and frequency range of the vibration signals. PLC solutions, able to collect only a limited amount of information, are of little help to users in emergency response planning. In contrast, the MCM-100 not only features 24-bit high definition (as opposed to conventional solutions with 12-bit to 16-bit) but also captures high-frequency signals at a very high 128kS/s, compared to the conventional solutions' 20KS/s or lower, delivering significantly more vibration data for analysis.New opportunities for CNC machinery suppliersVibration monitoring of CNC cutting also creates new opportunities for CNC machinery suppliers. The abundant vibration data combined with Big Data analytics allow CNC machinery suppliers to gain more in-depth correlation between signal changes and machine malfunction, whereby they can leverage the accumulated knowledge to create value-added services, possibly allowing a shift in business model from making one-time sales to charging by machine uptime, thereby sustaining long-term profitability.According to ADLINK, with multiple deployments of vibration monitoring solutions by well-known CNC machinery suppliers coming into place, market demand for such solutions is on the rise with the year 2017 presenting particularly prominent growth. Clearly, both process manufacturers and CNC machinery suppliers are demonstrating increasing demand for solutions addressing vibration monitoring of CNC cutting equipment.Vibration monitoring of CNC cutting creates new opportunities for CNC machinery suppliers

Since SONY introduced the 18650 cylindrical lithium-ion battery in 1992, kick-starting the commercialization of lithium-ion batteries, the technology has been advancing with applications becoming more and more widespread, ranging from consumer electronics to electric cars and solar panels. Among these, electric cars are considered a high growth market for lithium-ion batteries.The promising outlook for lithium-ion automotive batteries has also spurred booming opportunities for related equipment. The market is expected to show more than 20% CAGR over the next few years, attracting numerous vendors to scramble for a share of the market. There are increasingly intense competitions throughout the front-end (electrode), mid-tier (battery cell) and back-end (packaging and testing) segments. To set themselves apart from their rivals, makers of equipment for lithium-ion batteries used in electric cars are all looking to raise production capacity and reduce costs and therefore are growingly evaluating and adopting EtherCAT. This has given rise to the popularity of EtherCAT, which enables multiple advantages including motion control with optimal compatibility and precise synchronization.Equipment for making lithium-ion batteries used in electric cars is generally of immense scale. Mixers, coaters, roller presses and flaking mills used during pre-process and electrode sheet laminators used during mid-process all include a massive number of axes and I/O points. As such, using a high-performance automation control system to allow as many axes and I/O points as possible to work in synchronization is critical to raising operation efficiency. However, traditional control technologies such as MNET and HSL use the RS485 communication protocol with less-than-optimal transmission efficiency so signal exchanges between axes take longer cycles during distributed motion control operations. This results in difficulty in achieving synchronization and therefore most processes can only work on a single-action basis, which falls short of vendor expectation to boost production capacity.A combination of compatible master and slave equipment delivers high CP valueDrawing on his experience in corresponding with a battery equipment supplier to electric car makers Tesla and BYD, Chia-Wei Yang, market development manager, automation business center, ADLINK, said the supplier has realized in order to increase equipment efficiency and thereby help lithium-ion battery making customers raise production yield, motion control has to advance from "single action" to "synchronous action" with the more co-moving axes the better. Accordingly, seeing that new generation motion control and I/O control technologies are necessary to achieve such purpose, the supplier evaluated several solutions including PROFINET, EtherNet/IP and EtherCAT and finally selected EtherCAT.The supplier made the choice mainly because EtherCAT can help increase production yield and also provide the additional benefit of cost saving.EtherCAT Technology Group now has over 4,500 members worldwide producing an accumulative total of more than 800 EtherCAT-enabled products. With the consortium of vendors joining forces to support the development of the open standard platform, in theory, the technology has great potential as long as suppliers of EtherCAT masters put in R&D efforts to make corresponding drivers available to EtherCAT slaves that are widely used on the market and ensure they pass stringent certification to guarantee compatibility between masters and slaves of different brands.The supplier tested the compatibility between six servomotors that its own equipment could support and several different brands of EtherCAT master controllers and found ADLINK's Talos series can work with all six servomotors without any problem. This means the supplier will no longer be limited to a single brand of motor and can freely choose the motor with the best cost performance value without changing software programs to maintain maximum cost-effectiveness.Synchronous motion across modules becomes a realityIn fact, besides hardware, software development efficiency also decides system costs. The supplier was using ADLINK's RS485-based control solutions as well as ADLINK's APS Function Library to accelerate development cycle because of the reusability of existing software programs. As such, when the supplier made the decision to upgrade from legacy systems to EtherCAT, it chose ADLINK's EtherCAT solution for an expedited transition (it would be necessary to rewrite software programs for EtherCAT masters of other vendors). A seamless upgrade was completed in two weeks thanks to the use of existing APS Function Library.Yang added if non-APS users are to adopt ADLINK's EtherCAT solution, it will be necessary to re-develop software. However, ADLINK will offer sample code and assign engineers to provide necessary assistance to help customers smooth out any bumps during the transition and accelerate the process.The above-mentioned automotive battery equipment supplier is now able to fill in gaps between its supply and demand that has long been put on hold. The process originally supporting only simple synchronous action has entered a new era of multi-axis synchronous action. High efficiency of up to eight axes moving in synchronization can now be achieved. Furthermore, old hardware module architecture prohibits cross-module synchronous action so some process steps have to be divided into several actions. It takes time for the process flow to transition from one action to the next. Now with EtherCAT, a single Ethernet cable can connect all pieces of slave equipment, overcoming module barriers and easily combining multiple actions into one with cross-module synchronization.Multi-axis and cross-module synchronous action has enabled giant leaps in productivity. The electric car battery equipment supplier has seen a 20%-30% upsurge in production yield and a 15% reduction in production costs, enjoying the benefit from a significant boost in its competitiveness.Now with EtherCAT, a single Ethernet cable can connect all pieces of slave equipment, overcoming module barriers and easily combining multiple actions into one with cross-module synchronization.

Developments of the optical lens industry have always been in close connection with those in end application markets, advancing from digital cameras and projectors in the early years to smartphones in recent years. Taiwan has formed a complete industry cluster supplying upstream blank glass, midstream lenses and downstream camera modules. With dual cameras and 3D sensing in smartphones becoming the trend in addition to burgeoning applications such as automotive cameras, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), robot vision and drones, the optical lens industry is looking forward to a bright future.Envisioning booming opportunities, optical lens producers are all looking to increase production capacity. As they tend to develop their own production equipment through independent research by their automation teams for protection of their trade secret, rather than purchasing equipment from suppliers, to increase capacity, they need to think of ways to enhance the equipment's ability to respond to quick production line changes and fully satisfy precision control requirements. Camera modules have diverse configurations and require precise assembly work. Without careful calculations on the positions and bonding angles between lenses, there may be optical axis misalignment resulting in blurry images and poor picture quality.Synchronous action across control cards is key to boosting production capacityUnder the circumstances, optical lens producers face the same challenge of how to implement synchronous motion control on the production line to achieve high-performance and high-precision control. Most manufacturers are used to satisfying their production needs by expanding motion control cards. The increase in the number of motion control cards means there are more axes that need to be controlled. Therefore, synchronous action across axes (cards) holds the key to increasing capacity, which is unlikely to happen due to limitation of the traditional architecture.Furthermore, with a limited number of I/O slots, industrial computers can hardly support continuing motion control card expansions. As a result, vendors have no choice but to keep buying more industrial computers, which imposes burden in terms of both costs and space. This is another challenge for the optical lens industry.Chia-Wei Yang, market development manager, automation business center, ADLINK, commented optical lens producers are phasing in EtherCAT solutions to overcome the above-mentioned challenges and enhance production flexibility. They hope to use "out-of-box" control and connect all EtherCAT masters and slaves with the same Ethernet cable so different axes under the control of different motion control cards have a chance to move in synchronization. Moreover, with the same Ethernet cable, optical lens producers can add new slave equipment at any time to address the needs for capacity expansion. Taking ADLINK's EtherCAT solution for example, up to 64 axes can operate in synchronization and the availability of 10,000 DI/O and 2,500 AI/O allows ample expandability.Using machine vision to guarantee reliable defect inspectionSome users may wonder that although capacity increase relies on hardware expansion, software changes are also required. This is ADLINK's strength, creating customer trust. ADLINK provides APS Function Library so customers can reuse existing software packages while also customizing some functions available from APS, such as redefining speed and loop and helical interpolation to accelerate software packaging or enrich software features. On the APS basis, customers can easily and flexibly keep up with evolving operation needs whether by expanding control cards or modifying software programs.Yang pointed out ADLINK is able to come out ahead in optical lens producers' selection process because its solution not only provides excellent compatibility with third-party EtherCAT equipment (e.g. motors) but also enables a greater advantage by integrating machine vision. After a work piece enters the assembly line, a typical production flow includes the steps of alignment, processing, compiling production history and finally defect inspection. Machine vision is used for inspection during the whole process, including simple alignment check and complicated AOI defect check. ADLINK has accumulated 16 years of experience in machine vision technologies and offers complete products including capture cards and compact vision systems which have passed meticulous testing to guarantee compatibility with ADLINK Talos EtherCAT master controllers and a high level of integration.It should also be mentioned that in-house optical production lines undergo constant changes to accommodate diverse production tasks for different devices. Vendors generally desire equipment with smaller footprint to save space as well as wiring costs. Seeing that industrial computers are generally too bulky, ADLINK especially introduces the new Talos-2000 controller featuring compact footprint, highly integrated machine vision and compatibility with third-party EtherCAT equipment. Many optical lens producers are enthusiastically embracing Talos-2000 as it enables precise motion control through highly synchronized actions, supports optimal flexibility and adapts to quick production line changes.ADLINK stays on top of customer to keep improving product usability and thereby develops new functions in the APS Function Library for customers to make use of. It will soon add a new function to support flexible editing of EtherCAT slave stations. If customers need to change their EtherCAT topology and correspondingly modify the software programs in the future, they can do so at the slave stations without any problem.Please visit ADLINK for more information.ADLINK hopes to use "out-of-box" control and connect all EtherCAT masters and slaves with the same Ethernet cable so different axes under the control of different motion control cards have a chance to move in synchronization.

It's 2002, and the widgets come rolling down the factory's conveyor. Then it happens: a misfortune nobody anticipated. An equipment breakdown halts production dead in its tracks. Technicians swarm over the machinery to make the fix as swiftly as possible. Every minute of the production shutdown means lost revenue.Fast-forward to today's smart factory, where edge computing and solutions from the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) make predictive maintenance possible. This technology can closely monitor the conditions under which the equipment is apt to fail, and it alerts staff when a malfunction is impending. It also pinpoints the best time to perform proactive maintenance, when a lull in production minimizes any losses in time and money.All of this is part of the smart factory revolution.Edge computing transforms manufacturingSensors are everywhere in many of today's factories and fabrication plants, taking in reams of data. They measure any number of variables that affect the factory's performance or portend machinery breakdown. The processing of this data often occurs at the edge of the network, which affords a host of advantages over cloud-based systems. Information from the sensors is ingested by the software-driven smart gateways in real time for processing as near the device as possible. Edge computing cuts the latency that results when data goes to a remote cloud server and returns. The factory enjoys stronger performance, lower data costs, fewer network bottlenecks and greater security.This technology is erasing much of the uncertainty in manufacturing and other processes. Imagine a piece of equipment that tends to fail when the temperature climbs too high. As IIoT sensors monitor that equipment and keep track of the operational temperature, edge computing processes and interprets the data via complex algorithms. When conditions reach statistically dangerous levels, alerts go out to staffers so they can deal with the impending failure proactively. This is an enormous benefit, because forecasting an equipment failure is always better than scrambling after it occurs.Predictive maintenance, therefore, is one of the most transformative aspects of the smart factory.Integration challengesBut it's not as easy as it sounds. A factory owner does not walk into a local IIoT store to buy some one-size-fits-all computer products ready to plug in. That's because factories differ profoundly from one another. Part of the process is tailoring the predictive maintenance process to each facility's specific operations.Among the daunting challenges is the fact that so much legacy equipment exists in factories today, and the disparate pieces usually don't talk to one another. There's no universal protocol. In addition, the IIoT solutions have to work seamlessly with both operational technology (OT) and informational technology (IT) – two modes of technology that are often worlds apart.Stopping failures before they startMechanical failure is a costly issue that has bedeviled factories since the first Industrial Revolution. The related problem of product failure can be expensive, too. If conditions are inhibiting the proper manufacturing of a product, a factory ends up with a great deal of waste and lost productivity. Even worse, faulty products can end up in the hands of consumers. Apart from IIoT technology and the accompanying edge computing, all this might easily go undetected.In a smart factory, IIoT sensors monitor all kinds of conditions – for example, whether the ambient temperature is ideal for spray paint adhering to metal. Data processing at the edge determines when conditions become detrimental to normal manufacturing, and alerts go out to staffers who can respond accordingly.This technology also factors in history. Suppose there are certain times of day when temperatures tend to put product manufacturing out of compliance. Predictive maintenance can look at the history of manufacturing failures and educate employees on how to deal with an issue before it becomes a problem.Trimming unneeded maintenancePredictive maintenance also informs staff when costly, ongoing maintenance is unnecessary. It's a common scenario: Technicians shut down and service equipment at regular intervals, whether it actually requires that servicing or not. Sometimes they replace components that don't yet need replacing, or lubricate an idled machine that requires no such action. Predictive maintenance takes that guesswork out of the equation: The machine isn't lubricated until it needs to be, and the components aren't swapped out if they're still good. Production rolls on without interruption.When equipment does need servicing, these advanced edge analytics can reveal the best times to perform such maintenance, the times that least affect the production schedule.More benefitsIIoT analysis has another benefit: Determining the conditions that have led historically to the best product yield. This is important in the case of products sensitive to their surrounding conditions, such as semiconductors.In addition, IIoT sensors can determine when a piece of equipment is drawing too much current or operating in other ways that diminish energy efficiency. Staff can then recalibrate the equipment and save the factory even more money.What to look forThere are a number of predictive maintenance solutions on the market today. ADLINK, Intel, IBM and PrismTech (an ADLINK company) have pooled their expertise to introduce predictive maintenance solutions. These address the challenges of connecting the unconnected and creating communication efficiency through fog architecture. Each of these companies has IIoT solutions designed to address the distinct challenges that arise on the factory floor.These predictive maintenance solutions can analyze data from the cloud or from the network's edge, whichever is necessary in a given application. And because these solutions can operate at the edge of the network, results are more instantaneous. They are secure and integrate smoothly into the factory's OT and IT environments, with low IT management overhead. The solutions are also customizable and scalable, and offer predictive analytics and secure distribution of data, making the smart factory smarter. The result is less downtime, reduced costs, enhanced product quality and greater productivity.With all the inherent positives – better yield, less downtime, better-informed decisions – these solutions truly are part of the revolution. It's a revolution that's bound to grow as people increasingly discover the benefits of turning their factories into smart factories.(Jason Ng is a business development director for ADLINK in Singapore.)

With rising global competition, shortened product life cycles and increasing demand for small-quantity mixed-model production, businesses around the world are endeavoring to accelerate Industry 4.0 development and the top priority is to upgrade traditional robots and machines with intelligent systems. Computer-on-modules (COM) that are at the heart of robot or machine controllers provide the quickest shortcut to an intelligence upgrade.Industry 4.0 is the dominant trend that has spurred the popularity of intelligent automation and smart factories based on intelligent machines (IM) and intelligent robots (IR). The critical challenge for manufacturers is turning legacy non-intelligent machines and robotic arms into IM and IR that enable computing, measurement, motion control and machine vision to enable customization of products and flexible mass production on the factory floor.Traditionally, leading machine and robot manufacturers used to develop their own controller boards. However, with new generations of CPUs being launched at accelerated speeds and machine equipment needing to incorporate the latest functions to meet Industry 4.0 demands, manufacturers have had to frequently change their controller board designs. Time delays required for designs to pass certifications also result in increased time-to-market. To circumvent these problems, manufacturers are starting to evaluate the use of embedded COMs as the computing core of customized carrier boards for their control boards. Machine equipment can therefore be upgraded with a simple replacement of the COM with the latest CPU and no need to redesign the entire control board, significantly accelerating the product development cycle.COM improves development efficiency but also introduces challengesThe COM design model combining the core module and carrier board has the advantage of boosted flexibility but there are still challenges to overcome. First of all, a COM is not a complete single board computer but is the system's core and controls peripheral applications through connections and specialized functionality on the carrier board. In the case of equipment malfunction, the added complexity may make it more difficult to identify the source of the problem from the carrier board, COM or peripheral cards. Therefore, without help of a professional team, locating the root cause can be time consuming.In addition, manufacturers with ambitions to develop IM or IR solutions tend to engage in projects that are diverse and often involve complex requirements such as firmware changes and BIOS customizations. Support for multiple operating systems including Windows, Linux and RTOS is also required so specific development kits are needed to ensure smooth development of both the carrier board and software. However, as many suppliers are outsourcing a large part of their development work to third-party vendors and have no plan to train their own software engineers, they lack the ability to solve problems independently and promptly provide the necessary technical support.ADLINK technical team provides on-site support for troubleshootingA leading international robotic arm manufacturer faced the challenges described above during its transition from internally designed controller boards to the adoption of the COM concept. ADLINK's COM Starter Kits complete with reference designs were able to eliminate most of the customer's problems.When customers encounter difficulties during development, ADLINK's technical team responds quickly and effectively to assist in addressing system integration issues, whether or not they are directly related to the COM. When necessary, our highly trained staff will visit the customer's on-site location to find the root cause of the problem. ADLINK is always ready to provide professional support to customers during the entire development process.With regards to R&D, ADLINK has made a significant investment in the establishment of a signal measurement laboratory. All computer input and output signal waveforms can be measured to ensure the COM design and manufacturing comply with the strictest standards. Moreover, complete design for manufacturing (DFM) verification principles are also introduced in the product design stage. All efforts are aimed at guaranteeing the utmost in product compatibility and reliability. ADLINK is also a step ahead of the competition in launching products with a wide operating temperature range to meet a variety of challenging customer requirements.ADLINK provides complete solution with one-stop design and manufacturingWith the exception of printed circuit boards, ADLINK develops its COM products independently from scratch, from design to manufacturing, and therefore has the ability to meet a wide range of customer requirements, including firmware changes and BIOS customizations. Comprehensive support is provided for Windows, Linux, VxWorks and QNX operating systems, drivers and board support packages (BSP). Also available reference carrier boards and a wide range of interface conversion kits to speed up the development process for customers.ADLINK is among the world's five Premier Members of Intel® Internet of Things Solutions Alliance so it has the advantage being able to deliver early sampling, leading competitors by over two months. ADLINK is also able to launch new COM products that keep up with every new generation of Intel processor, allowing customers to integrate the latest technologies into their control systems.In summary, the rapid rise of the Industry 4.0 trend is driving a booming market demand for intelligent machines and intelligent robots. Manufacturers of IM or IR solutions are joining efforts with the ADLINK COM team to accelerate the introduction of a wide range of intelligent automation applications, bringing the smart Industry 4.0 initiative closer to reality.The COM design model combining the core module and carrier board has the advantage of boosted flexibility

ATeam Scientific digital solution team successfully helps ADLINK develop world-class telecom and media servers for USB 3.0, PCI-e G3, SATA G3, 10GBaseT, DisplayPort, SFP+, HDMI through the digital lab pre-compliance test capacity, technical consultation team and digital test instruments. ADLINK is a global company delivering high performance and quality products ahead of competitive offerings. ADLINK is dedicated to innovation and investment in new technologies on AdvancedTCA, CompactPCI, PXI Express and AXIe and received numerous international certificates from ISO, TL9000 and Taiwan Excellence Award.Chief director of R&D Center of ADLINK, Alex Lee expressed, "ADLINK puts quality high on the top. We carefully select the test and measurement partner to co-work with as we look for world-class performance instruments as well as a first-rate sales and technical service team. We are satisfied and think highly of ATeam digital lab and technical solution team's professional and timely consultation services throughout the high-speed transmission interface product development process."CEO of Infinet Group (ATeam Scientific is a subsidiary of Infinet Group), Paul Yang said, "We capture the trend of high-speed data, voice and video transmission interface test demand in the rapidly changing market and many customers show positive feedbacks to our efforts and investment. Infinet Group has heavily invested and will continue to invest in high speed digital test solutions, including expanding the engineering team, enhancing the bandwidth of leading-edge test instruments, and increasing solution offerings. Earlier this month, Infinet Group added Wilder Technologies high-performance test fixtures into our product offerings. We are glad to work with our long-term superior customer-ADLINK-to timely and efficiently develop the new generation digital and communications products. Meanwhile, we are also pleased to share our views and experiences of building up and managing a quality and professional high-speed digital laboratory with our partners. Our goal is to create best values for our customers and partners."About ATeamATeam Scientific delivers digital and wireless communications testing products and technical services. ATeam is also the Agilent Technology Partner in Taiwan. ATeam quality digital test solution team offers professional selling service and pre-compliance consultation service. On top of that, ATeam's sophisticated digital lab environment is well-equipped with state-of-the-art test instruments, including Agilent 25GHz oscilloscope, SAS/SATA analyzer, JBERT, USB 3.0/2.0 protocol analyzer, vector network analyzer, RF Impedance/Material analyzer, Infinet RF/microwave cable adapters, and Wilder high-performance digital test fixtures. Infinet Group is a subsidiary of Spirox Corporation (Taiwan Stock Exchange: #3055). More info on ATeam Scientific is available at: http://www.ateams.com.tw/About ADLINKADLINK Technology, founded in 1995, provides a wide range of embedded computing products and services to the test & measurement, automation & process control, gaming, communications, medical, network security, and transportation industries. ADLINK is a global company with headquarter and manufacturing in Taiwan; R&D and integration in Taiwan, China, the US, and Germany; and an extensive network of worldwide sales and support offices. ADLINK is ISO-9001, ISO-14001, ISO-13485 and TL9000 certified, is an Associate Member of the Intel Intelligent System Alliance, an Executive Member of PICMG, a Sponsor Member of the PXI Systems Alliance, an Executive Member of PC/104 Consortium, and a Strategic Member of the AXIe Consortium. ADLINK is publicly traded on the TAIEX Taiwan Stock Exchange (stock code: 6166). For more info, visit:www.adlink.com

Adlink Technology has announced the NuPRO-730, its first PICMG 1.0-based full-size single board computer (SBC).The NuPRO-730 offers IPC distributors and system integrators a low-noise, low-heat-dissipation SBC solution, according to Adlink. The SBC is suitable for industrial factory automation, medical, intelligent transportation systems and military applications.The SBC adopts Intel's Core 2 Duo T7500 dual-core processor, GME965 Express chipset with integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X3100, and DDR2 667MHz memory support up to 4 GB.Adlink NuPRO-730 SBCPhoto: Company