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Application Note AN-106
EPC’s Encoders Help Stop The West Nile Virus
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The Company
Clarke Engineering & Clarke Mosquito Control
Worldwide manufacturers of equipment for mosquito abatement.
Located in Rogers, Minnesota, their primary customer base
is State and Local Municipalities, Parks, Golf Courses, and
the Military.
The Problem
Clarke was having some major problems with the encoder on
their Beecomist mobile pesticide application machine. The
Beecomist atomizes the insecticide to a specific droplet size,
which creates a fog plume, and minimizes the residual released
into the environment.
The bumpy environment with a high revving machine made for
a tough environment for the encoder. Machine shutdowns were
frequent. Clarke needed a rugged, durable, encoder that could
withstand these harsh conditions. They were using an encoder
with a plastic housing, which was unable to withstand extreme
vibrations. These vibrations caused the housing to flex, and
distort, resulting in misalignment of the optics. Down time
of equipment, and expensive service calls were a major headache
to Clarke, and their customers.
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The Solution
A solution was achieved when Clarke Engineering interfaced with
EPC Applications Engineers to design a customized version of the
Model 121 Auto Aligning Modular. This rugged, all metal, bearingless
encoder was designed to reduce the warping and deflection caused
by hard shock and vibration. The Model 121 is also able to withstand
the high, 30,000 RPM speeds, at which the Beecomist unit operates.
Using the advanced Opto-ASIC technology of the Model 121, our engineers
were able to work with Clarke and provide precision measurement
of the speed of the atomizer. Since switching to the Model 121 on
the Clarke Beecomist unit, the machine has not had an encoder failure.
Listening to our clients needs and problems, then providing solutions,
is the paramount to our success. EPC provided the reliability, and
performance that this demanding application required.
EPC Product(s) Used
Model 121 Auto Aligning Modular
(121-C4-A-5-01-S-1000-Q-OC-1-S-N)
Commutation channels only, no clocks.
Clarke Engineering - another company on a long list of satisfied
customers. Call EPC today, and let us customize an encoder to suit
your needs.
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