Overcoming battery challenges in test & instrumentation equipment
Author : Rob Brown | Marketing Manager | Accutronics
01 January 2021
Accutronics_T&M batteries_View of earth from the ISS_580x280
Measurement is a fundamental requirement of scientific & engineering disciplines. Without precise measurements as a basis, all future work is doomed to inaccuracy or ineffectuality. As such, it’s vital that test & instrumentation equipment can be relied on to provide consistent, accurate measurements.
The full version of this article was originally featured in the January 2021 issue of EPDT magazine [read the digital issue]. Sign up to receive your own copy each month.
Here, Rob Brown, Marketing Manager at professional battery manufacturer, Accutronics explains the role batteries play in achieving reliable instrumentation – and the challenges design engineers must consider...
A few weeks after the $4.7 billion launch of the Hubble Space Telescope in 1990, an error became apparent to the NASA team: the images returned by the telescope were not as sharp as had been intended. This was caused by a problem with the telescope’s optic system, because the outer perimeter of the primary mirror was 2,200 nanometres too flat.
An investigation into how this occurred pointed to a reflective null corrector, which is a device used to test and properly shape non-spherical mirrors. This device had been assembled specifically for the telescope’s construction, but had been done so incorrectly, with a lens 1.3mm out of position.
This slight difference had a significant impact on the usefulness of the telescope, until it was able to be balanced out, three years later. This led to a series of expensive launches to fit and replace instrumentation over the subsequent years.
Although most instrumentation applications tend to be closer to home, the Hubble Space Telescope highlights how even slight deviations in measurement can have significant consequences.
Design engineers working on test, measurement and instrumentation devices aim to guarantee precision by specifying high quality components and ensuring designs are fit for purpose and functional. One of these components is the power source.
Read the full article in EPDT's January 2021 issue...
More information...
Contact Details and Archive...
