Airat thepushof abutton
Compressedair system for
airbagdemonstrator
For over 30years, airbagshavebeenensuring thesafetyof
vehiclepassengers. Inorder toshow theeffect of anairbag
without actually crashinga car,VolkswagenhasfittedaGolf
GTIwithanairbagdemonstrator. Festodevelopeda
compressedair system for thedemonstratorwhich triggers
theprotectiveair cushions in thespecial vehicleat thepush
of abutton.
Inorder tomake the inflationof theairbagsas realisticas
possible, theymust fillwithinfivesecondsof activation. This
isdoneusingseveral air reservoirswhichare controlledbya
valve terminalMPAandaCoDeSysmodule.Once the trigger
button ispressed, thehead, front, sideandkneeairbagsfill
witha total of 120 litresof air –allowing theperson in the
driver
’
sseat toexperience theprotectiveeffect of theair
cushions.Next, thesystemsucks theair out of theairbags
and theseare replacedwithnewones. A compressor refills
theair reservoirsand thedemonstrator is ready togoagain.
For thesafetyof the“driver”, varioussensorsmonitor the
operationof thesystemand theperson,whileanemergency
off switchcanbeused tostop thedemonstration immediately.
Germany
Exclusiveairbagexperience:
Thespecial vehiclewaspresented for
thefirst timebyVolkswagenat itsopenday in June2013.
All the technology
including thevacuumpumpand the compressor for
filling theair reservoir ishoused in the luggage compartment of theGolf.
Room for creativity:
MeetingareaswithaChinese theme.
Highstandards:
The test laboratoriesof theTECShanghai.
The requirements for automationproductsandsolutions inAsiaoftendiffer
from those inEurope. Festo thereforeundertookamajor expansionof the
Technical EngineeringCentre (TEC) inShanghai inAutumn2013.Withup to
100highlyqualifiedengineersexpected towork in the centreupon
completion, Festoaims toexpand itsproduct andsystemdevelopment
capacities in theAsia-Pacific regionand thus reduce lead times forproduct
innovation.
ThenewTECbuildingoffers2,500m² for offices, space for creativityand
testing laboratorieswith thesamestandardsand instrumentsas in Festo
Headquarters inGermany toguarantee thesamequalitystandardsof
pneumaticandelectricautomationproducts. TheTEC inShanghai is
perfectly integrated into Festo’sglobal networkof 10Technical Engineering
Centreswitha total 600engineers.
Product development forAsia
Expansionof theTechnical Engineering
CentreShanghai
China
Issue26
trends inautomation
FestoWorldwide
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