New Advanced Video Extensometer Launched

Instron, a leading provider of testing equipment designed to evaluate the mechanical properties of materials and components, will be exhibiting at JEC 2015.

Instron will exhibit the new Advanced Video Extensometer (AVE2) that conforms to the most rigorous composite standards – ISO 527 and ASTM D638. The AVE2 is a fully-integrated device that easily adapts to the normal fluctuations of environmental conditions in your lab and is easily adapted to any testing machine on the market that uses a ±10v analog input (performance depends on the system). Designed to dramatically reduce errors from thermal and lighting variations that are common in most labs, the AVE 2 is the only device on the market to utilise the real-time 490 Hz data rate while also achieving a 1 micron accuracy.

Visitors to JEC will also be able to see Instron’s new TestProfiler. Featured in Bluehill® 3 Software, TestProfiler offers unprecedented flexibility in setting up automated product reliability tests that mimic the functional use of the product being tested.

The Video Extensometer (AVE2) allows for easy setup of tests that require:

• Repetitive cycles for component quality testing commonly used with customers testing foam and spring, or performing proof-loading tests
• Step-by-step loading patterns to mimic functional use of medical devices and consumer electronics products
• Ability to build test flow logic by monitoring and responding to internal and external sensors and digital states
• Tests with simultaneous temperature control of the specimen using select Instron chamber and furnace products

For dynamic and fatigue testing of composites, Instron will demonstrate the ElectroPuls™ E3000 all-electric test instrument with a nominal force capacity up to ±3 kN, designed both for static testing at low speeds and high-frequency dynamic testing at several hundred Hertz.

With its patented, oil-free linear motor technology, the system specifically supports clean working conditions. Coupled with their Specimen Self-Heating Control (SSHC) – a powerful add-on for WaveMatrix™ Software, this module is specifically designed to increase throughput and consistency during fatigue testing of composites by optimising the test frequency.

With an easy to use interface, SSHC allows users to simply set and control a target temperature to within ± 0.5°C, based on a specimen temperature input from a thermocouple or infrared thermometer. A stable temperature is maintained throughout the test by automatically adjusting the test frequency.

The range of exhibits is rounded off with an Instron CEAST 9340 drop tower designed to deliver 0.30 – 405 J (0.22 – 299 ft-lb) of energy which allows to evaluate the impact resistance of composite plates performing Compression After Impact (CAI) test. In addition, the system is equipped with the DAS64K, with a selectable sampling frequency up to 4 MHz, for simultaneous acquisition of up to four independent signals.

Instron is a leading global manufacturer of testing equipment for the material and structural testing markets used to evaluate materials ranging from native tissue to advanced high-strength alloys. Instron systems perform a variety of tests such as compression, cyclic, fatigue, impact, multi-axis, rheology, tensile, and torsion.

Providing single-source convenience through a comprehensive range of solutions and localised service and support, Instron’s broad range of service capabilities include assistance with performance verification and calibration standards compliance, testing system relocation, staff training, and preventative maintenance.

The Instron Centres of Excellence around the world ensure that behind every Instron system is an unprecedented commitment and dedication to quality and customer satisfaction. Instron remains involved with various ASTM and ISO committees, gaining first-hand knowledge of recent and upcoming changes to standards that affect our customers.