“The first day has been extremely busy! You can see visitors and exhibitors engaged in conversation on every stand,” said Graham Johnson, managing director of Automotive Testing Expo’s organising company, UKIP Media & Events. “There’s so much brand-new technology on display, it’s little wonder so many test and development engineers from around the world are attending. And based on today, the next two days of this event promise to be something not to be missed!”
With the very latest and next-generation technologies and services on display, leading independent vehicle test, validation and engineering service provider, Millbrook, kicked off the three-day event by discussing its latest investment and expansions plans.
These include new engine test cells, a control room and fuel blending facilities, as well as the opening of a new, state-of-the-art, 4WD chassis dyno test cell, which will enable Millbrook to test some of the most technically advanced vehicles in the world.
Beyond the powertrain investment, the crash test facilities of Millbrook’s safety department will benefit from a new rollover testing capability; its vehicle testing facilities will also be upgraded with the construction of a new climatic test chamber able to accommodate almost any wheeled vehicle and replicate various extreme climate conditions.
Alex Burns, CEO of Millbrook, said, “The investment in our facilities continues unabated. We simply have one objective, and that is to keep Millbrook at the pinnacle of what can be offered by an independent testing facility. We cannot sit still, and our development plans across both our sites reinforce our position as the market leader in our field.”
Elsewhere on the show floor, Horiba launched its OBS-ONE-PN emission measurement system for analyzing solid particle concentration. Designed for real driving measurements, the OBS-ONE-PN is the latest member of the company’s OBS-ONE series, a portable emission measurement system (PEMS). Featuring an optimised design as well as improved temperature and flow control, the advanced solution for mobile solid particle counting facilitates accurate measurements under real driving conditions (RDE).
“By 2017, RDE tests will be a mandatory part of the type approval of light-duty vehicles,” said Joel Danzer, European product manager, emission engineering, Horiba Automotive Test Systems. “With the OBS-ONE series, we offer an ideal solution for RDE measurements.”
On the Additium stand, the news was that the company had completed the factory pre-acceptance protocol for a new impact energy absorption test rig developed for a Far East OEM. The system delivers a very precise quantity of impact energy to be absorbed by the test sample. A set of ballast increases the basket weight up to 1,400kg, and the computer-based control system calculates the right drop height to accurately reach target impact speed. Delivered instrumentation includes speed meter and load cells for force registration during impact.
More news announced on the first day of Automotive Testing Expo Europe came from AMS, a German supplier of data acquisition and measurement software. The company revealed that EvoBus, Daimler’s largest European subsidiary and a leading bus manufacturer, is to utilise its MaDaM and jBEAM software solutions for the evaluation of driving tests.
Having showcased at last year’s Automotive Testing Expo Europe, EvoBus sought a new solution for the management and analysis of its data. Following several months of testing, MaDaM will now be used for managing measurement data derived from different source systems, and jBEAM will be used for measurement data analysis.
Meanwhile, the US arm of Japanese test and measurement solutions provider, Anritsu, announced that it has met the GCF Test Platform Approval Criteria (TPAC), and that its LTE-Advanced RF/RRM Conformance Test System (CTS) ME7873LA is the world’s first GCF-approved platform providing both RF and RRM TPACs for three downlink carrier aggregation (3DL CA) RF Conformance Tests. “We continue to develop systems that help validate LTE-Advanced devices in accordance with industry standards,” said Paul Innis, vice president and general manager of Anritsu. “With this recent approval, Anritsu demonstrates its commitment to enable customers to travel on the path to success, and ensure they are able to meet critical product launches and achieve their business metrics.”
The approvals establish a validated test solution for developers, manufacturers and operators who are integrating carrier aggregation technology, which increases communication speeds by aggregating several frequency bands and is standardised by 3GPP Release 10 and later.
Day 2 of Automotive Testing Expo Europe opens at 10:00hrs (CET) and will close at 18:30hrs (CET). A free-to-attend drinks party runs from 17:00hrs to 18:30hrs.
31 May, 2016
