Why go to trade shows?

Posted on : by Every time I say I’m going to a trade show I am questioned about it: “Ugh, such a hassle”, “But there’s lots of people!”, “The food is terrible!”, “Really? They’re pointless”, and my favorite: “Boring, they’re always the same”. So I thought I should do a quick post about my reasons for going to and… Read More...

The USMSG part 3 – Determine the accuracy

Posted on : by Once we know our motor’s torque specification we’re almost ready to start looking at catalogs. We just need to define the level of accuracy or resolution that our motor and gear train need to have. This all comes, obviously, from our initial high-level specification. Let’s make it specific now. Read More...

The USMSG part 4 – Evaluate the torque curves

Posted on : by We’re getting close to being able to finally select a stepper motor for our application. Armed with a high-level set of specs for our mechanism, a complete torque specification for the motor, and a clear idea of what resolution and accuracy we need, it’s time to start looking at vendor catalogs and their torque curves to evaluate… Read More...

The USMSG part 2 – Define your pull-out torque

Posted on : by The most important step in the process has been done, or at least started, which is: defining the high level specification of your mechanism. Great, now it’s time to get specific with the details. In this step, we’ll define the required torque specs that will allow you to actually start searching on the catalogs. Read More...

The USMSG part 1 – Define your requirements

Posted on : by So you want or need to add some motion to your system, and you think a stepper motor is the right solution for your application? Great! But how do you start? Well, let’s start from the beginning: define the needs of your mechanism, a.k.a. your spec. Read More...

The Ultimate Stepper Motor Selection Guide

Posted on : by Stepper motors are ubiquitous. From clocks, to 3D printers, to CNC mills. From split flap displays to spaceships. They are everywhere. The nature of their operation makes them the ideal option for many different systems that can’t (or don’t want to) afford complex electronics for closed-loop motion control but still need positional accuracy. They are… Read More...

Forget about Facebook, it’s you who’s leaking your info.

Posted on : by How many times we’ve heard about an online company’s sketchy privacy policy? Each passing day we are all more concerned about how much of our personal information is available on the web and permanently hosted and shared by questionable companies with questionable privacy policies and security systems. We then receive countless advice on keeping personal… Read More...

How to get an engineering job at a design firm

Posted on : by I am a Senior Design Engineer at Pensa and recently have added the role of Engineering Intern Coordinator. This new extended role puts me in charge of coordinating the tasks of our current interns and of giving them guidance and advice. But more importantly and better related to this post, it gives me the responsibility of interviewing and evaluating… Read More...

Woozy

Posted on : by Old school music blasting on the ear drums. Eyes reading old school writings of colorful yesterdays. Re encountering myself with my old school thinking. Mind trying to make sense of all that nonsense. Now it's time for old school blogging. Read More...

Work-life balance, Mark Watney style

Posted on : by Over the past months I got really excited about The Martian, both the movie and the book… But I mean, who hasn’t? It’s one of those super believable sci-fi stories with an awesome character in an incredible setup and lots of SCIENCE. What could be better than that? But ok, nerd side aside, what does… Read More...