A weekly look at new products, innovations

Editor's Note: Each week, Rubber & Plastics News will take a look at some of the rubber industry's new products and innovations on www.rubbernews.com. Does your company have a new product or new innovation? To be considered for inclusion in this recurring feature, email [email protected]

Automator America Inc. has rolled out a new line of marking machines for hot stamping presses that are available for manual and pneumatic operation. These machines can be bench mounted or mounted for in-line production and are ideal for marking fabric, plastics and wood.

Automator said its MB20/21E series hot stamping presses are designed for high production environments with a cast base that includes standard T-slots for tooling. Dimensions of the MB20 manual bench model system are 205x650x309mm (8.070 x 25.590 x 12.165 in.); MB21E pneumatic bench model system 208 x 600 x 355 mm (8.188 x 23.622 x 13.976”); MB21EU pneumatic universal mount system 435 x 250 x 475 mm (17.125 x 9.842 x 18.700 in). Tooling shank is 27 mm (1.062 in) and the stroke of the rack is 65 mm (2.559 in) on the MB20E, and 67mm (2.637 in) for the MB21E and MB21EU.

Equipped with an automatic ribbon advancement package and temperature control regulator, Automator said its hot stamping machines apply consistent personalization of products with colored foil imprints. Many accessories for marking details are available that include cliché, type and type holders, numbering heads and custom hot stamping dies. Visit www.automator.com for more information.

Mettler Toledo has launched its newest halogen moisture analyzer, the HC103, which measures moisture content in minutes, enabling fast response times for quality control and in-process control.

A large color touchscreen, graphical user guidance and real-time drying curve make the HC103 easy to use, Mettler Toledo said, even for untrained operators. This can be utilized in a busy laboratory or a harsh production environment.

Operators can access drying methods directly from the home screen with just one click, the company maintained, and can just add the sample to the weighing pan, tare and press start.

As the drying program is running, Mettler Toledo said a real-time drying curve is displayed on the screen to provide an overview of the progress.

There is no need to record the results manually, Mettler Toledo said, as the HC103 can generate result reports in the form of PDF or CSV files in addition to standard printouts. Also, these can be transferred via the RS232 or USB ports to fulfill documentation and traceability requirements.

New drying methods are easily uploaded to the HC103 via the USB port. Mettler Toledo provides a collection of validated drying methods for more than 100 different samples.

The metal housing as well as the flat stainless steel surfaces in the drying chamber mean the HC103 is not only robust, the firm said, but also is easy to clean.

For more information on the HC103, visit www.mt.com/moisture.

The Wacker Silicones unit of Wacker Chemie A.G. has launched two new high-refractive-index silicone elastomers for use in light emitting diodes and optical components.

Lumisil 590 and 591 are highly transparent, addition-curing silicone elastomers with a refractive index of 1.52, which the company said ranks them among the HRI encapsulants. The products can withstand high operating temperature and strong light radiation without yellowing. Wacker said that makes them suitable for producing LEDs with high light efficiency. The elastomers also protect the LED chip against corrosive gases, which will extend the component's service life.

The new Lumisil lines are easy to process, heat resistant and tack-free after curing, according to the company. Lumisil 590 and 591 form cured rubber grades of varying hardness. Lumisil 590 is relatively soft, with a hardness of Shore A 65, while 591 is harder at Shore D40.

For more information, go to www.wacker.com.