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Atlas Upgrades Weather-Ometer Unit

Thursday, February 17, 2011

More items for Quality Control

Atlas Material Testing Technology is introducing a new version of its Ci4000 Weather-Ometer, with enhancements that include Specific Specimen Surface Temperature and a sealed lamp.

The Ci4000 Weather-Ometer, with its advanced digital control system, applies digital and optical technologies in a laboratory weathering instrument.

Used in the automotive, paints and coatings and plastics industries, the instrument is designed to deliver “accurate, reproducible and  repeatable results for predicting service life,” the manufacturer says.

The unit has been certified as CE, UL, CSA, ISO and EN compliant.

New Enhancements

Atlas touts Specific Specimen Surface Temperature (S³T) as an advancement in the information obtained during accelerated weathering exposure tests. Specimen holders are fitted with a programmable RFID tag for easy sample identification.

A non-contact IR pyrometer monitors the temperature of specimens at each rotation of the rack, providing a comparison to standard reference panel temperatures (BPT or BST). Data can be displayed on the User Interface and downloaded for analysis using any standard spreadsheet program such as Microsoft Excel.

The Atlas Sealed Lamp is a new concept for the water-cooled lamp assembly as used in all Atlas 6.5kW xenon-arc compatible weathering instruments.

Previously, individual filters were assembled together with the xenon lamp and filter housings, requiring that inner filters be changed frequently. The new Weather-Ometer eliminates the need for intermediate filter changes, eliminating service disruptions during the 2000-hour lifetime of the Sealed Lamp.

The assembly will be available in the most common filter combinations to simulate Daylight, Daylight behind Window Glass, and Extended UV conditions.

Chicago-based Atlas Material Testing Technology provides instruments and services for accelerated and natural weathering. In November 2010, Atlas became part of AMETEK Measurement & Calibration Technologies (M&CT), a division of AMETEK's Electronic Instruments Group (EIG).