Vernay Laboratories Inc. undertook the task of building two new automated flow test benches. The Main objective was speed, accuracy, repeatability, compatibility with office tools and data systems, traceability, and search-ability of the test results. They felt that they should be able to fully characterize a single check valve in ten to twenty minutes. They expected this characterization to have one hundred or more data points covering both the positive and negative pressure ranges with the pressures and flows accurate and repeatable to +/-2% of the reading. They also wanted to be able to place this data into spreadsheets and a database which statistically characterizes a set of twenty or more parts. They expected to be able to search over all historical testing to find parts which meet specific functional criteria.

All of these objectives could best be addressed in the context of a highly standardized system with as much commonality of components as is practical and with computer automation. It was their experience that a major problem with test work time was that the test fixture had to be plumbed to the appropriate instruments each time……

Reprinted with Permission from www.vernay.com