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Insights From the Agricultural Industry

Products for Agriculture

As one of the oldest industries in the world, agriculture and food production is essential to life on earth. The agricultural industry encompasses all aspects of food production, including farming, fishing, and forestry. As the world’s population continues to grow, increased demands for productivity and efficiency are placed on the agricultural industry. This has led to new innovations within machinery, putting additional pressures on the products for this industry. In this blog post, we will provide some insights into which products are used within the agricultural industry, and offer an overview of the products offered by B-COMMAND

Overview of the Agricultural Industry

Due to the nature of the industry, agricultural machinery is designed to withstand extensive operations, extreme environmental conditions, and harsh chemicals without being worn out.  Naturally, the products used must be able to endure the same stressors, while ensuring optimum performance in all parts of farm equipment. Slip rings are integral parts of these complex machines because they enable the transmission of power and signals from static to moving parts. With the growing use of smart technology and robotics within this industry, we can expect even more developments within this industry in years to come.

Slip Ring Applications in the Agricultural Industry

There are a number of potential applications for slip rings within the agricultural industry, including axles, conductions, motors, and hydraulic systems. To give an example, one common application is as part of center pivot irrigation systems. This is a popular sprinkler system due to its efficiency, uniformity, and versatility in terrains where they can be used. Here, the sprinkler works around a central axis with a slip ring mounted on top to transfer power and enable the rotation around the central axis. 

Slip ring irrigation

Image Source: cyulin.net

Another common application for slip rings within agriculture, is within grain silos. These preserve and store grains or silage for future use and are highly popular within the agricultural industry. While these are simple devices that do not require high-tech systems, they still need careful installation, running, and maintenance. From the filling and monitoring of the silos, slip rings play an integral part in the functionality of the operation of the silo. A special demand for slip rings used in silos is the explosion proof protection. Inside the silos there can be a lot of explosive dust which can easily lead to an explosion of the silo. Therefore we offer explosion proof slip rings which are IECEx and ATEX certified for those applications. 

Rotary Dairy Barn

Image Source: gea.com

Finally, slip rings also play an essential part in the rotary dairy barns commonly used when milking cows. These resemble merry-go-rounds in their design, where the cows move around a central axis while they are milked, and once done are allowed back into their feeding and resting dens. 

 

Products From B-COMMAND

Given the demands of the agricultural industry, many products used need to be ATEX or IECEx certified to ensure that they can withstand the explosion-prone environments. At B-COMMAND, we offer a number of products that are ATEX and IECEx certified, including: 

Slip Ring EXDATEX Slip Ring

The EXD slip ring was developed especially for the use in silos. The EXD is approved for zones 21 and 22; zone 21 is an area in which a hazardous explosive atmosphere in the form of a cloud of combustible dust in the air may occur during normal operation. Zone 22 is a place in which an explosive atmosphere in the form of a cloud of combustible dust is not likely to occur, but if it does it would only persist for a short period. In addition, we offer an optional anti-condensation heater to prevent the formation of condensation water, and thus corrosion. This is to extend the lifetime of the product. 

LadyX Pendant station

LadyX Pendant StationThe LadyX pendant station is a single- or double-row operating device for auxiliary current applications in hazardous areas. Thanks to the specially developed metal housing made of aluminum, with seals and explosion-proof cable entries, the LadyX pendant station is approved for both ATEX and IECEx applications. The optimized interior allows quick and easy cabling of the contact elements. Bridge contacts are available to minimize the cabling effort and make installation easy. All contact elements are equipped with self-cleaning connections in silver alloy, which minimizes the maintenance effort. We offer a range of standard symbol discs for key labelling, and individual symbol discs can also be manufactured on request.

 

JoystickJoystick

The portable control panels from B-COMMAND are wired for control systems for industrial machines, including agricultural machinery. They can be fully equipped for individuality by our customers. Different buttons, signal lamps, illuminated pushbuttons, selector switches, joysticks, and displays are available and can be adapted exactly to your requirements. We offer additional options for customization, including a freely designable sticker, custom wiring, and the option of an empty housing. Please ask our consultants about the possibilities.

The agricultural industry is a complex, growing industry with a number of potential applications for slip rings. At B-COMMAND, we pride ourselves on being slip ring experts and are happy to help you find the best solution for your project. In addition to our standard solutions, we also design custom solutions for clients who need something more specific. Please feel free to get in touch with our experts to find your perfect solution today.