Handheld control cases for rough environments

15 June 2005 Manufacturing / Production Technology, Hardware & Services

For some time, design engineers have been demanding more robust handheld enclosures with greater internal space for components such as large graphics displays, sealed cable glands, membrane keypads, mechanical keyboard assemblies, data storage devices and emergency stop switches.

OKW answered these market demands with the Hand-Terminal cases. These tough enclosures are manufactured in a new type of impact-resistant material, which is a blend of ABS and polycarbonate and is rated UL 94 V-0. Two standard colours are offered: off-white and black.

Hand-Terminal cases offer electronics engineers many unique design features: firstly, the top panel is wider than the base section, which provides a large display and keypad area for greater functionality, without making the unit too big to hold. The top panel can also be ordered with a closed operating area or a removable aluminium control panel. Secondly, the base section has a deep area at the top end for larger components such as emergency stop switches. Thirdly, the hand grip area is narrow, formed for comfortable holding, and it also contains the battery compartment. As a result, the weight of the batteries is balanced in the hand, so as not to put a fatiguing load over the user's wrist.

The external dimensions of the Hand-Terminal cases are 220 x 120 x 65 mm. The cases can also be sealed to a high degree from ingress of water and dust with an IP 65 sealing kit accessory. Optional screw-in battery compartment cradles are available for one or two 9 V cells or four 1,5 V AA cells. The top and base mouldings include a large array of screw fixing pillars for mounting the components inside.

Typical applications will include machine controllers, outdoor data-collection units, mobile terminals, flowmeters, programmers and more.

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