Penny + Giles Joystick Controller Provides Superior Functionality for New Dynapac Cab Control System

Cwmfelinfach, UK – 27th September, 2012 – Penny + Giles - a business unit of Curtiss-Wright Controls and a designer and manufacturer of position sensors, solenoids, and joystick controllers – is supplying its JC6000 joystick to Dynapac in Sweden, for the company’s new CA5000 range of Soil Compactors.

The order is the latest in a seven year relationship that began when Dynapac, part of the Atlas Copco Group and one of the world’s most experienced manufacturers of compaction and paving equipment, first approached Penny + Giles in 2005 with an invitation to join a competitive tender to find a new joystick controller for a new 7 to 12 tonne range of tandem rollers.

The tender also required a change from mechanical to electronic joysticks, prompted by some issues with the driver controls in earlier cabs. These were resolved by the selection of the Penny + Giles JC6000 joystick, which was first specified as part of the new cab control system for a Tandem Asphalt Roller. The cab and JC6000 have since been rolled out across many new models, new platforms and other, larger machines, ranging from seven to twenty tonnes operating mass.

Commenting for Dynapac, electrical development engineer Markus Karlowsky says that while price was an important issue, the Penny + Giles JC6000 is a very robust joystick that best met the specification and helped to resolve the control issues.

The joystick’s primary function is as a speed controller – pushing the handle forward moves the machine forward and the farther it is pushed the faster the machine accelerates. Pulling back provides the same function in reverse. In addition, the JC6000 also features a ‘friction-hold’ mechanism that allows operators to maintain the vehicle at a constant speed when the joystick is released, and leaving them free to steer with a conventional steering wheel while monitoring the progress of the operation and focusing on other functions. For example, one of the functions available via buttons on the joystick controller’s handle is the control of jets, which are used to water-lubricate the drums to prevent them sticking to the material being compacted.

Penny + Giles engineers also fulfilled the force level requirements specified by Dynapac for the joystick friction-hold feature, rather than a conventional spring-loaded lever that automatically returns to a neutral position when released.

The superior functionality of the new cab control system is partly due to the variety of operations that can be configured via buttons on the JC6000 handle and partly due to the versatility of the handle itself.

A further, and not insignificant, benefit of the JC6000 joystick controller is its full-grip handle, which is similar to that fitted to mechanical joysticks and therefore familiar to operators, making it easier for them to switch to the Penny + Giles electronic controller.

The contract negotiations were carried out through Penny + Giles’ local distributor Christer Houbaer at AB Elwia, whose input ably demonstrated the local service available through Penny + Giles’ international network.

Since 2005 Penny + Giles has supplied Dynapac with several thousand JC6000’s. Initially, the joystick controllers were delivered to the Dynapac plant in Sweden and more recently have been supplied to Dynapac’s after sales division in Belgium and, since Dynapac began manufacturing in China, have also been supplied to the plant there.

Penny + Giles’ JC6000 joystick controller is designed for demanding operator control applications for off-highway vehicles and other man-machine interfaces, including operator controls on a wide range of off-highway vehicles such as cranes, loaders, excavators, access platforms, tractors and harvesters.

It is available with single- or dual-axis configurations and can be supplied with non-contact Hall effect sensors or long life potentiometer tracks. The compact size, high lever strength and superb proportional control of the JC6000 joystick controller makes it ideal for applications where strength, reliability and handle functionality are important. Features include a rugged design with superior lever strength, a range of ergonomic handle designs, analog or CAN outputs, sealing above panel to IP66 and safety features including switch/logic functions.

About Curtiss-Wright Controls Industrial, Penny + Giles:
Penny Giles is a global leader in the design and manufacture of specialist position sensors, solenoids and control hardware for industrial and defence markets. Headquartered in Christchurch, Dorset, United Kingdom, Penny Giles is part of Curtiss-Wright Controls Avionics & Industrial, a business unit of Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc. For more information visit www.pennyandgiles.com.

About Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc.:
Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, Curtiss-Wright Controls is the Motion Control segment of Curtiss-Wright Corporation and a leading designer and manufacturer of advanced technologies for niche actuation and drive applications, integrated sensors and electronic subsystems internationally for the aerospace and defense markets. For more information, visit www.cwcontrols.com.