Smart Tools Agawam MA

Source: TOOLS OF THE TRADE Magazine
Publication date: January 1, 2001

By Mark Clement

Advanced electronic circuitry and computer chips are present in every aspect of our lives these days, so it's no surprise to find them in a growing variety of power tools. While the old-timers still do their jobs well, tools with "smart" features offer enhanced performance, and, in some cases, safer operation. Here's a look at some of the new "smart" tools you'll find out there -- and how they work.

First, a definition. We call a power tool "smart" if it can electronically "sense" its environment and act or react to it. Toolmakers often cite an automobile's cruise control as an example of a smart feature: It moves the car 55 mph on even ground, but when the engine needs more power to maintain 55 mph on an incline, the gas pedal moves away from the bottom of your foot. In different ways, toolmakers are applying similar principles. The resulting new features can benefit tool users and tool-makers.

Brain Power

Complex yet affordable, electronic circuitry and computer chips are the components manufacturers use to give their products reactive functions. Circuit boards and chips generally monitor one of five things: speed, electric current draw, time, battery conditions, or electrical conductivity. Manufacturers are installing this technology in drills, routers, polishers, table saws, rotary hammers, hammerdrills, pneumatics, cordless tools, and even generators.

Speed Sensors. Blade...

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