Summary: Bio Med Sciences were able to easily automate the data collection from both tensile testers and force gages directly into fields in MS Access using WinWedge from TALtech.
Prior to this automation the tensile and force data had been manually collected and typed into MS Access. This was slow and error-prone.
Synthetic Skin Tensile Strength
When thinking of something you don’t want to break or tear when stretched – rubber bands, bungee cords, maybe even muscles come to mind. But not usually your skin. The elasticity and strength of our skin is something we all take for granted. But not Bio Med Sciences, Inc., of Bethlehem, PA, who since 1987, has produced a patented “synthetic skin” formulation which combines the properties of silicone and polytetrafluoroethylene (commonly known as “teflon”) and is used for biomedical applications.
Technical Details of Product
In producing their formulation, Bio Med developed a simple system that increases productivity and accuracy during the quality control testing of their formulation. The elasticity and strength of the formulation, named Silon-IPN, is critical, since Bio Med has developed it for a wide variety of commercial applications including the healing and treatment of wounds and burns. These commercial applications comprise the family of Silon-IPN products, which include (i) Silon-TSR Temporary Skin Replacement, a dressing substance for promoting moist wound healing and pain reduction for patients; (ii) Silon-SES Silicone Elastomer Sheeting , a soft and durable material used with pressure garments worn during the care of wounds to promote healing and patient comfort and reduce keloids (scar tissue) and hypertrophic scaring; (iii) Silon-STS Silicone Thermoplastic Splinting, a material which combines a therapeutic surface of silicone with a moldable orthotic material to manage burn scars and scar treatment.
Using WinWedge to Automate Quality Control Measurements
Initially, Bio Med performed quality control strength and elasticity testing manually. The manual pendulum-type measuring system, which involved manually transcribing force load and elongation measurements on paper and then typing them into a Microsoft Access database, proved to be time consuming and error-prone. Mark Dillon, a materials engineer and the president of Bio Med, designed an automated quality control testing system to ensure quality and consistency in their manufacturing. In designing the system, Dillon sought measuring tools that would allow automation and WinWedge software to serve as a communication interface between these RS232-output measuring instruments and his MS Access database. Dillon preferred to maintain his data in Access since he had already developed an Access-based reporting system.
To determine the strength characteristics of the manufactured Silon materials, the breaking point force and elongation of the materials are measured as samples are pulled on a tension tester. To accomplish this, the samples are placed on a tension and compression testing machine (manufactured by Chatillon, Greensboro, NC, model number TCD200) with a force gage (manufactured by Mark-10 Corporation, Hicksville, NY, model BG-10) mounted on it. The samples are then stretched to the breaking point. The breaking point measurements, including the force applied and elongation, are sent to the serial COM* ports of the PC and WinWedge “graps” these readings and feeds them directly into the database in realtime. These maximum tension strength values are then compared to quality control values in the Access database.
*NOTE: Newer PCs do not have COM ports but you can use the same instruments by connecting them to RS232 to USB converter cables such as those from FTDI and Prolific. These create “Virtual COM Ports” in your PC that WinWedge collects the device data from.
The automation of the quality control testing is possible since both the tension and compression testing machine and the force gage both have RS232 output and connect two different serial ports on the PC. The readings are filtered and sent to the Access database using the WinWedge device data collection software from TTALtech. WinWedge communicates with each device independently and directs the data as needed to the appropriate fields in the Access database.
WinWedge Benefits
Dillon found that by automating the quality control strength testing, the process takes half as much time as the manual process. Dillon noted, “The data entry used to take as much time as the actual testing and analysis”. Dillon added, “WinWedge has saved us a lot of time and improved our accuracy to 100%.”
Additionally, Dillon recently began developing strength profiles by graphing the force load data continuously over time in Microsoft Excel as WinWedge can input the data into Excel too. The elongation can also be calculated since the samples are pulled at a constant rate (distance=rate x time).
Using WinWedge to Automate the Data Collection:
- 99% time reduction in data collection (over slow manual data entry)
- 100% data accuracy ensured
- Immediate access to quality control data, allows real time strength profile analysis
- WinWedge is an easy, versatile, and cost effective solution
- TALtech provides free technical support and ensures WinWedge is always updated
Updated August 2026