Beswick Engineering's PRD2 pressure regulator has won Product Design and Development magazine's Engineering Silver Award for the best new product in 2005
It was also chosen as one of two runner-ups in Design News magazine's 2006 Golden Mousetrap Awards in the Fluid Power category.
Beswick PRD2 Ultra Miniature Two-stage Diaphragm Pressure Regulator is an innovative breakthrough for applications in the fuel cell industry and many other demanding industries.
The PRD2 is an ideal choice for its light weight, space saving, and precise pressure regulation for varying inlet pressures.
This patent-pending device is roughly the size of ten coins stacked on top of each other.
It weighs approximately 23 grams in aluminum and 50 grams in brass and stainless steel.
Usually, a designer sacrifices performance when selecting a small device.
However, the PRD2 out performs most other miniature regulators on the market.
The PRD2 has three major characteristics that make it innovative and high performance.
The device features a low-friction sensor and a proprietary valve arrangement to achieve excellent regulation.
An innovative spring arrangement gives this regulator the capability of handling a range of regulated output pressures while maintaining a very small envelope.
The stages of the regulator are nested, keeping the regulator on a very miniature scale.
The PRD2 controls output pressures from 0-20psig and is especially suited to low pressure regulation such as 1/2psig.
The maximum rated inlet supply pressure is 500psig.
Normally small regulators are subject to droop and rise of the output pressure setting with wide swings in input pressure however the PRD2 regulator maintains a constant output pressure despite input pressure swings.
The superior performance of the PRD2 makes it a perfect choice for applications with varying input pressures, such as with a gas storage tank where the pressure decreases as the gas is consumed.
The performance of this miniature regulator allows other new and more innovative products to be made into a small envelop.
Such products can be found in portable fuel cells, UAV aircraft, instrumentation equipment, and other applications where size and weight are critical.
Here is an example of testimonials from the users of this device: "This regulator provides us with a perfect blend of miniature size, lightweight, corrosion resistance and repeatability that out performs every regulator we tested." - design engineer in the instrumentation and analysis industry.
