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NMR

NMR Calibration For Hall probes

New NMR calibration facility for Hall probe products.

An NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) magnetometer provides a direct high accuracy measurement of magnetic flux density based on the gyromagnetic ratio of protons.

Nuclear magnetic resonance magnetometers are the gold standard for magnetic field measurement. They exploit a precisely-known property of atmomic nuclei and the ability to measure frequency also with high precision and thus provide extraordinary accuracy. Pyramid has added a PT2026 magnetometer supplied by world-leaders Metrolab SA to provide a convenient in-house calibration capability of its range of precision Hall probes.

The magnets and power supplies used for production calibration at Pyramid were not originally designed with the requirements of NMR in mind, but with valuable assistance from Metrolab and the supply of customised NMR probes, a robust calibration system has been created.

T1 and HP1

T1

Industrial Gauss Meter and Magnetic Field Probe with REST API

135-Beaver-St-Waltham-MA

Pyramid Relocates

We're moving to a new office

PTC USA moves to larger office

We are announcing the relocation of our primary US offices to Waltham, MA. The new location is approximately 2 miles from our current location in Lexington. The new space suites our growing engineering, manufacturing, and office needs.

Pyramid Technical Consultants, Inc.
135 Beaver Street
Suite 102
Waltham, MA 02452 USA
T: +1 781-402-1700
F: +1 781-402-1750

PTC Europe moves to larger premises

The new offices in a historic building near the center of Henfield gives us better space to support our customers in Europe. The extra space improves our engineering development, customer support, service and calibration capability.

We now have the space and facilities to offer training on the the full range of Pyramid products. The office is only a minute's walk from the many attractions of downtown Henfield.

Pyramid Technical Consultants Europe, Ltd
First Floor Office, The Barn
Golden Square
Henfield BN5 9DP UK
T: +44 1273 492002

We all look forward to welcoming visitors when the world returns to normality.

Com ports

Online Connectivity Tools

New tools for connecting to devices using only your web browser.

Serial ASCII console

RS-232 is a very mature interface standard, but is still very widely used. Many Pyramid products support RS-232 as well as their primary Ethernet or fiber-optic interfaces. Even if it is not used for primary communication purposes, the RS-232 interface can be used for diagnostic and setup purposes such as interrogating or setting a network address, or reading the firmware version.

Pyramid has created a simple, free to use on-line serial ASCII communication console that can be used with Pyramid products: console.ptcusa.com. The console will automatically identify any active COM ports on the host computer and presents them as connection options. Com ports

Once connected, you can send serial strings and see the response of the connected device. Every response is timestamped, and you can repeat command strings by simply clicking on a prior entry. You can set the console to repeat the same command at timed intervals, and send the whole history to a csv file. Serial ASCII session

T-1 with HP-1

T1: A Network Enabled Hall Probe

A new precision Hall probe product with excellent connectivity options

Large installations such as particle accelerators depend on accurately controlled magnetic fields in many locations. The fields need to be measured with high precision and in some case must be controlled to achieve an exact target value. The field being measured may be in a radiation environment.

The new T1 Hall probe system is a precise and compact device designed for such requirements. The HP-1 active probe has built-in temperature sensing and gain control and is designed to measure DC and AC fields up to 2.8 T. The NMR-traceable calibration is stored with the probe. The matching T1 control unit connects via Ethernet to your local area network and can be controlled through a web browser interface. It also provides an analog voltage monitor output that maps the field reading so that it can be tracked using a voltmeter or oscilloscope.

An optional field control servo feature allows the T1 to provide field stabilisation to target values sent via Ethernet, using the analog output voltage to control a power supply.

T1 and HP1

T1

Industrial Gauss Meter and Magnetic Field Probe with REST API

gold ic64-6

Ionization Chamber Advances

Upgraded gold electrodes for increased performance

Pyramid continues to advance the performance and reliability of its ionization chamber products. Pyramid engineer Nick Dart, working in the ionization chamber assembly and test lab, has provided details of a new build of the flash therapy optimized IC64-6 chamber that demonstrates advances in gold coating, laser patterning and connection methods. The new chamber is showing good performance and stability in in-house testing and will be demonstrated on a proton system at an early opportunity.

The new gold electrodes provide:

  • More precise and very consistent pattern writing
  • Improved long term connection reliability
  • Excellent high voltage stability

Following tests on the IC64-6, the new methods will be implemented on other chambers including the larger area IC128-25 models.

IC64-6 Render

IC64-6

64x64 Strip Transmission Ion Chamber

IC128-25 Render

IC128-25

128x128 Strip Transmission Monitor Ion Chamber with Dose Plane

Old Pyramid Logo

Supporting Our Customers Through Troubling Times

Continuing support during the pandemic

Pyramid staff in the US and the UK are still working to support our customers during the current COVID-19 control restrictions. We are limited in attending our premises, but we are using special working practices and our established remote working methods to maintain a high level of availability. Direct emails and support tickets on our website will be answered as usual. Shipments and returns may take a little longer than usual to process, but we'll be working hard to get necessary parts out as soon as we can.

Pyramid Technical Consultants appreciates your patience and consideration during these demanding times.

McLaren Building

Pyramid Announces Business Partnership With Major Healthcare Provider

McLaren Health Care Corporation invests in Pyramid Tech.

Pyramid Technical Consultants, Inc. of Lexington, Massachusetts announces the investment of $4 million from McLaren Health Care Grand Blanc, Michigan. The invested funds will support our continued advancement of the technology behind the McLaren Proton Therapy Center in Flint, Michigan, and accelerate the development of innovative, new products and services for health systems around the world.

McLaren is an integrated health system operating Michigan’s largest network of cancer centers and providers. Pyramid was proud to partner with McLaren to complete their Proton Therapy Center, which opened in late 2018. It is one of the only centers in the world utilizing advanced synchrotron technology for the treatment of certain cancers.

Pyramid is in its 34th year of operations, providing specialized software and hardware in the field of particle accelerators. “Our close relationship with McLaren gives us an ideal platform to understand and respond to customer needs within the proton therapy field” commented Pyramid CEO, Dr. Paul Boisseau. “We will use the investment capital to further solidify our position as a supplier of technology for the global particle therapy market allowing us to better support our clients as their customer base expands. We will also be able to accelerate our development of products targeted to the larger general scientific and industrial markets.”

Pyramid Technical Consultants, Inc. was established in 1986. The company serves customers around the world from its base in Lexington, Massachusetts, and through its subsidiary office PTC Europe in West Sussex, UK. We are working with partners worldwide to develop innovative technology in the fields of particle therapy, industrial control, and scientific research.

IC64-6

Is your IC ready for flash?

A new small gap ion chamber comes in handy for flash

Flash radiotherapy using protons and heavier ions has become a hot topic of research. It offers the promise of improved long-term outcomes and faster patient throughput. Yet it raises several interesting challenges for the system developers. One of the obvious ones being how to measure beams which have higher intensity than those used today. This causes problems for established ion chamber technology due to ion recombination losses. While other detectors are in development, ion chambers remain the trusted technology.

The new Pyramid IC64-6 chamber provides a tool for researchers in the field. Featuring small chamber gaps, high position resolution, and different fill gases. This allows it to operate even when the particle beams are narrow and have high charge density. Thin polyimide electrodes with 300A gold patterning absorbs almost no beam energy. The new IC64-6 is capable of being the new gold standard for flash therapy.

IC64-6 Render

IC64-6

64x64 Strip Transmission Ion Chamber

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