Control Engineering articles from April 2008

Control Engineering archives from April 2008

Laser safety scanner adapts to AGVs.
April 1, 2008... Technical staff, Concept Systems When Weyerhaeuser identifies a safety measure that can be improved, the need is documented, and steps are taken to put better safety measures in place. Such a need arose within Weyerhaeuser's Containerboard...

Network gateways.
April 1, 2008... Mark T. Hoske, Control Engineering Industrial communication network gateways translate messages from one protocol to another. The function can be embedded in a chip, in a device or board that may be embedded, or in a standalone device....

Going Green...
April 1, 2008... Jeanine Katzel for Control Engineering Concerns about energy efficiency and environmental practices are back and gaining momentum, so automation vendors and their customers are helping ensure that manufacturing is one of the greenest...

Globalizing Process Engineering.(Company overview)
April 1, 2008... Peter Welander, Control Engineering Companies with plants scattered around the world have discovered the advantages of common control strategies from plant to plant. Implementation approaches differ, but objectives strike similar themes....

Wireless Control Sets Automated Vehicles Free.
April 1, 2008... C.G. Masi, Control Engineering Without wireless, automated vehicles would have to be tethered like a dog tied to a tree, or be completely out of control. As pointed out in the Wireless Control Supplement to the August 2007 Control...

Life after flash memory.
April 1, 2008... Frank J. Bartos, P.E. Non-volatile flash memory has played a large role in enabling the performance we see in today's microprocessors and computers. To store data, flash memory relies on controlling electrons stored in a transistor's gate...

7 critical things to know about Ethernet.
April 1, 2008... Jeremy Bryant, Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc. Before Ethernet gets to the plant floor, there are seven critical things to know. Here, the Profinet protocol provides the example. 1. Network layout. Do not to take office topologies to...

Combining Cyber and Physical Security.
April 1, 2008... Frank Madren, GarrettCom Security technologies developed in electric utility applications are spreading into broader use. IP based video extends functionality of Ethernet infrastructure. As industrial networking evolves, the concepts...

Implementing Smart Grid Solutions.
April 1, 2008... Jake Rasweiler, Arcadian Networks Broadband wireless infrastructure allows electrical distributor to eliminate hodge-podge carriers and converge on one IP communication network. In 2006, after a thorough audit of its existing...

Keeping a Lid On Blowouts.
April 1, 2008... Eric Milne, Hydril Drilling for oil and gas on the sea floor is a complex process that depends on careful coordination of hardware and control strategy. As industrial accidents go, a blowout in offshore natural gas or oil exploration...

Energy projects head Europe's green activities.
April 1, 2008... Michael Babb, Control Engineering Europe In Control Engineering's global focus on manufacturing supplement (March 2008, www.controleng.com/global ), Control Engineering Europe editor Michael Babb described how the European Union is focusing...

Ethernet Connectivity For Pipe Organs.
April 1, 2008... Peter Welander, Control Engineering One of the oldest and most complex musical instruments now uses Ethernet to connect player and pipes. Latency, both constant and variable, is an issue. While pipe organs may date back well over 2,000...

Knowledge and Focus are Key for Effective Safety Audit.
April 1, 2008... Steve Dukich and Mike Duta, Rockwell Automation This is Part 2 of a two part series on the keys to conducting a successful safety audit program. Part 1 appeared on page IM1 of the February issue of Control Engineering. Getting a...

Sensor-Driven Error Proofing.
April 1, 2008... Henry Menke, Balluff Sensors and RFID are an unbeatable team for advanced error proofing. Industrial sensors have proven their effectiveness in basic automation tasks and are being used increasingly in error-proofing functions....

Enterprise search creates role of content manager.
April 1, 2008... Dennis Brandl Today you can find volumes of information from any place in the world within seconds using Internet search engines. Students use this capability to find more information in minutes than previous generations could discover in...

Help students in the STEM game.(science, technology, engineering, and math)
April 1, 2008... Mark T. Hoske, editor-in-chief Applied to engineering, a lot of old adages are not as addled as they seem, like the one that says, 'It's not whether you win or lose; it's how you play the game.' I attended a two local middle school...

Economics and the environment.
April 1, 2008... Marc Moschetto, editorial director The terms 'environmentally responsible' and 'financially rewarding' have not typically been associated. However, in today's economic climate, operating your business in an environmentally responsible way...

Stunning designs: SolidWorks announces winners of second annual student design contest.
April 1, 2008... Staff SolidWorks Corporation, the Concord, MA-based company specializing in 3D computer aided design (CAD) solutions, recently announced the winners of its second annual Student Design Contest. The winning entries were judged in parallel...

Google Lunar X PRIZE brings the moon to the masses, announces ten new teams.
April 1, 2008... Staff At the height of the Cold War, President Kennedy announced a bold and aggressive program designed to highlight American ingenuity and bravery. The 'Space Race' led to the creation of new technologies that are still in use today,...

Wago expands North American headquarters.
April 1, 2008... Staff Wago Corp. expanded its North American headquarters. The expansion, which began August 2007, increased the company's product manufacturing and storage capacity from 60,000 sq. ft. to 75,000 sq. ft., including 36,000 product...

Automation Federation reviews progress, readies agenda for coming year.
April 1, 2008... Staff Automation has a voice on Capitol Hill, says The Automation Federation. The federation's board of directors will meet in April for its third annual strategic planning session to review accomplishments, developments, and plans of the...

GE expands and extends SOA offering.
April 1, 2008... Staff GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms recently announced the launch of Proficy Workflow, a new service oriented architecture (SOA)-based business process management (BPM) application designed to extend the functionality and utility of...

Less flight vibration, better pictures for world's largest infrared telescope.
April 1, 2008... Staff Air suspension system maker ContiTech reported that a custom suspension system it built for of the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) research airplane turned in an outstanding performance in the first test...

Beijer, Wonderware partnership delivers Windows CE operator panels.
April 1, 2008... Staff Terminals running the Microsoft Windows CE operating system are an increasingly available option for basic operator terminal products and industrial PCs. Beijer Electronics and Wonderware, a division of Invensys, have signed a...

New mechatronics videos on CEtv.
April 1, 2008... Staff Because mechatronics involves motion, video can be the best medium for learning about mechatronics solutions. Control Engineering 's educational video portal, CEtv, is the place to find videos from users, designers and automation...

Schneider Electric makes donation to enhance workforce safety.
April 1, 2008... Staff The multi-year, $6.5 million Arc Flash Collaborative Research Project aims to expand the knowledge of the electric arc phenomena and enhance worker safety through advances in the codes and standards relating to safe employee work...

By the Numbers.(United States. Department of Energy)
April 1, 2008... Staff >1/3 of all U.S. energy is consumed by industry, says U.S. Department of Energy. Most industrial energy is supplied from natural gas and petroleum; electricity is a distant third, followed closely by coal, DOE says. Much energy per...

3-phase power measurement.
April 1, 2008... Staff Wago Corporation's 750-493 3-Phase Power Measurement Module integrates comprehensive monitoring of a power supply network with the connectivity of an I/O system. At 12 mm wide, the high-density, 6-channel module provides cost and...

Measure very fast pressure transients.
April 1, 2008... Staff Dytran Instruments has announced a series of piezoelectric high-frequency pressure sensors. Model Series 2301B probe-type pressure sensors measure very fast pressure transients, such as those encountered in field blast and shock tube...

High-performance kit encoder.
April 1, 2008... Staff RENCO Encoders Inc. has introduced a high-performance, low cost kit encoder with choice of locking connector. The RE200 Series encoders improve upon read-head style products by providing six different connector configurations with...

Flat panel monitors for marine conditions.
April 1, 2008... Staff Computer Dynamics, a GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms company, has announced the SeaBrite family of flat panel monitors. Resistant to shock and vibration, they fulfill the requirements of the marine industry with a wide operating...

Temperature/humidity monitoring tools.
April 1, 2008... Staff Control engineers tracking temperature or humidity conditions can access real-time data and download data for further analysis with redesigned Dickson Graph-at-a-Glance flat panel temperature and humidity data loggers. The paperless...

Rugged handheld data terminal.
April 1, 2008... Staff The Guardian 135, a military-grade (MIL-STD-810F), rugged handheld data terminal, combines Windows CE 5.0 OS and Intel's high performance RISC CPU PXA270 to create a powerful handheld data collection computer. Wireless connectivity...

C series multi-loop controller.
April 1, 2008... Staff Athena Controls, Inc. has launched the C Series Multi-Loop Controller, which features four loops of PID control with cascade and feed-forward capabilities for less cost that four separate loop controllers with similar capabilities....

Wireless pressure switch.
April 1, 2008... Staff Meriam Adalet Wireless has announced a fully integrated, self-contained wireless pressure switch for monitoring pressure in industrial applications. The AWI-PS, for use in rugged industrial areas, is available in battery-powered and...

Microprocessor-based digital potentiometer.
April 1, 2008... Staff The DP4 Series Digital Potentiometer from Dart Controls is now RoHS compliant. The product is suitable for new equipment, as well as retrofitting most ac or dc drive systems where precise, repeatable speed setting and digital readout...

Microsoft's embedded offerings extended.
April 1, 2008... Staff Microsoft Corp. has announced .NET Micro Framework Version 2.5 to provide developers and device-makers with support for Web Services on Devices compatible with the implementation built into Windows Vista and supported by the other...

SCADA module for RTU product line.
April 1, 2008... Staff Semaphore, a CSE Global company, has added a 32-bit CPU SCADA software module to its T-BOX line of RTU SCADA system products. MS-CPU32 is compatible with the T-BOX MS Modular System and offers up to 100 times the performance of...

Flowmeters for low liquid flow rates.
April 1, 2008... Staff Bronkhorst High-Tech has released an option for its Liqui-Flow Series mass meters and controllers for low flow rates. The instruments are available in compact, rugged designs that are IP65 and ATEX approved for use in Category 3,...

Safety mats with quick cable disconnects.
April 1, 2008... Staff Omron Scientific Technologies, Inc. has introduced the UMQ Series Safety Mats, which feature an IP67 quick-disconnect cable connector to lower costs through reduced inventory, while simplifying installation and replacement of damaged...

Safety relay contact expansion modules.
April 1, 2008... Staff Pilz Automation Safety LP has introduced two new modules in the PNOZsigma range of slim line safety relays to enable the number of contacts to be expanded, offering the potential for savings in cost and space compared with...

Secure industrial cellular modem.
April 1, 2008... Staff OnCell G3100 industrial RS-232 or RS-232/422/485 GSM/GPRS/EDEG IP modems from Moxa Technologies Inc. are designed to transmit data and short messages (SMS) over GSM/GPRS/EDEG cellular networks. The Real COM operation mode...

Electric monorail system.
April 1, 2008... Staff SEW-Eurodrive announces North American availability of an intelligent Electric Monorail System (EMS) for overhead trolley systems. The flexible transport system saves expensive floor space. Load capacity can exceed 4 tons per car,...

Handheld Testing.
April 1, 2008... Peter Cleaveland for Control Engineering Electrical, temperature, power, pressure are the most measured by handheld test and measurement devices; some users appreciate simplicity. Purchases will increase. The steady shrinking in size...

Control your energy destiny.
April 1, 2008... David Petratis, Schneider Electric Demand for electric power is growing around the planet. Emerging markets like China and India are going to dramatically influence global demand. Here in the U.S., rates are up. Power grids are becoming...

Bring on the jet cars.
April 1, 2008... Marc Moschetto, Editorial Director This survey highlights several ways automation solution providers and packaging professionals can future-proof their businesses. When I was a kid, I loved watching reruns of those 1950s-era 'world of...

Communication & clarity.
April 1, 2008... John Kalkowski, Editorial Director As with any successful relationship, communication is key to long-term success. Such is the case with packaging professionals and their suppliers. Automation can yield impressive results, but only if all...

Change is constant.
April 1, 2008... Staff As market trends change, packaging pros and their suppliers are forced to become more agile and responsive to customer needs. This Automation in Packaging Benchmark Study quantifies the trends, needs and opportunities for all. ...

A Focus on Packagers.(Survey)
April 1, 2008... Staff Packaging professionals play a unique role in today's production ecosystem. In addition to wrestling with 'traditional' issues of reducing costs and optimizing production, packagers must also contend with rapid-fire changes brought...

Market Challenges.
April 1, 2008... Staff Information and communication As with virtually every vertical segment in the manufacturing space today, packaging professionals are challenged to reduce costs, improve efficiencies and gain a competitive edge. This may seem to...

Opportunities For Improvement.
April 1, 2008... Staff Information-enabling the plant floor - including the packaging line - can transform process bottlenecks into market opportunities. Despite challenges presented by today's market conditions, automation technologies deliver...

Future Prospects.(Survey)
April 1, 2008... Staff The environment of change that packagers find themselves in can give way to opportunity. Packaging machine flexibility is key, and automation can help. The Internet boom of the 1990s and the subsequent bust in the early days of...

Green motors, copper wires and more.
April 1, 2008... Staff This month's batch of feedback from magazine subscribers and ControlEng.com users takes on a decidedly international flavor. In addition to comments received from within North America, we've also received feedback from individuals in...

FPGAs enable flexible network gateway design.
April 1, 2008... Technical Staff, Altera Corporation With the introduction of wireless field-side standards, such as WirelessHART and current efforts in SP100.11a standardization, gateway implementers are faced with making difficult tradeoffs between the...