Control Engineering articles from February 2009

Control Engineering archives from February 2009

CNC retrofit helps mold shop succeed.
February 1, 2009... Staff There comes a point in the life of every business when it has to choose between investing in an advanced technology and staying with the tried-and-true--the potential big payback versus the safe status quo. When that choice...

Everything needs calibration.
February 1, 2009... C.G. Masi, Control Engineering When it comes to extreme high-accuracy motion control, such as marking the fiducials on precise linear encoders used to make integrated circuits with critical dimensions at the few tens of nanometers level,...

Are you being social?(Column)
February 1, 2009... David Greenfield, editorial director For someone who has spent a great deal of time working with the Internet (I was setting up Web directories and posting articles on Websites as early as 1995), I feel like I have come incredibly late to...

Plug into Industrial Ethernet Protocols.
February 1, 2009... Mark T. Hoske, Control Engineering Industrial Ethernet protocols can be standard and unmodified, or modified to be industrially hardened. Perspectives from protocol proponents clarify needs for various implementations. Industrial...

Sorting out PID Controller Differences.
February 1, 2009... Vance VanDoren, Ph.D., P.E., Control Engineering Variations in what controller designers consider the "standard" PID algorithm can be confusing and confound tuning efforts Back in college, I learned that the ubiquitous...

Microprocessor advances translate into more CNC machine capability.(computer numerical control)(Technical report)
February 1, 2009... C.G. Masi, Control Engineering CNC technology follows mass-market computing trends, so advances in general-purpose computing engines make more capable controllers available for CNC systems. It is a fact of life that the needs of...

State-of-the-art Control Rooms.
February 1, 2009... Renee M. Robbins, Control Engineering Contemporary control rooms show how technology and design are combining to help users--not just machines--operate at peak efficiency. In process and discrete manufacturing plants, control systems...

Energy Management: First Steps Toward Greater Efficiency, Part Two.
February 1, 2009... David Greenfield, Control Engineering This article series is designed to provide specific examples of how engineers can identify and address--at relatively little or no cost--the principal sources of energy waste in their production...

European motor efficiency developments.
February 1, 2009... Frank J. Bartos, P.E. Although an effective date isn't expected before 2011, mandatory minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) for electric motors are coming to Europe in 2009. This will promote energy-efficient (EE) motor systems that...

Polish automation trends mirror global interests.
February 1, 2009... Krzysztof Pietrusewicz, Control Engineering Poland Almost every technology presented by vendors at industrial fairs is called innovative. So, are we truly living in a time of milestone technology solutions, or is "innovative" simply...

CERN Project Targets Safety and Environment.
February 1, 2009... Roy Kok, Kepware Integrated data environment promotes regulatory compliance, safety, and administrative efficiencies. CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, is home to the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), a particle...

Why Use Software Verification?
February 1, 2009... Paul Humphreys, LDRA Ltd. Developers of nonsafety critical systems can benefit from the type of rigorous standards employed within the aerospace and automotive industries. Software development often proves far more expensive than...

FPGAs and the Industrial Ethernet Maze.
February 1, 2009... Frank Iwanitz, Softing AG and Stefano Zammattio, Altera Corp. FPGAs offer an easy route to developing embedded systems with reconfigurable networking capabilities. Today, there are more than 25 Ethernet-based industrial communication...

Application development: Give it a REST.
February 1, 2009... Dennis Brandl In the era of "doing more with less," you may need to implement manufacturing applications that consist of a database and a set of user interface screens and reports. There is a software architecture style for these...

Top stories of 2008 and why.(Column)
February 1, 2009... Mark T. Hoske, editor in chief Of the myriad things I write, sharing the year's top stories is best. A) It involves measurement, which is fun -- sorting the number of times readers accessed these stories online. B) I get to learn what you...

Bolick retires from Honeywell Process Solutions; Gilsdorf named new president.(Jack Bolick)(Norman Gilsdorf)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Staff Honeywell announced the appointment of Norman "Norm" Gilsdorf as president of Honeywell Process Solutions. Gilsdorf was formerly vice president and general manager of the Process Solutions business in Europe, Middle East and Africa...

Control Engineering launches Facebook *Automation & Control* group.(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... David Greenfield, editorial director Online social media has quickly become an important tool for many people as a means of staying in touch with their professional community. As such, I'd like to extend a personal invitation for you to...

Wireless adoption trends in factory automation.
February 1, 2009... Staff Wireless devices are perceived as the next big technological wave in factory automation. However, the current adoption trends are moderate at best, despite requirements for real time data, mobile workforce, remote access and...

Motor Summit 2008 advances energy-efficiency efforts.
February 1, 2009... Frank J. Bartos, P.E., Consulting Editor Motor Summit 2008 publicized new developments in energy-efficient electric motor systems--including drives, pumps, fans, compressors, and material handling equipment. Held in Zurich, Switzerland,...

Fieldbus Foundation releases Safety Instrumented Functions specification.
February 1, 2009... Staff Fieldbus Foundation announced new device development tools for its Foundation for Safety Instrumented Functions (SIF) technology. The release includes the Foundation for SIF final Technical Specification package, SIF Interoperability...

Automation pioneer Nels Tyring dies at 77.(Obituary)
February 1, 2009... Staff The founder and CEO of TVC Systems, Nels Andrew Tyring, died Dec. 14, 2008, at age 77, after a two-year battle with cancer. Among a diversity of automation achievements, he was credited with coining the term: control system...

Automation Competency Model finalized.(Automation Federation)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Mark Hoske, editor-in-chief The Automation Federation has completed the Automation Competency Model, a formal federal document defining the skills and competencies needed in the automation field. The Automation Federation worked with...

Automation vendors boost biofuels.
February 1, 2009... Staff Over the past few years, bioethanol refineries sprang up all over the place, and companies that build process control systems jumped into the fray as the next big thing. This should be no surprise, as there aren't many new...

PAC simplifies advanced control.
February 1, 2009... Staff National Instruments has released a low-cost CompactRIO programmable automation controller (PAC) for advanced control and monitoring applications. The NI cRIO-9073 system has an integrated hardware architecture that combines an...

Development environment for custom 802.11 applications.
February 1, 2009... Staff Lantronix, Inc. has announced an enhanced Software Development Kit (SDK) for its 32-bit MatchPort products to provide a development environment for creating custom applications for Lantronix' products. The release builds on the...

Flow switch pressure-rated to 2,000 psi.
February 1, 2009... Staff PKP Process Instruments' DS04 flow switch measures and monitors the flow of low viscosity liquids and gases. Applications include monitoring equipment cooling loops used on laser systems and plasma welding systems, as well as pump...

Pancake load cell with USB output.
February 1, 2009... Staff The newest product in Futek Sensor Technology's USB Sensor Solutions product line is the improved LCF400 pancake load cell with a new USB digital interface. LCF400 includes structural changes and complete welding which improves...

3-color displays viewable 600 feet away.
February 1, 2009... Staff Red Lion Controls has released the Plant Floor Marquee (PFM) series of highly visible, multi-color LED displays. Optimized for communicating critical machine status and production data instantly across the plant floor, the largest...

HMI I/O controller does simple tasks without a PLC.(human machine interface)(programmable logic controller)
February 1, 2009... Staff A new I/O module easily interfaces with Beijer Electronics' HMI and allows the user to implement simple monitoring and automation tasks without a PLC. The compact HMI I/O controller is developed for the plus version of the H-T40, the...

Touchscreen computer, HMI for explosive atmospheres.
February 1, 2009... Staff General Atomic Electronic Systems Inc. (GA-ESI) Terminal Automation Products division, serving the bulk petroleum and chemical storage and distribution industry for 30 years, expands its specialized products and system integration...

Safety relay for complex pressure transducer applications.
February 1, 2009... Staff Innovations in safety relays enable use of Siemens Modular Safety Systems (MSS) to improve system flexibility, functionality, and diagnostics, while reducing overall costs. With the new Sirius 3RK3 modular safety system, Siemens...

Micro-machined silicon pressure transducers.
February 1, 2009... Staff Omegadyne announces the most durable version of its high accuracy MM Series micro-machined silicon pressure transducers. The new hermetically sealed version of the MM Series features all welded Stainless Steel construction, 316...

Control Valve Actuators.
February 1, 2009... Peter Welander, Control Engineering Since most process industry operations depend on carefully modulated flows, control valve actuators are hugely important. Users explain what they want and need for such strategic hardware. Reed...

Globalized engineering requires an immigration strategy.
February 1, 2009... Robert Meltzer, CEO, VisaNow In recent years, a number of factors have played a role in the increasing globalization of the engineering industry. Many feel a key driver is the economic advantages global companies can realize from...

Winning Technologies.
February 1, 2009... Renee Robbins, Control Engineering Much is changing within the industrial automation space and around it. At Control Engineering , our job is to keep you informed of the latest trends and technologies so you can either ride the waves of...

2008 New Product Award Nominees.
February 1, 2009... Staff Application & Progra- mming Software ------------------------- Applications POMStrace ** Wonderware IntelaTrac* Data Acquisition DT9837A DXAdvanced R3 * ReDAQ SLX920 ** Design, Simulation Eplan Electric P8...

Machine and Embedded Control.
February 1, 2009... Staff R-Gage QT50R Sensor Staff Banner Engineering The QT50R Sensor employs radar technology to detect close and long-range presence of moving or stationary objects. The technology was originally designed to track freight...

Process Instrumentation and Sensors.
February 1, 2009... Staff Micro Motion 2200S two-wire transmitter Staff Emerson Process Management, Micro Motion Division Emerson's Micro Motion 2-wire Coriolis meter with MVD technology extends highly accurate mass flow and density measurement...

Process and Advanced Control.
February 1, 2009... Staff AC 700F Staff ABB ABB's AC 700F is a powerful, compact controller that bridges the price and performance gap between PLCs and larger process automation systems, making it an ideal solution for small process...

Application and Programming Software.
February 1, 2009... Staff Wonderware IntelaTrac Staff Wonderware Wonderware IntelaTrac is a mobile workforce and decision support system. Using IntelaTrac on mobile computers for equipment surveillance opens the door to an intelligent work...

HMIs and Industrial PCs.
February 1, 2009... Staff EZSeries HMI with remote Internet control Staff EZAutomation EZAutomation provides a dedicated human machine interface (HMI) with remote Internet control by adding Webserver/remote control technology to its EZSeries...

Honorable Mentions.
February 1, 2009... Staff POMStrace - Honeywell Process Solutions Staff POMStrace reduces efforts to maintain and track inventory records for supplies used in clinical trials, as well as managing patient kits and supplies required to execute trials....

Motors, Drives and Motion Control.
February 1, 2009... Staff AF-6 Series Drives Staff General Electric AF-6 Series Drives are used to reduce overall energy costs and accurately control motor speed. GE introduced the new series for applications up to 1,350 hp with many features...

Networks and Communications.
February 1, 2009... Staff Vortex A/C Model #7770 Staff Vortec - ITW Air Management With essentially no maintenance, the Vortex A/C 7770 provides total enclosure protection from heat and contaminants, with thermostatically controlled, two-stage...