Control and Instrumentation articles from September 2000

Control and Instrumentation archives from September 2000

Salute the new enablers.
September 1, 2000... Visitors to this year's ISA Expo will have been impressed by the trend away from product development and the move towards the new technologies. Speakers at the conference sessions stressed the growing importance of e-commerce and the internet...

Process optimisation strategy.
September 1, 2000... As process manufacturers begin to realise the business potential and advantages brought about by the Internet, more and more are pursuing e-business strategies as a way to differentiate themselves from their competitors in a crowded market,...

Crossbow claims first Bluetooth application.
September 1, 2000... CROSSBOW TECHNOLOGY has revealed a wireless sensor architecture, claimed to be the first application to create wireless data connections to the Internet using the emerging Bluetooth wireless communications standard, Called CrossNet, the...

Glasgow's Underground gets revamp.
September 1, 2000... THE SPT GLASGOW Underground Railway has employed automatic train operation (ATO) on all underground trains since 1980. This technology modernisation project aims to provide the underground network with an enhanced system based on proven cost...

ISA has reinvented itself to keep pace with technological change.
September 1, 2000... IN A FLURRY of superlatives and split infinitives, the ISA - The Instrumentation, Systems, and Automation Society has announced its 'reinvention'. The move was approved at ISA Expo 2000 held last month in New Orleans. "Since technology...

New partners for Omron Electronics.
September 1, 2000... MICROMECH AND Goodwin Electronics have become Omron Electronics Engineering partners, which gives both companies access to Omron s range of automation products and services. This builds on their current status of Business Partners to Yaskawa...

Windows to power futuristic carrier.
September 1, 2000... THE US NAVY'S next generation CVN-77 nuclear aircraft carrier, scheduled for launch in 2008, will use a future version of Microsoft's computer operating system to run its command and control systems. Microsoft Federal Systems plans to...

Invensys.
September 1, 2000... * Invensys has completed its takeover of Baan has three objectives for its new acquisition: break-even within 12 months, restoring customer confidence, and developing a platform for growth. Break-even will mean cost cutting, elimination of...

Rockwell Automation.
September 1, 2000... * Rockwell Automation has teamed up with Hewlett Packard to distribute the HP Jornada 690 Handheld PCs with Rockwell Software applications preloaded. The Jornada 690 will become Rockwell Automation's standard platform for Microsoft Windows...

Honeywell.
September 1, 2000... * Honeywell has retained Salomon Smith Barney to assist the company in finding a buyer for its Consumer Products Group (CPG) business unit, a manufacturer and marketer of consumer products for the automotive industry. CPG is comprised of four...

Foxboro.
September 1, 2000... * Foxboro has launched MeasurementExpress.com, which gives customers access to products available next day in the US. The site gives details of Foxboro's I/A intelligent pressure and temperature transmitters, flowmeters, and intelligent...

Intel.
September 1, 2000... * Intel's latest desktop microprocessor, called the Pentium 4, is scheduled to roll out in the fourth quarter. It will have a speed of 1.4 GHz and will contain 42 million transistors, versus the 28 million in the current Pentium ill....

UnityWatch.
September 1, 2000... * UnityWatch web visualisation, monitoring, and control software from eMation is now available preloaded on Siemens Energy & Automation SIMATIC HMI operator panel product line. Emation is also offering an OPC Toolkit for Wind River Systems'...

ICS Group takeover by Tritrax gives hope for future stability.
September 1, 2000... TRITRAX HAS acquired the majority shareholding of the ICS Group plc and its subsidiaries in a deal concluded last month. It is hoped that the acquisition will give customers and suppliers confidence in the future performance of the...

Scada package features web enablement.
September 1, 2000... SUITEVOYAGER FROM Wonderware is a series of thin software products that acquire information and control via the Internet or from intranets. The suite supplies a scalable and multi-lingual manufacturing information portal to the world of...

Borden integrates supply chain.
September 1, 2000... ASPEN TECHNOLOGY has announced a software licensing and services agreement with Borden Chemical for the deployment of the Aspen eSupply Chain Suite, including Strategic Analyser and B2B Foundation, throughout the company's Performance Resins...

Concurrent engineering.
September 1, 2000... REBIS HAS RELEASED: Version 15.10 of AutoPLANT Process and Instrumentation Workgroups, which are AutoCAD 2000 and Microsoft Office 2000 compliant. Version 15.10 allows you to use AutoCAD R14 or AutoCAD 2000, Microsoft Office 97 or Microsoft...

Batch validation package complies with requirements.
September 1, 2000... YOKOGAWA HAS introduced a batch validation package, which complies with the latest FDA requirements on the storage of electronic records in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. The new batch system, offered as an option on...

Efficiency checklist: 16 points to remember.
September 1, 2000... 1 Have I calculated friction and inertia of shaft? 2 Have I calculated torque of transmission (static and dynamic)? 3 What is the maximum workload? 4 And the coefficient of friction? 5 How many steps are needed for executing...

On demand microstepping is matched to function.
September 1, 2000... STEPPER MOTORS fulfil, cost-efficiently, tasks that demand accurate positioning and repeatability which makes this mechanism an increasingly popular motive force in mechatronic systems. In short, high precision rotation 'on demand', with the...

Application example: three axis positioning in engraving.
September 1, 2000... IN A TYPICAL EXAMPLE of the demands of x-y-z axes positioning, such as engraving, the three planes of movement -- two inscribing axes and one axis for depth of cut -- require step programming to run continuously for producing repeat patterns....

Hassle-free migration claimed for fieldbus users.
September 1, 2000... An interface module has been developed which allows OEMs to migrate embedded systems to the high integrity Can fieldbus without software changes A NEW INTERFACE from HM Computing will be of particular interest to equipment vendors with...

Profibus integrates with IT networks.
September 1, 2000... PROFINET IS AN integration path between Profibus and IT networks to provide for a more direct path between Profibus networks and Enterprise software. Profibus will continue be used at the fieldbus level, but the linkage to IT systems is now...

Don't loose sight of customer care.
September 1, 2000... All roads led to New Orleans last month as the ISA held its annual gathering. New technologies took most of the limelight but delegates were reminded not to loose track of the customer. Paul Gay reports. TECHNOLOGY IS DEVELOPING at such a...

Forging relationships.
September 1, 2000... SHEFFIELD FORGEMASTERS Engineering has installed a giant press and integrated robot manipulator which exerts a load of 10,000 tonnes and is probably the only one of its kind in Europe. It is used to manufacture heavy forgings of up to 300...

Fieldbus control for innovative conveyor.
September 1, 2000... EWAB Engineering, a Swedish supplier to the automotive industry, manufactures a patented industrial palletised conveyor system that has found widespread acceptance for handling components and subassemblies. The flexible modular highway...

Emphasis on advanced long term fugitive emission control.
September 1, 2000... DRESSER VALVE DIVISION has won a substantial order to supply control valves and accessories to the new Bristol-Myers Squibb Bulk Pharmaceutical Plant at Cruiserath in Ireland. The order, which was placed by Kvaerner Process through Hanley...

In the NAVY.
September 1, 2000... Two or three years ago, integrators would have laughed at the idea of controlling mission critical operations with Windows systems. Now the US Navy steers its ships with realtime embedded systems An integrated hardware and software...

Process heating with affordable CASCADE CONTROL.
September 1, 2000... Tony Berry explains how cascade control can provide precise and stable process heating without the problems of overshoot and the resultant wasted energy There is a great deal more to designing a process temperature control system than...

In-head temperature transmitters develop.
September 1, 2000... At first glance it appears that in-head temperature transmitters are basic, commodity products whose development is relatively static. In fact, their technology has advanced significantly since the initial bulky analogue devices of the early...

Cutting the risk from bacteria in WATER FILTRATION.
September 1, 2000... The bacteria Cryptosporidium in water supplies poses a risk to health and is being kept in check at a Yorkshire Water facility by an intelligent software model Yorkshire Water has chosen European Simulation Language (ESL) to model the...

KEEPING IT CLEAN.
September 1, 2000... The Macallan Distillery has recently concluded trials to determine the viability of monitoring the important elements in effluent and provide an early warning of a potential breach of consent. The parameters monitored included ammonia,...

A SHEAR SUCCESS.
September 1, 2000... The Shearwater offshore development lies 207km east of Aberdeen in the North Sea. This large offshore project incorporates wells that sink three miles below the platform into the Shearwater reservoir. Shearwater is operated by Shell UK...

Get yourself connected.
September 1, 2000... Now that WAP phones are commonplace on the High Street, industry can take advantage of this, now proven, technology and integrate plant information onto the Worldwide Web and beyond IMAGINE YOU'RE at the airport and there's a critical...

Simple PID integration.
September 1, 2000... A DUAL LOOP controller from Red Lion controls is a full featured, dual input PID controller which is designed to integrate PID into any application. As a modular building block for multi-zone process control applications, each DLC has...

Fuel trimming achieved by sensor innovation.
September 1, 2000... PSM INSTRUMENTATION has used its expertise in differential pressure measurement to develop an innovative submersible sensor for the Ministry of Defence (MoD). After the conclusion of successful trials, Royal Navy Frigates will be equipped...

Open the box and take your pick.
September 1, 2000... A SERIES OF add-on expansion modules for the 690+ AC drives range has been released by Eurotherm Drives to offer a wide range of fieldbus options and system capabilities. Called technology boxes, the modules simply plug into the drive to...

Small is functional.
September 1, 2000... THE MARKET for compact low-end PLCs has been growing steadily for some time and a determining factor in this development is the extended functionality available with such controllers. With its new VersaMax Nano, GE Fanuc has managed to reduce...

HMI oversees air traffic control operation.
September 1, 2000... HMI PRODUCTS from Modicon and Telemecanique will soon be helping Newcastle International Airport ensure high levels of availability for essential ground-based air traffic control installations, including radar and the airports instrument...

Flat panel PC is rugged.
September 1, 2000... A 15IN TFT flat panel Pentium expanded industrial PC from CKS Holdings has been designed to provide industrial and military users with a rugged computer with an temperature operating range of zero to 50oC. The display is a full colour,...

Flat screen gives wide angle view.
September 1, 2000... THE INDUSTRIAL SIEMENS flatpanel display technology (I-SFT) range has been extended with the addition of a 15in version which, in common with other models in the range, is well suited for use in harsh industrial environments. The new...

Extending functionality of ethernet interfaces.
September 1, 2000... A NEW family of I/O modules from Opto 22 will interface with any RS-232 serial device and is claimed to extend the functionality of ethernet I/O system. The new SNAP-SCM-232 two-channel serial communication module, supplied by System Devices...

Compact servos range.
September 1, 2000... INMOCO'S RUGGED and cost effective servomotors range has been extended with the introduction of a compact version, the PMA1 series, which feature a 55mm square frame, in three stack lengths, and offer continuous rated torque in the range from...

Vibrating limit switch suits food applications.
September 1, 2000... THE LIQUIPHANT M vibrating limit switch from Endress + Hauser's offers a wide range of hygienic mounting options for the food and pharmaceutical industries, along with 316L stainless steel wetted parts. EHEDG and 3A certification and a...

Prototype thermal imaging.
September 1, 2000... Irisys is developing a family of low cost, low resolution thermal imaging products and the IXS 9004 demonstrator is being offered for early applications assessment. The emphasis is on affordability to enable thermal imaging to address a wide...

Low-noise valve package reduces cavitation.
September 1, 2000... FOLLOWING THE recent acquisition of Texas-based Final Control Elements, Dresser Valve D vision now offers a patented low noise rotary control valve package, which includes a patented trim design packaged in a Grove B-5 Ball valve with Ledeen...

Single/Multiloop Controllers.
September 1, 2000... [TABLE HAS BEEN CLIPPED]