The first machines I programmed when I started my old company ACS were primarily packaging machines. As I have mentioned previously I teamed up with NAS early on, becoming their de-facto controls department. In the beginning we built a lot …
During the process of specifying HMI hardware for my current project some fairly deep discussions were had concerning touchscreen technology. One part of the specification stated “No SAW or APR touchscreens”. Why would you want to avoid these in an …
A few weeks ago I covered robots and robotics a bit and it was recently brought to my attention that I hadn’t covered much in the general motion control field. Maybe that’s because most of the applications I have worked …
As I progressed through my automation career I was exposed to many different PLC platforms. My first job out of college was as an applications and sales engineer for a distributor of Eagle-Signal, Omron, Idec and Fuji PLCs. Back then …
The picture above is a manually operated station where an operator places two metal parts into a fixture. When the second item is placed a sensor activates a press mechanism and the two pieces are pressed together. When evaluating an …
When I was growing up one of my favorite shows on TV was the Jetsons. There were cool looking houses, flying cars that folded up into a suitcase and best of all, robots! Then Star Wars came out in the …
From The Primer: 4.2 Indexers and Synchronous Machines 4.2.1 Rotary Cam Indexers Rotary indexers are used to move actuators to fixed points in a circular path. They are built to move to discrete points and are typically available in 2-12 …
As I work on my Six Sigma classes through Purdue I am reminded often of my previous experiences with companies who have Lean/Six Sigma programs. Back in the late nineties we did a lot of work for Avery Dennison, who …
Everyone remembers where they were during significant historical events for some reason. Ten years ago today I was in Memphis at the USDA cotton classing facility. We had put in a conveying and testing system about a year before and …
Serial communications are still used extensively in automation despite the lack of serial ports on most computers. It used to be about the only way you could connect to and program controllers, whether PLC, DCS or others. From the Primer: …
