Issue Archive

Automation Means Cleaner Manufacturing
Weiler’s BFS Machines Remove Humans from the Equation

What’s news this month? October 2007
Here’s what’s new this month at ControlDesign.com, the exclusive home of our virtual content.

Popularity Contest
Get the most popular articles on ControlDesign.com for the month of September.

Are They Real?
Are knock-off automation components from China becoming a major point of concern?

ISA Report on Security Submitted to ANSI
ISA-tr99.00.01, Security Technologies for Industrial Automation and Control Systems, has been submitted to ANSI for approval as an ANSI Technical Report.

10 Years of Remote Support
Remote support and monitoring is the one area of machine control that has benefited the most from the Internet over the past decade.

Bit-Banger Does Process at AX
Refineries can blow up, but with the square footage and sheer magnitude of the systems, the process control engineers have to get it right.

Time to Move
Supporters are pushing a variety of Ethernet-based fieldbuses for motion control, but users just want to build machines. Here’s how to find and implement the most appropriate digital network for your specific application.

A Look at IEC 61499
The Standard Claims Benefits in Distributed, Event-Driven, Hardware-Independent Programming. Should We Be Paying Attention?

Putting Linear in Motion
The Technology Is Sound. The Application Often Is Ideal. Why Don’t We See Linear Motors Everywhere?

Color Sensor Selection
Color sensors vary in range of capability from looking for a specific color at a specific location to looking for multiple colors anywhere in a field of view.

More Channels in a Smaller Space
It’s all about the space. Machine builders continuously search for ways to create a feasible footprint without losing functionality or compromising quality. They need options.

Should We Make a Smart Upgrade?
What are the challenges and benefits of upgrading plastics processing machines instruments from 4-20 mA to smart instruments with digital communications?

Interface Makes Modbus Connect
On any given factory floor you’ll likely find some combination of sleek new machines and old legacy workhorses.

Product Roundups: Ethernet Today, Wireless Tomorrow
Faster Processing Speeds, Built-In Support for Redundant Communications Highlight I/O Advances

E-CAD/CAE II: State of the Art
A key feature of third-generation CAE systems is the support of variant design and an efficient reusability of design projects to create product families.

Mechatronics Supports IEC 61131
There are a lot of similarities among automation vendors and their products. For the most part, that’s what machine builders and end users want. Worldwide conformity and acceptance makes it easier to sell, operate, and support machines around the world.

Ionic Wind Could Bring Relief for Hot Chips
New technology has dramatic chip-cooling potential for future computers