At Semicon West 2016 — July 12-14 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco at the Festo Semicon Booth #1029 — Festo unveils for the semiconductor electronics and assembly industry both tools and products that lower engineering overhead and bring machines to market faster. Servo kit for electric press-fitting applications The new servo press solution is the latest […]
Controls
FAQ: Are PACs just for process control or do they work for discrete plant functions?
By Steve Meyer || Programmable automation controllers (PACs) are (by design) a superset of PLCs. Everything that a PLC can do, a PAC can do. Some control tasks done by PACs are possible to do with a PLC but require expensive add-on modules. Conversely, the reliability and ruggedness so common in the physical builds of PLCs is […]
FAQ: How do programmable automation controllers (PACs) handle analog I/O and related controls?
By Steve Meyer || Analog inputs and outputs are generally associated with sensors. These in turn are the key to controlling real-world processes. So depending on the speed and resolution needed to measure events being controlled, analog inputs come in many performance ranges. Common sampling resolutions are 12 to 24 bit, and sampling frequencies range from kilohertz to […]
FAQ: What are programmable multi-axis controllers?
Multi-axis controllers are controls for which the entire hardware and software structure is organized around managing complex motion. Given the compute capability of today’s PC processors, any recent generation PAC or PC based controller can handle multi-axis motion control. However, each platform can address the problem in different ways. It’s common to have many independent […]
FAQ: What is the difference between PLCs and programmable controllers (PACs)?
By Steve Meyer || All programmable controllers (PACs) are capable of performing as PLCs but strictly speaking, PLCs can’t work as PACs. That’s because PACs are a superset of PLC-type controls that work when a design needs: • Multiple channels of communication • High data traffic • Coordination with intelligent subsystems Most high-performance PLCs can host intelligent processors […]
FAQ: How to tune servo systems for high dynamic response?
The purpose of a servo control loop is to minimize error, and this is often done through the use of PID (proportional-integral-derivative) gains, which correct errors between the target value and the actual value. But the PID algorithm is reactive, and takes time to respond. Case in point: the proportional term requires an error in order […]
Galil Motion Control Releases DMC-52xx0 EtherCAT Master
Galil Motion Control Inc. now offers the DMC-52xx0 EtherCAT master, Galil’s first 32-axis motion controller. This new addition to Galil’s EtherCAT family is a pure EtherCAT controller with the ability to control up to 32 drives and two I/O modules. This space-efficient package also provides uncommitted I/O for easy integration into any EtherCAT application. “What […]
Maple Systems launches dual-ethernet HMIs
Maple Systems recently announced the launch of two new products in their HMI series, the 7” HMI5070DL, and the 9.7” HMI5097DXL. Maple Systems Dual-Ethernet HMIs conveniently divide industrial control and remote access functionality between two distinctly separate Ethernet networks: an internal industrial communications network, and an external wide area network (WAN). This offers customers a […]
Engineer Biren Patel exposes why the industry needs new positioning controllers
In a recent interview, we had the chance to chat with Biren Patel, motion control engineering manager at maxon motor, about the company’s new EPOS4 next-generation positioning controllers. This is a controller with two different power ratings and connector board to allow quick integration into machinery. The position controllers are suitable for dynamic control of […]
Self-protected combination motor controllers from Sprecher + Schuh
The new Series KTV7 Multi-Motor Controllers are the newest addition to Sprecher + Schuh’s KT7 family of motor controllers. The KTV7 series of self-protected combination motor controllers are ideal for use with variable frequency drives (VFDs) in multi-motor installations for industries that include food and beverage, material handling and factory automation. Designed for use with […]