Discrete Sensors 101: Terminology and Best Practices
This article explores the main uses for discrete sensors, categorizes the most common types, and lists best practices and pitfalls to avoid. Common Types of Sensors in Automation Discrete, or…
Dos and Don’ts of PLC Programming: Flexible, Readable, Maintainable Code and Why It’s Important
Production is down. Your client is losing $100k an hour and they’ve called you, probably just as you were sitting down for supper, to fix it as quickly as possible.…
Ladder Logic’s Future Role in Automation
Ladder logic, the primary programmable logic controller (PLC) programming language, is simple and represented graphically as relay contacts and coils. The question is, though: How well can ladder logic serve…
Robust Vision Inspection in 5 Steps
Inside Machines: When performing a machine vision inspection, users should assess the application, optics, lighting, setup, and runtime considerations. Machine vision inspection is a powerful, versatile tool in automation. Despite…
Industrial Ethernet vs Office Ethernet: What You Need To Know
There was a time when industrial field networks all had different hardware requirements. HART requires a unit capable of injecting and reading signals overlaid on an analog signal, RS232 requires…
PLCs Are Not Toilets: Learning to Draw Electrical Schematics
Every piece of industrial automation will have schematics (we hope!). These drawings communicate design intent from the engineer to the assembler, troubleshooter, and maintainer. With pages showing power distribution, IO,…
Free PLC Programming Software for Education
With the recent pandemic measures and schools transitioning to remote education, I’ve been contacted by professors looking for ways to get students hands-on experience programming PLCs without a lab. I’ve…
This is Why Your Vision Inspection Can’t Do That
I see a lot of vision applications and sometimes it surprises me what people expect a camera to do. Industrial vision inspection is very powerful, but it doesn’t work the…
When is it time to upgrade?
I get asked this question a lot. Nothing lasts forever, but nobody wants to spend money on something they don’t need. Any piece of automation ages - tooling wears out,…
Repair or Replace: Things to Consider
I had a project a little while back where the work was already 95% done before I ever got there. Problem was it was over budget, kept getting delayed, and…