Learning Objectives Examine benefits of design automation software for manufacturers. Review how design automation software works. Explore ways to simplify product structure and mass customization. Manufacturers in SME sectors like metal fabrication, furniture manufacturing, and building component manufacturing, where customers demand more personalized products, have been worst affected, and design automation software can help. […]
The speed by which people gain insights defines competitive advantage. That statement was recently said by a manager responding enthusiastically to a series of engineers and subject matter experts (SMEs) presenting on the advanced analytics work they had done to increase production, improve reliability and monitor emissions. The common thread of the presentation was the […]
Hot topics in Control Engineering, for November 2021, for stories posted in the last three months, included the Engineers’ Choice finalists, nanotube-based sensors, finite-state machine, IIoT controller use and more. Links to each article below. 1. 2022 Engineers’ Choice Finalists: Vote now! The official ballot is open for voting for Control Engineering North American print and digital […]
Learning Objectives Edge controls can give users seamless operation and better data access. Oil and gas companies depend on a constant stream of data to avoid downtime due to equipment breakages and malfunctions. Security is maintained through a point-to-point virtual private network (VPN). Engenuity Inc. provides control automation and data integration solutions across several […]
Learning Objectives Improper alarm management contributes to lost production and can create the potential for a major industrial incident. Users need to streamline alarm systems and determine which alarms require immediate response and which ones don’t. Extensive in-house training and education on alarm management may also be needed. Improper alarm management contributes to lost […]
The shortage of natural pollinators, such as bees, is threatening global food production around the world, making it difficult to feed an ever-growing human population. Researchers at West Virginia University (WVU) have come up with a plan B to this decline in pollinators by creating a robotic pollinator. A team led by Yu Gu, associate professor in the Department […]
Computing will go through some major transitions in the near future as low-power, ultrafast, efficient technologies are developed to replace the silicon transistors that have enabled the first half century of the digital age. One of the most promising technologies is called spintronics, in which the intrinsic quantum spin state of an electron is used […]
The top 5 most read articles online, from November 15-21, 2021, for Control Engineering covered Engineers’ Choice finalists, nanotube-based sensors, SCADA and automation, finite-state machines and IIoT and controller use. Links to each article below. 1. 2022 Engineers’ Choice Finalists: Vote now! The official ballot is open for voting for Control Engineering North American print […]
The variable speed drive market is back on track, with 7.7% growth predicted for 2021. Interact Analysis’s latest market research offers insight into three important trends influencing the drives market: functional safety, predictive maintenance and efficiency regulations. Functional safety is a slow growth in trends, but it is very real and it will not stop. […]
The use of adaptive swarm robotics has the potential to provide significant environmental and economic benefits to smart agriculture efforts globally through the implementation of autonomous ground and aerial technologies. “Agricultural robots, when used properly, can improve product quantity and quality while lowering the cost,” said Dr. Kiju Lee, associate professor and Charlotte and Walter […]