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A How-to Guide to Control Automation Day 2022

A How-to Guide to Control Automation Day 2022

Welcome to Control Automation Day 2022—Control.com’s digital-only event for engineers! Here is your guide to navigating the keynote addresses, live educational sessions, and exciting giveaways from your favorite manufacturers!


News Jun 20, 2022 by David Peterson
Acoustic Monitoring to Detect Hidden Machine Failures

Acoustic Monitoring to Detect Hidden Machine Failures

Hello acoustics, my old friend. I've come to monitor you again. Because a worn-out bearing softly creeping, slowly got worse while I was sleeping. And the vibration that was planted in my brain still remains… Within the sound of Maintenance


Controlling Hydraulic Devices with Open and Closed Loop Systems

Controlling Hydraulic Devices with Open and Closed Loop Systems

What if you could control the end position and the speed of a hydraulic actuator accurately with just a simple signal? Some systems use simple open/close valves, but others require far more precision.


Control.com Announces Control Automation Day 2022!

Control.com Announces Control Automation Day 2022!

Control Automation Day 2022 will be on June 21st, focusing on PLC systems, packed with keynote addresses, educational live sessions, and exciting giveaways from your favorite manufacturers!


News May 18, 2022 by David Peterson
Robots and CNC Machines - An Assembly Configuration Made in Heaven

Robots and CNC Machines - An Assembly Configuration Made in Heaven

Our own Control Automation engineering staff had the opportunity to visit VersaBuilt, a CNC robotic integration shop offering an application system from the Universal Robots UR+ series.


The Cat’s Out of the Bag - Demystifying Network Cables

The Cat’s Out of the Bag - Demystifying Network Cables

What’s the difference between a Cat 6 and a Cat 6a cable, anyhow? Ethernet cables must meet certain performance standards, and these standards can be quite confusing at first glance.


How to Use Analog to Digital Converters in a Control System

How to Use Analog to Digital Converters in a Control System

Using an ADC can be very useful when dealing with analog devices in microprocessors, and a necessity when adding analog devices to an industrial controller. But once you connect the hardware - what next?


Linear Position Sensors - Control is Only as Precise as the Feedback

Linear Position Sensors - Control is Only as Precise as the Feedback

Linear position sensors are used in electrical and fluid-actuated motion devices. They allow extremely precise position, velocity, and acceleration control, and provide feedback to ensure product quality and tolerance compliance.


Troubleshooting for PLC Modules and I/O Devices

Troubleshooting for PLC Modules and I/O Devices

Failures of I/O systems are a common source of headache for control engineers. Troubleshooting those devices that have polarized connections (source vs sink, and NPN vs PNP) is a technique worth refining.


SPC Pillar: Design of Experiments (DoE)

SPC Pillar: Design of Experiments (DoE)

The fourth pillar of effective statistical process control (SPC) is the use of designed experiments used to learn as much as possible from a limited number of experiments, yet remain statistically relevant enough to be useful.


Info Byte: Difference Between Analog and Digital Multimeters

Info Byte: Difference Between Analog and Digital Multimeters

Analog and digital multimeters have both enjoyed popularity in different generations of electrical systems. What is unique about the analog meters, and in what situations might they be preferred over their digital counterparts?


Application Considerations for pH Sensors

Application Considerations for pH Sensors

Measuring pH is a critical task of many chemical processes and systems. Learn the definition of pH, the measurement tools, and the calibration steps for proper operation and care of these meters.


Infrastructure Inspection with Gecko Robotics Receives Funding Boost

Infrastructure Inspection with Gecko Robotics Receives Funding Boost

Gecko Robotics recently received $73 million in Series C funding to design solutions aimed at protecting critical infrastructure systems.


News Mar 19, 2022 by Seth Price
SPC Pillar: Continual Improvement Process (CIP)

SPC Pillar: Continual Improvement Process (CIP)

Statistical process control (SPC) allows for continual improvement process (CIP), a method of optimizing a process driven by data and statistical methods.


Time is Running Out: Cowen Startup Challenge at Automate 2022

Time is Running Out: Cowen Startup Challenge at Automate 2022

The window is closing for submissions to a funding competition - robotics, machine vision, and AI innovations are taking the center stage for a chance at winning $10,000. Are you ready?


News Mar 15, 2022 by David Peterson
SPC Pillar: Using Control Charts

SPC Pillar: Using Control Charts

Learn how control charts are used in statistical process control (SPC) to show how a process changes with time as compared to past measurements, providing reliable visualizations for data-driven decisions.


SPC Pillar: Data Collection

SPC Pillar: Data Collection

Statistical process control (SPC) is meaningless without the proper collection and analysis of data. For some process parameters, this is a simple task. But not every part of a process is driven by simple, quantitative parameters.


Info Byte: What’s the Reason Behind Relay Terminal Numbering?

Info Byte: What’s the Reason Behind Relay Terminal Numbering?

Any industrial electrician can instantly recognize a relay, but when it comes to wiring, why are the terminals numbered in such apparently random order?


Calibrating Digital Twins With Operational Data Optimizes Efficiency

Calibrating Digital Twins With Operational Data Optimizes Efficiency

Data feedback loops create a closed-loop digital twin (CLDT) driving increased operational efficiency and improved design iteration progress.


What is Statistical Process Control (SPC)?

What is Statistical Process Control (SPC)?

Learn how statistical process control (SPC) can provide a foundation for decisions used to reduce waste and increase efficiency in the manufacturing process.