Latest Data Analytics & Simulation Technical Articles

We see smoke detectors on a daily basis in every house and building we visit, but the same sensor elements, and others,…

We see smoke detectors on a daily basis in every house and building we visit, but the same sensor elements, and others, can be used to detect the presence of harmful gasses and heat in all industries.

Designing, installing, and maintaining control systems involves a lot of wires. Each wire has a purpose, often indicated…

Designing, installing, and maintaining control systems involves a lot of wires. Each wire has a purpose, often indicated by the color of the insulation. But what are the common colors, and what do they mean?

Failures are never the goal of any industrial operation. But when disaster strikes, it’s always better to have a…

Failures are never the goal of any industrial operation. But when disaster strikes, it’s always better to have a mitigation plan in place well in advance of the event to ensure timely recovery.

Arduino’s Opta mini PLC platform is supported by the new PLC IDE. Learn to create and download your first program and…

Arduino’s Opta mini PLC platform is supported by the new PLC IDE. Learn to create and download your first program and take advantage of built-in I/O for an easy introduction to the platform.

No more IIoT buzzwords! This article aims to walk through an implementation of MQTT using the paho-mqtt library using…

No more IIoT buzzwords! This article aims to walk through an implementation of MQTT using the paho-mqtt library using nothing more than your local machine and some simple Python programming.

Analytics from data algorithms can predict machine failures and provide diagnostics—but what should we measure? Then,…

Analytics from data algorithms can predict machine failures and provide diagnostics—but what should we measure? Then, once the information has been collected, what trends might point to problems?

Learn about the history, framework, and current uses of the Open Platform Communications United Architecture (OPC UA)…

Learn about the history, framework, and current uses of the Open Platform Communications United Architecture (OPC UA) communication protocol in industrial automation.

The subject of grounding in electronics is broad and complex, spanning across a variety of functions and objectives. In…

The subject of grounding in electronics is broad and complex, spanning across a variety of functions and objectives. In this article, we will investigate the applications and regulation of grounding in control systems on a fundamental level.

Addressing cybersecurity threats introduced by IIoT technology and devices can quickly seem overwhelming. However, an…

Addressing cybersecurity threats introduced by IIoT technology and devices can quickly seem overwhelming. However, an understanding of the risks can lead to some straightforward countermeasures.

EtherCAT is an often preferred competitor in the arena of industrial networking protocols. Learn the reason why many…

EtherCAT is an often preferred competitor in the arena of industrial networking protocols. Learn the reason why many technologies embrace this protocol and what sets it apart from other fieldbus varieties.

Turbine ratcheting helps prevent damage by regulating a turbine's uniform warm-up and cool-down. In this article, we will…

Turbine ratcheting helps prevent damage by regulating a turbine's uniform warm-up and cool-down. In this article, we will discuss the principles and challenges behind this process.

As data becomes available, maintenance can shift from being done on a rigid schedule to a more cost-effective plan of…

As data becomes available, maintenance can shift from being done on a rigid schedule to a more cost-effective plan of fixing as required, even turning attention to the root cause of maintenance woes.

Industrial Ethernet is getting a facelift, but will the industry adopt this new change? Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) offers…

Industrial Ethernet is getting a facelift, but will the industry adopt this new change? Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) offers gigabit speeds with a reduced footprint. When is it used, and where?

IIoT is a daunting topic due to ambiguous interactions of hardware and software. This article outlines the basic steps to…

IIoT is a daunting topic due to ambiguous interactions of hardware and software. This article outlines the basic steps to use an MQTT broker to collect the number of cycles from a pneumatic cylinder for PM software.

To know if predictive maintenance is the right strategy, it might help to first recognize if it isn’t. Here are some…

To know if predictive maintenance is the right strategy, it might help to first recognize if it isn’t. Here are some indicators that your organization should improve before implementing predictive maintenance.

We are taught that parallel circuits maintain equal voltage across all branch resistors, equally sharing the source…

We are taught that parallel circuits maintain equal voltage across all branch resistors, equally sharing the source voltage. But reality is often far from ideal, and individual devices certainly impact the rest of the circuit.

Machine learning is a subset of AI that allows a machine to learn using past data. Learn about the two categories of…

Machine learning is a subset of AI that allows a machine to learn using past data. Learn about the two categories of machine learning as well as four major machine learning models often used in industrial applications.

Memory for data is among the most pressing challenges to Industry 4.0. Given the evolving nature of Industry 4.0 and…

Memory for data is among the most pressing challenges to Industry 4.0. Given the evolving nature of Industry 4.0 and associated memory solutions, however, some memory-based trends are becoming apparent.

Nearly all modern programmable control systems are constructed from computer-driven algorithms. Join us to explore the…

Nearly all modern programmable control systems are constructed from computer-driven algorithms. Join us to explore the extraordinary life of the ‘founder of computing science’, Alan Turing.