Industrial Automation

 

While software-based thin client computing has now become ubiquitous in production automation, so too have the hardware appliances that can be customized and tailored for all industrial automation applications found at processing plants and manufacturing factories. Together with the availability of a variety of thin client management software, hardware appliances have evolved and changed in terms of their flexibility and capability.

Machine vision uses cameras, computers and software algorithms for carrying out inspection tasks that require precise and repetitive verification and testing in high speed. Accomplishing such tasks with human vision is extremely difficult, if not impossible, because while human eyes are capable of making precise measures in details, they aren’t equipped to do so in a rapid and repetitive manner; human vision, by comparison, is error-prone and could deteriorate irreversibly when made to perform such visually intensive tasks.

Today's armored vehicles are built with the most sophisticated hardware and software for carrying out communications, intelligence gathering, threat surveillance, reconnaissance and other critical missions in ground warfare; and these vehicles are controlled using military-grade industrial appliances that are rugged, weather-proof and shock-resistant.

SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) generally refers to an industrial control system that monitors and help control processes. SCADA can be used interchangeably to any semi-automated industrial system.

Appropriate environmental conditions are necessary for optimum plant growth, improved crop yields, and efficient use of water and other resources. Today, advances in sensors, actuators, data acquirement modules and gateway technology, both in hardware and software, have enabled distributed implementation of sensor and control action over sensor/actuator networks. By automating the data acquisition process of the variables that govern plant growth, greenhouse monitoring can be performed efficiently and with minimal human intervention.

Securing remote and unmanned industrial facilities such as oil fields and gas pipeline is always a challenge because these off-site properties are often located in far-flung and distant rural areas where man-hours for facility maintenance are long and costly. For companies looking to automate the safeguarding of these remote and critical facilities, finding a solution capable of monitoring multiple remote sites on a limited budget isn’t always easy.

A leading manufacturer of laser cutting machinery in Switzerland was looking for a new computer system to install in their new product line. Their earlier product line were using full-sized industrial motherboards, which were too slow for the demanding calculations.

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