Level sensors monitor the level of liquids, pellets, powders, and other similar products in tanks and process systems.
Temperature Sensors
Starting at $20.00 (THMJ-B01L06-01)
Flow Sensors
Temperature sensors provide accurate and reliable feedback for temperature control and monitoring applications.
Starting at $66.00 (FG1W-100PP-28)
Flow measurement devices monitor liquid media and provide reliable flow indication, detection or measurement.
NEW! Vibration Transmitters
Pressure Sensors
Starting at $87.00 (QPSL-AP-42)
Also Available
Starting at $205.00 (VCT-25-1000) and isolation needle valves
New ProSense VCT series vibration transmitters accurately detect vibrations of industrial equipment, primarily rotating equipment such as pumps, motors, compressors, and rolling mills. These stainless steel MEMS-based sensors are ideal for harsh industrial applications, offering a wide operating temperature range and IP67/68/69K protection (depending on IP rating of the cable used).
Pressure sensors measure pressure at a specific point in the process and transmit the measured value or trip point to a control device.
Servo Systems at Stepper Prices
NEW! LS Electric® Servo Systems
Starting at $659.00 (100W system with cables and I/O breakout)
LS Electric servo systems provide the most requested features — setup wizards, auto tuning, built-in indexers and more in an extremely or internal indexing or any other host controller
(96200004)
to the servo motor. Use these gearboxes to increase the available torque or to solve inertia mismatch problems. to each motor size
INNOVATIONS
45 |
Control Engineering eBook series: Motors and Drives Spring Edition
LVDT position sensors; Flow and energy measurement system, calculations; Plug-in motor controllers, integration; Point-of-load dc/dc converters; Triple throw rocker switch, single or double-pole; Process analyzer for VOC leaks in water; Connector series for signals, data, power; Temperature monitor has digital sensor; Laser shaft-alignment tool.
See more products in every issue. www.controleng.com/NPE.
47 | Back to Basics: DCS upgrades
For the 2023 Control Engineering Product of the Year awards program (formerly known as Engineers' Choice Awards), 74 nominees cover 14 categories. Subscriber voting opened on Feb. 1 and closes on March 14. The ballot will be accessible via www.controleng.com/eventsand-awards/product-of-the-year and hosted in Alchemer (formerly SurveyGizmo). Winners will be featured in the next version of the Product of the Year eBook on Thursday, June 1, 2023.
NEWSLETTER: Control Systems
• Controllers, interfaces provide advanced edge computing capabilities
• Taking a different approach to DCS upgrades
• Control systems integrator: Always something to learn with PLCs, HMI, SCADA
• Hot controllers articles in 2022
• Manufacturing, global economy: Mild 2024 recession
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Marketing to Engineers, May 3, in Chicago. Learn more at http://tiny.cc/M2E2023
Motors and drives make manufacturing plants run and keep them efficient. Maintaining motors and drives and keeping them cost-effective is crucial and requires knowledge of many different aspects. Featured articles include:
• Eight frequently-neglected VFD parameters to optimize
• Six tips for testing motor insulation systems
• What to consider when choosing an AC induction motor
• Drive motorization at a large package distribution center Learn more at www.controleng.com/ebooks
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Supplement to November/ Decemberand includes System Integrator of the Year, System Integrator Giants, application stories. www.controleng.com/ magazine
Control Engineering digital edition
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Online Highlights
One million robots working in automotive industry
THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY has the largest number of robots working in factories around the world: Operational stock hit a new record of about one million units. This represents about one third of the total number installed across all industries, according to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR). “The automotive industry effectively invented automated manufacturing,” says Marina Bill, President of the International Federation of Robotics. “Today, robots are playing a vital role in enabling this industry’s transition from combustion engines to electric power. Robotic automation helps car manufacturers manage the wholesale changes to long-established manufacturing methods and technologies.”
IN THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA, 2,867 industrial robots per 10,000 employees were in operation in 2021, which is by far the highest robot density in the world. Courtesy: International Federation of Robotics (IFR)
Robot density in automotive
Robot density is a key indicator which illustrates the current level of automation in the top car producing economies:trial robots per 10,000 employees were
The world's biggest car manufacturer, China, has a robot density of 772 units, but is catching up fast: Within a year, new robot installations in the Chifor 52% of the total 119,405 units installed in factories around the world. ce
Edge computing use cases, success stories
WHILE "THE EDGE" is often discussed as if it is a single point in an architecture, in a real system there are actually many cascaded levels of edge devices lying between the physical world and the enterprise.
“It is exciting that we are now seeing innovation in each of these different levels,” said Jim ten Broeke, Business Development Manager IIoT Europe at Advantech.
Broeke discussed the increasing trend towards the use of edge servers, where enterprise cloud functionality is transparently and seamlessly brought on-premise, reducing communications overhead, accelerating responsiveness and increasing resilience.
“This is happening with both content delivery server applications and in the move towards high-level application edge servers, running at area, building or even individual process level,” he said.
Control Engineering hot topics, March 2023
HOT TOPICS in Control Engineering, for March 2023, for stories posted in the last three months included Microsoft DCOM, edge computing and controllers, new automation technologies, advanced analytics sustainability and more. Links to each article if reading from the digital edition.
1. Analysis: Ability to delay Microsoft DCOM hardening patch ends as of March 2023
2. Controllers, interfaces provide advanced edge computing capabilities
3. The impact of new technologies on automation and digitalization system architectures
4. Improving sustainability with advanced analytics applications
5. MQTT’s benefits for digital transformation
6. Improving asset, materials management with ERP system
7. Five things to know before diving into edge technologies
8. Logistics, robotics advances at the heart of improving automation
9. Eight frequently-neglected VFD parameters to optimize
10. How to optimize industrial motor communications, Part 1, data types
Chris Vavra is web content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, cvavra@cfemedia.com.
Broeke believes that the most exciting area is at the lower edge levels, closest to the physical assets and operations. Here, the big trend is towards embedding artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) within edge devices. Until recently, AI implementations relied on expensive, high bandwidth computers, and teams of specialist data scientists to create and refine the data models needed. Recent advances have brought the price of implementation down, and corresponding advances in ML, and the availability of pre-trained models for many common applications mean implementation times are often measured in days or weeks, rather than months or years. ce
Suzanne Gill is editor at Control Engineering Europe
International Federation of Robotics
Compact drive technology in a robust metal housing
ELM72xx: directly integrated in the EtherCAT I/O system
The ultra-compact ELM72xx EtherCAT Terminals:
full-fledged servo drives in an I/O terminal with robust metal housing
increased output current of up to 16 A at 48 V DC
metal housing for optimum heat dissipation at high outputs
directly integrated in the standard EtherCAT I/O system
increased performance and added functionality
optimal shielding in case of electrical interference
convenient connector front end and One Cable Technology (OCT)
selectable safety range: STO or comprehensive TwinSAFE Motion function package
Digitalization, localization help develop China’s process industries
More digitalization can help unlock the power of existing data with factory design software and artificial intelligence (AI).
Digitalization has many applications, especially in the consumer goods market. But for industrial applications, digitalization reforms existing production models. Very careful industrial digital transformation is still in process, and the value of big data and data analysis technologies cannot be ignored. Dr. Markus Lade, the leader of Siemens China’s digital industry group process automation department, said the value of data release is only the start, and greater value needs to be realized and developed.
Unlock data value two ways
Lade said technologies can help unlock the value of data in two ways. One is to establish a model and compare current production with results generated by the model to understand and optimize the current operation. The other way is to apply cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to make relevant predictions and analyses based on mathematical statistics.
“We can provide world-leading products and solutions for both of these technologies to help customers accelerate digital transformation,” Lade said.
Using PSE gProms technology acquired in the past two years, Siemens can model production processes, helping to improve production efficiency and quality, reduce carbon emissions and improve energy efficiency. For the second type, Siemens China is cooperating with headquarters to develop AI products (such as SiePA) to help users analyze the operation status of the plant to support plant operation and maintenance, improve reliability of operations and maintenance, predict and warn about risks and help the plant avoid serious losses. Combining the two adds digital value.
For the digital transformation of process industry, it is also important to ensure the consistency and effectiveness of data assets in the whole life cycle of the factory. The engineering design software Comos
from Siemens can be used for digital collaborative design and delivery of the factory lifecycle. Through digital delivery, the software helps users realize a series of needs in the operation and maintenance phases, including operator training, scene simulation and others, enabling data to improve the return on assets and the availability of assets.
The industrial automation and digitalization market in China is arguably one of the most competitive markets in the world. In addition to the digitalization strategy, localization strategy is an important second focus for Lade.
“In a country as big as China, it is very important to be close to customers through the sales organization, to listen to them and be the best partner for them.” In addition to establishing a local digital R&D center in China, Lade said, a significant portion of Siemens’ range of traditional control products have been locally manufactured. Local products have been developed for Chinese markets to help local process industries.
Products covering OT to IT
Digital transformation is the key to a more efficient, green and sustainable global process industry. Customers need an end-to-end comprehensive solution covering automation and digitalization. The company has one of the few complete portfolios in the industry, covering operational technology (OT) to information technology (IT), from traditional automation control to the latest digital technologies, Lade said. “We also look forward to creating digital value with our users and partners to better realize digital transformation and ecological solutions.” ce
Stone Shi is executive editor-in-chief, Control Engineering China; Edited by Mark T. Hoske, content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
Digital tools, including the Siemens neo version 4.0 process control system, can help process industries derive greater value from existing data. Courtesy: Siemens, Control Engineering China
KEYWORDS: Process industrial, China, digital transformation, sustainability
LEARNING OBJECTIVES Understand how digitizing process industries requires unlocking the value of data. Learn how factory engineering design software helps along with local support and products
CONSIDER THIS What digital tools can help your processes better use existing data to enable better decisions more quickly?
Stone Shi,
Industrial robotics market growth expected
Amarket research report by Future Market Insights on the industrial robotics market indicates substantial growth over the forecast period due to multiple driving factors such as the adoption of the Internet of Things (IoT) in industries and the growing digitalization of the manufacturing industry across geographies.
The global industrial robotics market was valued at $17 billion in 2018 and is estimated to increase at a CAGR of around 18% between the forecast periods of 2019 and 2029. This growth is driven by the increasing applications of industrial robotics in the automotive industry, electrical/electronics industry and auxiliary industries.
East Asia is estimated to hold a significant market share in terms of value in the global industrial robotics market. The South Asia market is projected to project lucrative growth in the global industrial robotics market over the forecast period of 2019 to 2029. Growth is propelled by the rapid growth in the factory automation rate in countries of South Asia and East Asia such as China, India, Vietnam and others. Macroeconomic factors such as growing population, rapid industrialization and urbanization are helping driving growth in industrial robotics markets. The automotive industry in east Asia has gained considerably positive momentum over the past years, which has increased adoption of SCARA robots and articulated robots in the manufacturing process.
Automotive industry, robots
The global market of industrial robotics has been segmented based on different types of industrial robots, their multiple applications, end-use industries, and regions such
as North America, South Asia, Europe, East Asia, and the Rest of the World.
By product type, the articulated robots segment is estimated to hold a significant share of the global industrial robotics market in terms of value. It is expected that the application of industrial robotics in the electrical/electronics industry will be prominent throughout the forecast period.
The handling operations segment is projected to consume the majority share of the global industrial robotics market value. The welding segment is estimated to project lucrative growth in the industrial robotics market over the forecast period. See more about this article online. ce
Future Market Insights is a CFE Media and Technology content partner.
Online controleng.com
ONLINE
March automation mergers, acquisitions
The Bundy Group reported 15 automation transactions in the month of March. Thus far, the group has reported 31 transactions in the year of 2023. Bundy Group is a CFE Media and Technology content partner and reports on mergers and acquisitions for Plant Engineering and Industrial Cybersecurity Pulse. Read this article online at www.controleng.com to learn more about the transactions.
Bundy Group reported 15 automation transactions in March 2023. Courtesy: Bundy Group
India’s growing global manufacturing role
INDIA HAS MADE no secret of its desire to become a manufacturing powerhouse to rival China as the “factory of the world.” However, there are number of factors to consider when examining whether this is possible. One of these is the rising indebtedness of the Indian government and its ability to support efforts to expand manufacturing in India. The Indian government faces a general election next year and is working to demonstrate its support for manufacturing and economic growth, with measures including incentives for lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery production and electronics manufacturing.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman declared “the world has recognized India as a bright star,” pointing to India’s projected growth for the current year of 7% (the highest of all major economies).
India has identified technology manufacturing as a sector with potential for future growth. Launched in 2014 by Prime Minister Modi, the Make in India initiative provides a range of incentives to encourage manufacturing growth, with a target of increasing the manufacturing industry’s contribution to GDP to 25% by 2025.
Tim Dawson is senior research director and principal analyst for Interact Analysis, a CFE Media and Technology content partner. ce
Turning pollution into gold with SCADA, IPCs
Leverage IT/OT convergence technology to create sustainable applications with supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) software, industrial PCs (IPCs) for edge computing, machine learning software and cloud connections.
Aprocess to measure and remove hydrogen sulfide (H2S) from natural gas uses sensors, industrial computers for edge processing, cloud-based applications, machine learning and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) software in a plant that processes agricultural-grade elemental sulfur for fertilizer and other applications. Automation cuts manual measurements and labor cost by 75% making the plant cost effective.
Measuring, removing H2S
H2S is a flammable, colorless gas that impacts human safety, regulatory compliance, and infrastructure integrity tremendously in a wide variety of applications. Found in about 40% to 60% of natural gas wells worldwide and in almost every gas well in North America, this poisonous gas, with its characteristic smell of rotten eggs, is an irritant and chemical asphyxiant, thus affecting the central nervous system and breathing. The toxic gas must be removed from the natural gas stream Several technologies exist to remove H2S. While chemicals exist that can directly remove the H2S from gas, they can be expensive and hazardous to dispose of. Such chemicals are only cost effective when dealing with low concentrations of H2S. For vast amounts of H2S, large plants need to be built to remove the toxic chemical. Most gas wells only contain an intermediate amount of H2S — not enough to warrant building a $50 million facility, but also too much to treat with a $10/lb chemical. In between these two options, there are not a lot of good technologies available to remove H2S efficiently.
Chemical processes, control systems
Streamline Innovations has significantly improved the Redox process and has created one of the most efficient H2S treating solutions on the market. Their Valkyrie H2S Gas and Acid Gas Treating System
employs new chemical processes and advanced control systems to remove H2S from natural gas at size scales that range from single wells to entire fields. Representing a step change in H2S treatment, this patented process removes 100% of H2S from the natural gas stream at the lowest cost-per-pound of H2S removal compared to all other competitors, lowering lease operating expenses. The Valkyrie converts H2S into agricultural-grade elemental sulfur, which is beneficial for soil remediation, crop fertilizer and pest control. So far, Streamline Innovations has produced more than 20 million pounds of sulfur from its plants in Texas and New Mexico, and it is expanding into international markets, biogas treatment and refinery treatment. The produced sulfur would otherwise have turned into SO2, a key generator of acid rain.
Redox requires running two precise chemical reactions: reduction and oxidation. It is very difficult to control these two processes optimally. What makes it challenging is that H 2S concentrations and flow rates vary in natural gas. Thus, the corresponding amounts of chemical agents added to the gas need to be adjusted constantly. If too much is added, the chemical process can come to a halt. If too little is added, then some of the H 2S might get into the pipeline. The old process required an expert in the field to check the concentrations and flow rates every few minutes. Experts cannot be always on-site in natural gas facilities, or even travel to them frequently, especially to smaller units on remote wells. Streamline Innovations’ Valkyrie process replaces the "expert in the field" with intelligent and rigorous control of the chemistry, allowing the chemical processes to maintain the equilibrium of chemical agents without human intervention.
At first, Streamline Innovations tested an automation platform written on a standard PLC, but it could not perform the complex calculations and
KEYWORDS: H2S, MQTT LEARNING OBJECTIVES
H2S redox require that the quantities of differing chemical agents being added to the gas be adjusted constantly, which has required a manual expert be on-site in the past.
Through the use of a SCADA system and the MQTT communication protocol, rapid data transfer can be achieved without consuming too much bandwidth, allowing the process to be automated even via a cellular network in a remote location.
This cuts labor costs and increases the efficiency and accuracy of the process.
ONLINE
With this article online, see more details about application benefits and wireless use.
https://www.controleng.com/ articles/leveraging-mqttindustrial-edge-devices-inautomation-projects/ CONSIDER THIS
How can real-time, intelligent controls be used to replace formerly manual processes in your own operations?
INSIGHTS
FIGURE 1: Streamline Innovations uses Inductive Automation's Ignition SCADA software running on Moxa’s computers, which communicate with an Ignition server via the MQTT communication protocol. Streamline Innovations has extended Ignition software by running a full version with its Perspective module deployed via a local Wi-Fi network. Images courtesy: Moxa
FIGURE 2: Moxa computers run Python scripts, enabling Streamline Innovations to perform complex calculations, which include incorporating weather forecasts. Moxa Class I, Div 2 certified rugged computers; when the cellular modem is down, Moxa’s computers record the data and transmit it to the cloud as soon as the modem is restored.
model-based controls. They also built a customized OPC server that communicated with a cloud server, but it had no authentication and security protection. Streamline spent another half-year reaching out to almost every branded solution. Two automation companies helped facilitate the control and automation process, data collection, and remote control to solve the redox challenges, reduce variability and stabilize chemical processes.
SCADA, IPCs, less bandwidth
Streamline Innovations uses SCADA software running on rugged industrial PCs, which communicate with a server via the message queuing telem-
etry transport (MQTT) communication protocol. MQTT allows transfers of relevant data without consuming too much bandwidth, meaning cellular data in remote areas is usually sufficient for operations. As managing the data can be a challenge, intelligently tiered calculations are done between the edge and cloud. Complex calculations, such as model predictive control, by contrast, require historical data and therefore can be done cloud-side. By contrast, motor vibration data generates huge quantities of subsecond data; data is processed at the edge as it is too bandwidth intensive to send all of it to the cloud. Finding the right technology for edge-side processing is critical for successful operations.
This industrial computers also run Python scripts, enabling Streamline Innovations to perform complex calculations, which include incorporating weather forecasts from the U.S. National Weather Service to help determine optimal operating temperatures. These calculations would not have been possible with only a PLC. Machine learning (ML) and fuzzy logic algorithms running on Python provide advanced control efficiency and a self-tuning system that increases operational efficiency.
“Ambient temperatures and humidity can have a big impact on sulfur production. ML helps us to predict the temperature and allows us to adjust our surfactant and pH levels for more optimal performance. If the temperature would drop over the next 6 hours, we will actually start heating up our unit even if the ambient temperature is fine,” said Peter Photos, PhD,
chief technology officer at Streamline Innovations.
Convergence of information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) is “one of the major reasons we were able to develop the technology at a much smaller scale,” added Photos. “If you think about it, from an IT standpoint using an API for the weather forecast is a trivial calculation. But, with regards to an OT application, in the past, there was no rugged equipment with a fair amount of reliability in an oilfield to facilitate a process like this.”
Collect, process data first
Now, Streamline Innovations employs robust industrial computers, using IT practices that have incorporated IT into the OT world. Streamline Innovations’ architecture includes Class I, Div 2 certified rugged computers that gather data from the PLC and convert it to useful key performance indicators (KPIs). The KPI data is transmitted to the cloud, with the cloud server distributing the data to the users. When the cellular modem is down, the industrial computers record the data and then transmit it to the cloud as soon as the modem is back up to ensure maximum uptime of the OT equipment.
“The system is watching itself, which demonstrates the power of connectivity” with the industrial computer architecture, said Photos.
Streamline Innovations has extended the SCADA software by running a full version with a module deployed via a local Wi-Fi network. This allows users to access the unit, including its full HMI and historical on-site data from any computer near the unit. Operators can access the unit from laptops in their trucks shortly after pulling into the site. This has virtually eliminated the need for a dedicated HMI. The cellular communications module allows users to access the same HMI from anywhere.
With IPC and SCADA use, Streamline Innovations has benefited from a 75% reduction in labor costs as they do not need as many fulltime employees on-site to manage the units. ce
Eddie Lee is director, global industry marketing, Moxa Inc. Edited by David Miller, content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, dmiller@cfemedia.com.
Insights
Process automation
An H2S Gas and Acid Treating System removes H2S from natural and converts it into agriculturalgrade elemental sulfur for soil remediation, crop fertilizer, and pest control.
Measuring and removing H2S from natural gas in new chemical processes are enabled with a SCADA software control system, industrial computers, less bandwidth, selftuning fuzzy logic control system, integration of weather data and cloud server data distribution.
MEDIA SHOWCASE FOR ENGINEERS
Smart instrumentation helps with green hydrogen production, sustainability
Addition of green hydrogen energy processes needs smart instruments to help with goals for global sustainability and net-zero carbon emissions. Instrumentation needed include gas analyzers as well as conductivity, temperature, level, pressure and flow measurement devices (flowmeters, transmitters).
Global efforts to achieve zero carbon emissions from industry are gathering pace as a variety of environmental, economic and geopolitical factors are driving the development of sustainable energy sources such as green hydrogen. The latest generation of smart instruments and analyzers are helping to enhance the efficiency, safety and viability of green hydrogen production. Sensors, analyzers and transmitters help with measuring conductivity, temperature, level, pressure and flow.
With the combined concerns of disruptive climate change and energy security, countries around the globe are focusing on reducing the production of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO 2) and methane and finding ways to shift from fossil fuels to more sustainable alternatives. Last year’s COP26 summit in Glasgow encouraged countries to draw up ambitious emissions reduction targets for 2030 with the aim of reaching net zero carbon emissions by the middle of the century. Projections estimate the global hydrogen economy will be worth $2.5 trillion and create 30 million jobs by 2050. As a way of maximizing efficiency and safety and providing the data needed to inform decision making,
Achieving these targets will mean moving from conventional energy sources, such as coal, oil and gas, to renewable sources that produce minimal emissions and do not depend on a handful of countries for supply.
Hydrogen for sustainable fuel, feedstock for fertilizer, plastics
The criticality of energy supplies for everything from leisure through to industrial use requires
sources that are consistent, reliable and scalable. Although renewable sources, such as wind and solar, can help reduce emissions, they are intermittent, and it is difficult to store the electricity produced.
However, despite their environmental impact, fossil fuels have continued to be used as the mainstay of energy supplies. This is because they offer advantages such as higher energy density, can be stored to meet seasonal demand and their potential to be used as a chemical feed stock for industrial processes that depend on carbon.
The growing viability of hydrogen as an energy source is changing this. Hydrogen offers many of the advantages of renewables and fossil fuels – it can be produced with low or zero emissions, can be stored and transported, is clean burning producing and is reactive for use in further chemical processing or production.
As such, it is considered one of the key fuels to help de-carbonize energy use. It can be used as fuel for transport and electricity peaking plants, while burning hydrogen also can provide heat for many types of industries and residential and commercial buildings. Hydrogen can act as a feedstock for chemicals, such as fertilizers, fuel refining and plastics.
Hydrogen production by color classifications, hydrogen economy future
The production of hydrogen is well understood, and a number of processes can be used. These vary in the chemical origin of the hydrogen and the renewability of their electricity source.
Hydrogen production is generally classified as green, gray, blue, brown, or white depending on
KEYWORDS: Green hydrogen production, process instrumentation
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Review how hydrogen can be used for sustainable fuel and feedstock for fertilizer, plastics, and green hydrogen production methods contribute most to net-zero carbon emissions goals.
Understand that instrumentation for control of hydrogen electrolysis production processes include gas and conductivity analyzers, level sensors, temperature sensors and pressure sensors. Learn how smart instrumentation adds automation, control efficiencies.
CONSIDER THIS
Is smart instrumentation adding efficiency to your automated processes?
the method used. Green hydrogen, the most ecologically friendly type, is produced by electrolysis using renewables or nuclear energy.
If hydrogen is to make a significant contribution to mitigating climate change, its production must be based on zero-carbon electrolysis powered by renewable energy sources. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates if net zero emission is achieved by 2050, total hydrogen demand from industry will have expanded by 44% by 2030, with low carbon hydrogen making up 21 million tonnes, according to an The IEA September 2022 tracking report on hydrogen. Some progress is being made in increasing hydrogen production, with nearly 70 MW of electrolysis capacity installed in 2020, doubling the previous year’s record, IEA said.
3 methods to optimize electrolyzer performance with controls, instrumentation
As a multi-stage process, green hydrogen production requires accurate measurements to ensure safe and efficient operation. ISO22734:2019 (Hydrogen generators using water electrolysis –Industrial, commercial and residential applications) stipulates the main parameters that need to be measured during hydrogen production processes to help maintain control and avoid potential issues that could affect efficiency or safety.
To produce green hydrogen, there are three main electrolysis methods in use today.
1. Alkaline electrolysis (AEC) is a mature, commercial technology. To maximize the conductivity of the electrolyte used to produce hydrogen,
FIGURE 1: Smart process instrumentation helps with green Hydrogen production. Designed for use in ultra-pure water applications, ABB’s AC211 2-electrode conductivity cell can ensure that water conductivity is maintained, with virtually no maintenance. Hydrogen electrolyzers require sensitive gas analyzers, such as ABB’s Caldos27 and Magnos28 that can measure traces of hydrogen in the oxygen stream and vice versa to very low levels. Courtesy: ABB Instrumentation
AEC electrolyzers uses an alkaline solution of 25-30 wt% potassium hydroxide (KOH), known as lye. The highly alkaline nature of the electrolyte means any instrument that comes into contact with it must be corrosion proof. With features including a PVDF body and Hastelloy C electrodes, an industrial conductivity sensor is ideally suited for aggressive applications such as high concentration KOH measurement.
2. The PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) electrolyzer uses pure water as an electrolyte solution, avoiding the need to recover and recycle the potassium hydroxide electrolyte solution needed with alkaline electrolyzers. The purity of the water is key, with reverse osmosis and ion exchange resins being used to deionize the water to a conductivity of less than 0.1 mS/m. Designed for use in ultra-pure water applications, a 2-electrode conductivity cell can ensure water conductivity is maintained at this level, with virtually no requirement for maintenance.
3. Solid Oxide Electrolysis cells (SOEs) use ceramics as the electrolyte and have low material costs. Operating at high temperatures and with a high degree of electrical efficiency, they use steam for the electrolysis process and so require a heat source. Using steam rather than makeup water to supply the electrolyzer, SOE electrolyzers have different instrumentation requirements from AEC and PEM electrolyzers, demanding accurate measurement of flow, pressure and temperature with smart instrumentation.
Controlling hydrogen electrolysis reactions requires accurate gas analyzers
Process control of a hydrogen electrolysis process performs three main functions – safe operation, efficient power to hydrogen conversion and gas purity control.
One challenge in the electrolysis process is the potential for small concentrations of oxygen to build up in the hydrogen stream and hydrogen to build up in the oxygen stream. The electrolyzer stack assembly can leak gas from one side of the electrolyzer cell to the other. ISO22734 defines this as a fault condition.
To avoid this, hydrogen electrolyzers require sensitive gas analyzers that can measure traces of hydrogen in the oxygen stream and vice versa to very low levels.
‘
Using point level
switch technology, set points can be adjusted without changes to process piping, resulting in level switches that are quickly deployed, readily adjustable and easy to maintain. ’
Raw hydrogen gas also contains electrolyte vapors from the electrolyzer cell. A knock-down phase separator allows gas and liquid separation after the electrolyzer. Monitoring the liquid level in the knock-down phase separator is critical as a very low level would shut down the electrolyzer and trigger a nitrogen gas purge.
Level measurement, temperature control for hydrogen measurements
Magnetic level instruments, including magnetic switches and sensors, can be used to measure low and high levels in the phase separator. By isolating the device from the process medium, magnetic level measurement offers an ideal non-contact solution for measuring levels in the phase separator, while also eliminating the need for costly seals, diaphragms, and process connections commonly associated with point level switch technology. Set points can be adjusted without any changes to process piping, resulting in level switches that are quickly deployed, readily adjustable and easy to maintain.
Temperature control is also critical. Variable electricity supply from renewable sources may cause the electrolyzer to increase production, drawing more current and raising the temperature. Continuously measuring the stack temperature will enable effective control of cooling to maintain levels within safe limits.
Combining a platinum resistance thermometer with an appropriate transmitter will provide the measurements needed and a solution for triggering preventive measures in the event of an alarm. Where features such as continuous sensor monitoring and self-monitoring are also included, there is the added possibility of gathering additional information about supply voltage and issues such as wire breaks or corrosion.
Insights
Measure sustainability
Hydrogen can be used for sustainable fuel and feedstock for fertilizer, plastics and green hydrogen production methods contribute most to net-zero carbon emissions goals.
Instrumentation helping with control of hydrogen electrolysis production processes include gas and conductivity analyzers, level sensors, temperature sensors and pressure sensors.
Smart instrumentation adds automation, control efficiencies.
‘ Smart instrumentation will help with the global hydrogen economy, projected to create 30 million jobs by 2050. ’
FIGURE 2: The ABB H-Shield titanium-based binary nano coating has a tight molecular structure and the highest resistance against hydrogen ion permeation, while enabling the pressure transmitter diaphragm to respond to changing pressures. Measuring the pressure of oxygen and hydrogen gases can be achieved by using ABB’s 266GST and PGS100 series pressure transmitters. Courtesy: ABB Instrumentation
The same technologies can be applied to monitor and control temperatures in at the de-oxo stage, where traces of oxygen in the hydrogen are converted to water in an exothermic catalytic reaction to create the final hydrogen product. It is essential to monitor the temperature to ensure the reaction remains under control and conditions remain within safe limits.
Pressure measurements, pumping liquid water supply
Some types of electrolyzers are designed to operate at elevated pressure. The ability to accurately measure paressure levels is especially important if the gas is to be used at high pressure, as pumping the liquid water feed to the electrolyzer to an elevated pressure such as 30 bar is less costly and much less energy intensive than compressing the hydrogen gas from atmospheric pressure to 30 bar after the electrolyzer. Installing a digital pressure transmitter in the water circuit to continuously monitor pressure can help optimize pumping performance.
Accurate and reliable pressure measurement is important in maintaining process safety by preventing over-pressurization of the electrolyzer and ensuring hydrogen and oxygen gases generated by the electrolyzer can flow away without obstruction. Pressure transmitters measure the pressure of oxygen and hydrogen gases. Certification by TUV NORD for use in process safety control systems according to the IEC61508 standards series on functional safety helps to protect pressurized electrolyzers.
Another issue that can affect pressure transmitters in hydrogen applications is the problem of hydrogen permeation. Caused by hydrogen
molecules passing through the pressure transmitter diaphragm and diffusing into the pressure transmitter’s fill fluid, hydrogen permeation can impair transmitter performance until failure occurs. Putting a titanium-based binary nano coating provides highest resistance against hydrogen ion permeation, while enabling the pressure transmitter diaphragm to respond to changing pressure conditions.
Smart measurement adds automation, control efficiency
Today’s smart digital measurement technologies provide greater accuracy, range and depth of information that can be used to assess process performance and the status of the measurement devices. Features such as remote connectivity help to make diagnostics information more usable, enabling engineers to perform actions such as fault tracing or changes to an instrument’s configuration without having to be present. Greater predictivity facilitates proactive maintenance, avoiding unnecessary downtime and minimizing the risk of potential damage to key process plant or impaired hydrogen quality.
Digital instruments offer enhanced simplicity, making it easier for operators at any level of experience to access or relay key operational and maintenance-related data using familiar technologies, such as QR codes.
Automation can help develop the hydrogen economy
The development of energy sources such as green hydrogen is predicted to play a growing role in achieving net zero carbon goals, with projections estimating the global hydrogen economy will be worth $2.5 trillion and create 30 million jobs by 2050. As a way of maximizing efficiency and safety and providing the data needed to inform decision making, smart instruments are almost certainly set to play a major part in this growth. ce
Cornelia Huber is global communications and marketing manager ABB BL instrumentation. Edited by Mark T. Hoske, content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
Understanding Control Loop Tuning
Rocky Chambers | Control Systems Specialist, MAVERICK Technologies
Industry has numerous articles about PID (proportional, integral, derivative) controller loop tuning and its various approaches. From complex mathematical algorithms to various tuning techniques, loop tuning often presents itself as a black box that requires a certain mathematical artistry to open. One way to open this box is to ask: “What kind of process is being controlled?”
This white paper covers topics such as:
Accumulating vs Non-accumulating processes
Basis for integral time
Why it’s called integral
Figuring the integral
Figuring the proportional
Typical proportional integral relationship
Non-accumulating processes
Key tuning questions
Derivative / Rate of change
Fine tuning
Understanding the basic behavior of your process can go a long way to deciding where to start tuning-wise. After that, we perform some fine tuning by making changes to the setpoint and some adjustments to get the kind of curve preferred, most typically quarter wave decay where each successive swing is 25% of the previous.
Register to download the paper HERE .
SCAN CODE AT LEFT FOR SMARTPHONE ACCESS
Building a traceability 4.0 foundation for automation
Traceability has a large role in the world of automation, and Industry 4.0 concepts and technologies make it possible for companies to glean more insights.
Traceability is widely used in the world of automation, and for good reason. The ability to gather and record data on the whereabouts and timing of works-in-process undergoing a specific manufacturing operation or finished products making their way through the supply chain is essential for ensuring quality, identifying bottlenecks and minimizing product waste during recalls.
For example, in the food and beverage industry, traceability consumes the entire supply chain from farmers to packagers and producers to retailers and consumers at the other end.
With advancements in technologies like machine vision and those that fall under the industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) umbrella, traceability is now intertwined with next-generation solutions for flexible manufacturing, leading to an era called “Traceability 4.0.”
More traceability benefits
Another term often used for traceability is “track, trace and control.” Manufacturers want to know where a product is located within the wider production or distribution context. Manufacturers also want to know what happened to the product prior to its current production point. If there’s information on component assemblies, system checks and quality testing available, manufacturers can determine next steps more effectively.
Traceability is one of the most critical strategies for bringing true transparency to the manufacturing environment.
The reasons for implementing traceability involve internal and external factors. Internal drivers include manufacturing flexibility, overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) and product compatibility, whereas external ones include regulatory compliance, industry standards and customer requirements. Traceability
lets business make decisions using real-time data from the production line and supply chain.
Understand traceability
Building an end-to-end traceability solution can seem daunting. Manufacturers are often dealing with marking large numbers of parts and components and reading these markings at every key step in the manufacturing process. Industry 4.0 has brought new trends such as predictive maintenance, remote monitoring, communication technology and 5G networking, all of which need to connect with the traceability system to effectively function. Although this improves capability, it also can make things more complex.
To maximize the benefits of Industry 4.0 solutions, it can help to think of traceability as a parallel process that has evolved to match the automation world’s expansive capabilities.
Today, many manufacturers that implement traceability solutions are compelled to do so to comply with specific industry regulatory requirements. Many industries require track-and-trace control and documentation. Food and beverage (Food Safety Modernization Act), life sciences (Unique Device Identification) and automotive (Automotive Industry Action Group) all mandate that manufacturers are able to correctly identify every component within an assembly. They also require manufacturers to keep records of these goods in case of any future product safety recall issues.
In most cases, manufacturers that initiate traceability journeys for compliance purposes tend to satisfy those specific requirements and stop there. This stage is known as traceability 3.0, which includes the marking of goods and the storing of manufacturing and assembly data for future reference. However, ending the traceability journey at this point would limit the potential to realize
controleng.com
MORE INSIGHTS: Keywords: traceability, process manufacturing LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Learn how traceability 4.0 is merging with next-generation manufacturing techniques and concepts.
Understand the mark, verify, read and communicate (MVRC) system for traceability 4.0. Learn how traceability can enhance the supply chain and improve flexibility.
ONLINE
See additional IIoT stories at https://www.controleng. com/edge-cloud-computing/ iiot-industrie-40/ CONSIDER THIS
What role does traceability play in your manufacturing facility, and how is it changing?
MARK, verify, read and communicate (MVRC) are critical in making a traceability project successful. Courtesy: Omron Automation
Insights
Traceability 4.0
Easier traceability results from advances in technologies such as machine vision combining with the industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) to make manufacturing more flexible.
While manufacturing is more flexible, traceability still depends on the mark, read, verify and communicate (MVRC) model to help ensure the traceability process is a smooth one.
increased manufacturing transparency through data aggregation and analytics.
Traceability 4.0
This next stage is the traceability 4.0 phase.
Traceability 4.0 builds upon traceability 3.0, but with an increased focus on data being used in real-time for improved factory decisions. Traceability 4.0 improves visibility into processes and points the way toward optimization.
Although traceability 4.0 involves a greater variety of data than previous stages, it still can be boiled down to a few concrete implementation steps, which is outlined in the “MVRC” concept. MVRC stands for “mark, verify, read and communicate.”
Mark: Identifier per part
The basis for traceability is identifying parts. Manufacturers need to select the right marking/ printing process and process parameters for the application. To ensure the markings themselves are inseparable from the objects that carry them, manufacturers often use what are known as direct part marks (DPMs) — barcodes that are etched, printed or otherwise marked directly on a given part.
Although ink jet printing is sometimes used for DPMs, those expected to last years or even decades should be applied using a more permanent method. Laser marking is a method that combines high resolution with high permanence. The focused light from a laser interacts with a part’s surface material to create a mark that is durable enough to resist abrasion, heat, and acidity, but also delicate enough to produce legible letters in 1-point font. Laser marking is cost-effective because it is fast and uses no consumables like ink or electrolytic solution.
Verify: Accurate, readable markings
After marking, it is important to make sure the information is correct, all requisite regulatory standards are met and the markings are robust and
long-lasting. To make sure barcodes start off with a high level of quality, a traceability system should include a step that vets them according to standards developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
Barcode verification is more than validating that scanners and images can read a code. It is a complex process that grades each individual code against several key ISO standards (like ISO/IEC 29158 for DPMs).
A few of the many criteria for grading two dimensional barcodes are symbol contrast (the intensity difference between light and dark cells), modulation (the degree to which contrast varies throughout the symbol) and print growth (the degree to which one cell type is larger or smaller than the other). Thanks to today’s laser marking technology capabilities, providing resolutions of just a couple micrometers, manufacturers have more options for code placement than ever.
Read: Get data on works-in-process
Once parts are marked, and the codes are verified to be of good quality, manufacturers need to make sure their systems can read these codes at key points throughout production. The benefits provided by this tracking are immense. Code capture and subsequent data analysis helps optimize manufacturing, identify problems with specific machines and ensure all parts have gone through each manufacturing step.
More code reading means comprehensive, realtime traceability and more data to use in optimizing processes. In some industries, assembly information is included in DPMs, so barcode reading technology becomes an essential component of the overall manufacturing process.
Communicate: Meaningful data
The ultimate goal of implementing a complete traceability 4.0 solution is to leverage data to make informed decisions in real time. A common manufacturing operation includes four levels:
Just collecting traceability data isn’t enough — it needs to be communicated between relevant systems using compatible formats. Manufacturers need to find ways to communicate data between all levels of their manufacturing enterprise. With the ability to share and communicate data to multiple system, manufacturers can find new opportunities to make informed decision and predict future trends. Controllers and gateways can be used on the production floor as data aggregators, collecting traceability data and communicating this data to multiple consumers using various data protocols. Message queuing telemetry transport (MQTT), OPC UA and structured query language (SQL) are examples of secure data protocols that can be communicated using gateways today. Merging this data with other information within the manufacturing ecosystem can help provide a more holistic view, and lead to more informed decisions.
Combining production floor manufacturing data with other data from quality, procurement, planning and supply chain can enhance workflow and flexibility. The ability to share this data with consumers using compatible protocols is vital for speed of success in any digital transformation journey.
Traceability 4.0, quality
As machine vision, data communication and DPM technologies continue to advance, manufacturers will have a flexible toolkit for building a true Industry 4.0 traceability solution. The bundling of these technologies into a system will help manufacturers raise their quality consciousness and respond to issues in real time. The aggregation of product,
machine and process data provides the raw digital material required to improve manufacturing operations. ce
Eric Henefield is global director, traceability solutions business for Omron
Automation. Edited by Chris Vavra, web content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, cvavra@cfemedia.com.
A Guide to Achieving Data Analytics Goals
Seeq
The availability of operational data is core to the success of any digital initiative, including these top analytics goals. This starts with organizations understanding where their data is currently collected and stored. Most organizations store data in multiple locations, including plant historians, MES systems, LIMs, and more, requiring an advanced analytics solution, like Seeq, to federate information from these disparate sources.
This data often includes noise, small spikes, or erroneous values, complicating analyses. With Seeq, subject matter experts (SMEs) can leverage cleansing methods, such as smoothing filters, to greatly reduce this noise, enabling simpler contextualization and more insightful models.
By using these tools, SMEs no longer need to waste time sorting through spreadsheets and manually wrangling data, providing them with greater opportunities to analyze the patterns and predictions that lead to valuable insights.
Teams should also examine the security measures of their SaaS solutions and ensure the necessary protections are in place, such as SOC 2 compliance, before embarking on a new digital initiative.
How to determine ROI and get buy-in for workforce digital transformation
Gain buy-in for a digital transformation project by proving return on investment (ROI) and creating a clear case for adoption. Examine data, insights and experience.
Learn about building a business case for workforce digital transformation, with advice on related productivity gains in a Feb. 22, webcast, archived for a year, “Workforce Digital Transformation: Build the business case and get buy-in.” Advantages can include a 50-70% savings in on-the-job training and a 25 to 50% reduction in time to competency.
More about and from the webcast follows.
Enable industrial digital transformation
As the pace of digital transformation accelerates, it is increasingly important to bring the workforce to the forefront of enabling technologies, according to Manas Dutta, general manager, Honeywell workforce excellence portfolio. Dutta explained the need to:
• Increase user adoption of industrial digital transformation.
• Identify the best ways to determine what workers need from digital transformation.
• Reduce operations expenses by using a workforce digital transformation strategy to increase productivity and reliability.
• Identify and use specific digital transformation technologies to help with those objectives.
• Explore case studies that demonstrate the metrics of industrial digital transformation advantages.
Workforce, training, productivity
Range of workforce training benefits, according to Dutta, includes approximate 25% reduction in classroom training, 50 to 70% savings on-job training, 30 to 50% savings in re-certification/compliance and 25 to 50% reduction in time to competency (saving time, burden expenses).
These advantages mitigate cost of attrition by reducing training cycle for new hires, accelerating productivity for new hires. Advantages extend to operations productivity for operations, including availability of experts for major events, turnaround,
Digital transformation tools can facilitate training in industrial process plants, as explained by Manas Dutta, general manager, Honeywell workforce excellence portfolio, in a February webcast, “Workforce Digital Transformation: Build the business case and get buy-in,” archived for a year. Tools include Honeywell Workforce 360. Image courtesy: Honeywell, CFE Media and Technology
shutdowns and startups with an approximate 5 to 10% improvement in uptime and a reduction in overtime costs. Dutta said digitally enabled intelligent industrial operations consistently improves competency, increases productivity and reduces risk to personnel. Other digital transformation metrics can include:
• 50% improvement in on-task time
• 90% reduction in rework
• 30% reduction in plant incidents / accidents.
Attract new process plant workers
Modern digital technologies help attract new-generation workforce to the industry and more quickly build a resilient, flexible and adaptable workforce, Dutta said, discussing case studies. ce
Edited by Mark T. Hoske, content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, also the moderator for this webcast, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
KEYWORDS: Digital transformation, industrial plant training, operations optimization
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Enable digital transformation technologies for industrial process control plants.
Understand industrial digitalization workforce, training and productivity gains.
CONSIDER THIS
Is your digital transformation providing real-world, quantifiable benefits for training and operations? ONLINE https://www.controleng. com/webcasts/workforcedigital-transformation-buildthe-business-case-and-getbuy-in/ Online controleng.com
How control-system integration advances competitiveness
As part of the 2023 “How to automate series” of webcasts, two system integrators explain how integrating automation and controls adds competitiveness.
Control system integrators discuss how “Control system integration advances competitiveness” in a Control Engineering March 8 webcast, archived for a year. It is the second in a series of “How to automate” webcasts in 2023. Using two application examples and expertise from the latest Global System Integrator Report (supplement to Control Engineering and Plant Engineering ), control system integrators explained how control system integration projects continue to advance customer competitiveness in a variety of industries.
Automation and control system challenges are illustrated including what’s installed now, what needs to be implemented, and how applications can get there in a safe, efficient, cost-effective way.
Presenters are Craig Salvalaggio, chief operating officer, Applied Manufacturing Technologies (AMT), and Keith Mandachit, PE, engineering manager, Huffman Engineering.
Advice: simulation, robotic sorting
Mandachit said understanding customer needs is vital and being able to visually represent what those needs are back to the customer in a simulation is even better. Simulation is an underused strategy, and “I think we’re going to see more of it as we move into this digitalization age. It enables testing to happen before installation, it enables innovation because that testing of ideas and strategies can happen without the expenditure of capital to build a system. It even allows for operator training prior to having the system ready to operate. Those evaluative components just mean that design is smarter, faster, most exact when the actual design comes together.
Salvalaggio, talking about robotic sorting, said pre-sorting boxes into lanes can be done with diverters, but using robotics offers infinite patterns and lane configurations. Multiple robots can
PRESENTERS
In a Control Engineering webcast, March 8, archived for a year, “How to automate series: Control system integration advances competitiveness,” control system integrators Craig Salvalaggio, Automated Manufacturing Technologies (AMT), and Keith Mandachit, Huffman Engineering, explain how integrated controls and automation technologies are adding productivity. Courtesy: Automated Manufacturing Technologies (AMT) and Huffman Engineering, Control Engineering
be used to handle higher case throughput with fewer touch points. Machine vision can be used to remove the need to justify boxes upstream. A robot can find the desired box in any position and rotation before grabbing. Tricks include justifying boxes to a side rail, which then becomes the default lane. The robot only then needs to move boxes that go in other lanes. ce
More advice from each system integrator is available in the webcast and in a simulation article, page 41 in this issue.
Mark T. Hoske is content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, and moderator for this webcast, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
KEYWORDS: Engineering webcasts, how to automate, integration answers
March 8
webcast, archived for a year, looks at how control system integration advances competitiveness.
Logistics, robotics advances at the heart of improving automation
It’s been four years since ProMat 2023, organized by MHI, was in Chicago, and it was quite a different time then. In 2019, ProMat was running concurrently with Automate, run by the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), and each side had its own space. ProMat emphasized material handling and logistics; Automate emphasized robotics and automation.
Four years later, the two shows have separated (Automate 2023 is in Detroit, May 22-25) and have grown. In terms of the displays, though, it would be easy to think ProMat 2023 was another automation and robotics shows because of the number of industrial and collaborative robots roaming the North and South halls at McCormick Place.
This is the way of the future in manufacturing, warehousing and logistics. The skills gap has gotten worse due to the COVID-19 pandemic and consumer demand has not abated. Even with the recent uncertainty in the economy due to recent bank failures and inflation, customers want their products, and some manufacturers struggle to keep up. Automation — particularly in the form of robotics — is helping companies do more with less while keeping the lights on and their employees paid. Autonomous machines and vehicles help with a company’s intralogistics (internal logistics) inside as automation and other measures improve supply chain logistics outside the facility.
Logistics in manufacturing is about the process of planning, organizing and coordinating the movement of materials, components and finished products through the supply chain. The goal of manufacturing logistics is ensuring the right products are delivered to the right place at the right time, while minimizing costs and maximizing efficiency.
“It’s a twofold challenge,” said Steve
ing the power of the industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and its associated technologies can work wonders for logistics.
Michael Lennard, a warehouse and logistics industry consultant at Rockwell Automation, said that’s easier said than done. He described a situation where a client had 40 distribution centers and was trying to keep everything straight. It was a problem from the start, he said.
“It wasn’t well-aligned, and not everything worked as well as it should. And these days, that’s a problem because customers went their products instantly. In this case, the infrastructure wasn’t there.”
Pinsky at Fortna. “How do we build technology around evolving our processes? We also see a labor shortage, and customers are reaching out to us. We try and stay cutting edge. It’s about training and retaining folks.”
Other manufacturers are making modularity and flexibility their primary focus. “We want to keep everything customizable and flexible,” said Jeremy McCullough, a senior product and application engineer at SEW Eurodrive. They displayed an automated guided vehicle (AGV) that is capable of carrying up to 3000 kg. It’s a far cry from their usual position as a motor and drive company. According to McCullough, it’s about utilizing and maximizing what they already have at their disposal and expanding their reach and customer base.
Digital twins, logistics
Improving logistics through automation is more than extending a robot arm onto a truck. Logistics requires improving digital information flow, too. Leverag-
He demonstrated a product called Emulate 3D from Rockwell Automation that is designed to provide a test model for companies using a digital twin. This provides insights into their supply chain and how they can use logistics to reduce potential pain points.
“It’s a real system test, and you’re testing the logic,” he said. “You’re not dumping processes, and this can reduce potential risks in deployment.”
The system also allows the user to be as granular as possible and dig as deep as they went into finding potential pain points.
Using robots to improve logistics
Robots — industrial and collaborative — are being applied to more manufacturing applications. They never take a break and never get tired. While they’re useful in a vacuum and can take care of the dull, dirty and dangerous jobs, their larger role in a manufacturing facility is expanding. The question now is getting robots to collaborate as a team like humans do on a series of tasks together to improve manufacturing workflow.
“What we see is the expansion and advance of robotics,” said Dan Minnich, head of marketing at Sick. “You see tradi-
ProMat 2023
ROBOTS — industrial and collaborative — are being applied to more manufacturing applications.
Courtesy: Chris Vavra, CFE Media and Technology
tional conveyor companies moving into robotics, and they’re incorporating data and intelligence to making them more efficient.”
Improving their efficiency and teamwork is a major goal for CoEvolution, a Chinese-based company, as they make inroads into the North American market.
“You want robots working together in the same space. Fully integrated solutions. One view, one path doing multiple integrations. Need the robots working together,” said Long Wong, director of CoEvolution in a news conference at ProMat.
Integrating robotics needs to expand past a particular brand of robots working together. CoEvolution’s goal is having a fleet of robots, using the same software, working together regardless of brand and type.
Robots dealing with the logistics side of things, in general, is a new concept for many of these manufacturers. “Two years ago, I wasn’t talking to logistics managers,” said Brendon Turner, area sales manager for Mobile Industrial Robots (MiR). “For us, it’s all about the return on investment (ROI) and defining it and proving the value to these companies.”
Keeping workers connected
Improving logistics for manufacturers isn’t isolated to only robots. Keeping workers in the loop and connected is a challenge even if everyone is on the same page. Manufacturing facilities change from day to day, and maximizing their value is critical.
“You want to build momentum with the workforce and keep them connected in their operations,” said Jacqueline Jordan, an advanced technical product owner at Honeywell. She demonstrated the Honeywell Forge Workforce, which Is designed to give real-time insights on facility operations as well as worker efficiency.
“You can see where you’re overstaffed or understaffed and gauge their performance,” Jordan said. “And with logistics, it’s all about maximizing the asset and reducing downtime.” ce
Chris Vavra, web content manager, CFE Media and Technology, cvavra@cfemedia.com.
THE ROBOTICS GROUP (TRG) panel of MHI discussed “What’s possible now in warehouse robotics” at ProMat 2023, March 20-23, in Chicago, organized by MHI. Panelists, left to right, were Jon Schechter, business development manager, AutoStore; Zuzana Kajuch, Zuka Consultancy (formerly Crate and Barrel); Corey Cook, senior program manager Lockheed Martin; and Bill Vining co-founder Robot Advisory Group.
Learning what is possible in warehouse robotics
ROBOTIC WORKFORCE TRAINING, implementation, system integration, safety and cost were among topics covered by The Robotics Group (TRG) panel of MHI at the “What’s possible now in warehouse robotics” session at ProMat 2023, March 20-23, in Chicago, organized by MHI.
Moderated by Chris Lingamfelter, TRG co-vice chair, panel members were:
• Jon Schechter, business development manager, AutoStore.
• Zuzana Kajuch, Zuka Consultancy (formerly Crate and Barrel).
• Corey Cook, senior program manager, Lockheed Martin.
• Bill Vining, co-founder Robot Advisory Group.
Panelists’ answers follow, edited for space and clarity. What’s possible now in warehouse robotics?
Schechter: Half of ProMat 2023 show is robotics. Robotics aren’t only for the largest manufacturing or warehousing applications. Robotics can work for everyone in any sized application.
Kajuch: Robotics technologies are emerging in more applications for third-party logistics.
Cook: Trends include artificial intelligence (AI), synaptic interfaces, robotics tied to industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) applications and holographics to know where appropriate assets are.
Vining: We see more interactive, integrated systems. Are peoples’ perceptions changing about working with robots?
Vining: We see less fear that robots are going to take jobs and more understanding that robots can be applied to make jobs safter and more fulfilling.
Cook: Perceptions are changing, and it helps to get people involved in robot implementation. Use of collaborative robotics (cobots) in operations are increasingly eliminating workforce insecurity. Workers often name the robots and affix license plates to them.
Kajuch: People are understanding that robots are fun, easy to use and interactive. It’s unbelievable how fast training can be. Naming the robots seems universal. People use the robots to quickly create a higher productivity baseline and appreciate the help collaborative robots provide. People not working well with robots tend to quickly stand out with lower productivity compared to coworkers who are enjoying the work.
Schechter: People appreciate that it’s safer and easier working with robots than in the past. Collaborative robots have more intuitive operations.
What are some robotic system integration best practices?
Vining: Every implementation is custom and shouldn’t be. We should be working on standards to make robot system integration more scalable and remove effort. This also would make robotic integration easier for information technology (IT). ce
Mark T. Hoske is content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
Movement of materials, goods and products through a manufacturing facility, warehouse or distribution center represents an opportunity for improved efficiency for many organizations. Software tools can help with related communications, fleet management, drive train control, energy management, bills of material, safety and other onboard functions, such as lifting, as explained in the presentation, “Centralized design and management of multiple AGV types,” from Craig Henry, US industry manager — IntraLogistics, Siemens Industry Inc., at ProMat 2023, March 20-23 in Chicago, organized by MHI. Henry said end users, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and system integrators can simplify design, deployment and use of AGVs and mobile robots, even when from different vendors.
A fleet of AGVs can be designed, operated and maintained through a central dashboard. Accuracy of mobile robot paths can increase by using a laser-based application in four steps. 1) Locate environmental features in the facility for recognition. 2) Record the map by manually driv-
ing through the environment. 3) Do layout engineering using a web-based tool by defining paths, identification points and parameters. 4) Deploy by transferring the data to each vehicle or the whole fleet as appropriate.
Designing and commissioning a mobile robot fleet is easier when using software that Is independent from specific mobile robots, AGVs and related kinematics; Allows localization based on existing natural landmarks; Supports common laser scanner models; Saves costs by using existing safety laser scanners; Is modular and open to address individual requirements; Has easy-to-use map management, efficient layout design and easy update possibilities; and uses a modern intuitive design with a web-based engineering tool. Type of software used varies with number of units, fleets, interaction, interfaces, vehicle variance, routing algorithms (route complexity) and connections to host systems. With modular software a pre-configured library and function blocks specific
Top 5 Control Engineering content: March 20-26, 2023
The top 5 articles from the past week include AI, data acquisition, edge computing, and more.
Best practices for effective automation applications, Part 3: Automation Q&A session
Best practices for effective automation applications, Part 3: Automation Q&A session
Two system integration thought leaders offer advice on effective automation communication. Part 3 focuses on the live question-and-answer session of the webcast. Link to other parts.
AI’s revolutionary impact on industrial manufacturing Companies are entering a new revolution that changes the way original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) approach manufacturing with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).
Wireless technique helps quantum computing systems keep their cool MIT researchers have developed a wireless technique that enables a super-cold quantum computer to send and receive data without generating too much error-causing heat.
SHOWS, CONFERENCES
April 12, 13, Manufacturing in America, https://www.attendmia.com
April 17-21, Hannover Messe, https://www.hannovermesse.de/en/ May 3, Marketing to Engineers, https://www.cfemedia.com/m2e
May 15-19, CSIA 2320 Executive Conference, https://www.controlsys.org/events/conference2023 May 22-25, Automate, https://www.automateshow.com
WITH A TOOLKIT called Simove, Siemens offers standardized, modular solutions, including pre-configured bills of material, communications, fleet management, drive train control, energy management, safety functions and other onboard functions. Pre-configured library and function blocks specific to AGVs facilitate rapid code generation and shorter development time. This system environment is vendor agnostic. Courtesy: Siemens, Control Engineering
to mobile robots and AGVs facilitate rapid code generation and shorter development time. Hardware involved can include programmable logic controllers (PLCs), industrial PCs (IPCs), servers and connections to cloud services and other systems. Software functions when managing a fleet can include communications, visualization, fleet and individual control, fleet monitoring, traffic control, modeling, dispatching, routing, sequence control and alarming. Design, digital twin and simulation software can help. Digital twin software can result in about a 30% reduction time to deploy.
Using a full-suite of advanced tools can reduce site AGV and mobile robot implementation by 80% by reducing transport costs, flexibly adjusting to fluctuating volumes and increasing asset efficiency. ce
Mark T. Hoske is content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
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Aileen Jin, Control Engineering China aileenjin@cechina.cn
David Bishop, chairman and a founder Matrix Technologies, www.matrixti.com
Daniel E. Capano, senior project manager, Gannett Fleming Engineers and Architects, www.gannettfleming.com
Frank Lamb, founder and owner Automation Consulting LLC, www.automationllc.com
Joe Martin, president and founder Martin Control Systems, www.martincsi.com
Rick Pierro, president and co-founder Superior Controls, www.superiorcontrols.com Mark Voigtmann, partner, automation practice lead Faegre Baker Daniels, www.FaegreBD.com
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Learn more at: www.controleng.com/contribute
Advice on applying controllers
Controllers should have easier to use software, be easier to program.
Control Engineering subscriber research on “How to apply controllers,” conducted in January 2023, included asking for advice on what was working with industrial controllers, what was not working with controllers and advice when applying controllers. Of 134 responding to the survey, 79 shared write-in thoughts about what’s working with controllers, 65 what’s not working, 60 offered advice and 54 offered to attribute their comments.
Subjectively grouping comments into four categories showed a main topic of concern was software and programming. In the “what is working” area, more respondents thought installation and reliability topics were working than not. Most implementation advice, about one-third, touched on environment and expertise. Comments from three areas follow, lightly edited for style. See more advice online.
What’s working with controllers?
Advice topics about what is working with controllers can be categorized as follows.
28% Purchase/support
24% Installation/reliability
31% Capabilities/operation
15% Software/programming
98% Total, due to rounding.
Communication is easier to other controllers from the same manufacturer than between different manufacturers, said David Brandt, construction electrical supervisor, Nucor Corp.
Most micro-controllers we use are sized appropriately for the tasks we throw at them, said Chris Schaefer, engineer, Ingersoll Rand.
Find programmable logic controllers (PLCs) with more advanced hardware and capabilities, such as expanded data logging and communications.
What’s not working?
Topics of advice regarding what is not working with controllers can be grouped as follows.
28% Purchasing/support
20% Installation/reliability
32% Capabilities/operation
20% Software/programming.
Revision upgrades for software and hardware is a pain, Brandt said.
Some upgrade paths of obsolete equipment make it difficult to communicate between equipment, said Michael Mathews, electrical engineer, Freudenberg Performance Materials.
Advice about applying controllers
Topics of advice about applying controllers can be categorized as follows.
15% Features
15% Interoperability/communications
13% Upgrades
7% Customer service
33% Environment/expertise
18% Programming.
Know your programming libraries and which ones will need to change to support the new controller, Schafer said.
Be aware of legacy devices that may not be currently supported by the controller, said Bilton Bryan, electrical engineer, Vanderweil Engineers.
Sometimes different manufacturers use different communication protocols, and they’re not compatible, Mathews said.
Verify stock availability before committing to a schedule. Verify support time horizon to prevent premature obsolescence, said Scott Semanision, R&D Engineer 4, Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Think again about how to apply controllers in your next automation implementation. ce
Mark T. Hoske is Control Engineering content manager, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
Peter Tarbell,
Integrate robotics, automation: 4 tips to help manufacturers
Consider the process, technologies, partnership and plan. Get help from a robotic integrator and high-performance robots, while using leading-edge peripherals to enable manufacturers' robotic automation journey.
One of the most vital elements for sustaining and improving productivity in today’s manufacturing environments is the presence of advanced technologies such as robotic automation.
FIGURE 1: The Yaskawa GP12 robot is well-suited for a variety of applications, including plastic joining. Courtesy: Mission Design & Automation
Companies new to robotics are realizing the value high-performance robots can bring to their operations, creating a “new wave” of robot integration. As supply chains are disrupted, baby boomers age out and the need for more flexible workflows increases, these manufacturers are faced with producing more with less.
However, robust and intuitive robot capabilities is effectively addressing these issues, boosting manufacturing output and product quality for optimal productivity gains.
process.
However, bridging the gap between an unknown automation system and full robotic implementation can be an intimidating process. The good news is dozens of highly experienced robotic integrators are strategically scattered throughout North America to successfully guide decision makers along the way. While there are many nuances to integrator selection, four key “integrator identifiers” should not be overlooked.
1. Process expertise and understanding
While it may seem obvious, process experience is imperative. For example, those looking to automate a welding application need to collaborate with experts who understand the thermal process, and not just robot programming.
Joe Gemma, former global vice president of sales and marketing for Calvary Robotics, said, “Experi-
COVER, FIGURE 2: The collaborative HC20 robot from Yaskawa has 20 kg payload capacity to facilitate safe, consistent and cost-effective palletizing. Courtesy: Mission Design & Automation
ence is key. Many manufacturers are going in blind, and they rely on the integrator to lead the way. A robotic integrator that understands this, while combining technical know-how with leading edge technology is ideal.”
As a world leader in the design and development of custom turnkey automation solutions, Calvary Robotics realizes that true expertise comes from practice. To maintain the necessary skills to assist customers in with a variety of tasks in industries such as including automotive, electronics, energy, food and beverage, health and medical, and consumer products, Calvary engineers earn credentials from a third-party certified integrator program. Companies with employees that successfully complete multi-faceted training like this firmly establish themselves as a top-tier robotics integrator capable of providing best-in-class robotic solutions to customers.
Successful robotic integrators can better facilitate successful completion of new applications in their fields of expertise by leveraging their internal experts. In a situation like this, ascertaining the critical processes is paramount. Once those elements are established, selecting a strategic partner that can best fulfill customer requirements is possible.
Finally, integrators that dedicate themselves to a certain niche and focus on contributing innovative products to that area of the industrial landscape are especially qualified to help manufacturers. An integrator that touts a “we can do anything” mentality may not be the right fit for specific end user requirements. “Companies, such as Calvary Robotics, that provide quality, pre-engineered systems for targeted markets can set themselves apart,” Gemma said. “Furthermore, these solutions enable customers to scale and easily adapt to evolving requirements for a better ROI.”
2. Using the right technology
‘ Robots with intuitive graphical user interfaces can help with quick deployment, changeover. ’
“Technology is a given, but helping customers integrate automation is more than that,” said Scot Lindemann, CEO of Mission Design & Automation. “At a deep level, it’s about wanting the customer to be happy — using innovative tools to help solve problems, making jobs easier and safer.”
To keep up with evolving technological change, leading integrators emphasize continuous improvement. They are striving to learn about advanced technologies and implement them where necessary.
controleng.com
KEYWORDS: robotic integrator, LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Manufacturers are faced with producing more with less.
Availability to high-performance, top-quality robots from a reputable robotic supplier with a fluid supply chain and global supply network is a key qualifier for integrator selection. Increased demand and the fast pace of change continue to catapult high-mix, low-volume production, making access to capable yet flexible robotic automation for dealing with disruption a key element for operational success.
End users also need to seek out integrators that have “corporate compatible” technologies. For example, if the majority of a company’s workforce falls into the novice robot programmer category, a turnkey robotic system that is ready to operate after being designed, built and installed is ideal. Likewise, robots with intuitive, graphical user interfaces (GUIs) can help facilitate quick deployment and changeover. An experienced integrator should have access to and knowledge about a wide range of peripherals to enable the most productive application.
Manufacturers should carefully consider several key integrator identifiers before selecting one. ONLINE
See short video clip with this article online.
https://www.controleng. com/articles/how-controlsystem-integration-advancescompetitiveness/ CONSIDER THIS
What specific process experiences are crucial for your system integrator to have?
ANSWERS
FIGURE 3: A Yaskawa PL80 robot with VEO Robotics FreeMove 3D safeguarding facilitates flexible mixed-case depalletizing. Courtesy: Calvary Robotics.
3. Develop aa longterm partnership
Insights
Robot Integration Insights
Integrators that pull from their wealth of internal experts can better facilitate successful completion of new applications in their fields of expertise.
Integrators that dedicate themselves to a certain niche and focus on contributing innovative products to that area of the industrial landscape can help manufacturers looking to solve specific problems. Along with process expertise and capable technology, another priority for integrator selection should be whether the company in question has the end user’s best interest in mind.
Along with process expertise and capable technology, another priority for integrator selection should be whether the company in question has the end user’s best interest in mind. Access to references or testimonials about successful integration projects with similar scope should be readily available. Furthermore, as the liaison between the robot supplier and the end user, the integrator should have a team mindset that seeks to bring everyone together, leveraging shared knowledge and assets that can help achieve preferred outcomes.
Lindemann said, “Choosing a robotic integrator that shares a passionate purpose to solve the problem at hand goes a long way to building the momentum needed to reach the end goal. This, along with being able to listen to customer requests and adapt on the fly to deliver reliable products, is also extremely important when working with end users.”
Therefore, cultivating a solid working relationship with an integrator for long-term success is advised.
“While technology may be considered ‘easy to use,’ the process can still be very challenging,” Lindemann said.
This is another reason why end users and integrators need to seek knowledgeable professionals who can weed through unpredictable conditions when they arise.
4. Have a strategic plan and vision
Not only should integrators have an in-depth understanding about how their customers want to move forward with their operations, but they should be able to achieve their goals in multiple ways — as adjusting robotic systems and production lines often takes place for expansion.
“Integrators that take a transformative approach to enhancing customer operations by practicing vertical integration — where all of the design, fabrication, tooling and service can be addressed — are well-suited to handle diverse customer demands,” Gemma said. “Integrators, like Calvary among others, use tested technologies and leverage experience to help customers.”
Integrators also should have a strategic vision of how they interact with their robot supplier. Integrators that maintain an open channel of communication with their robot supplier are better positioned to address customer requirements — as very few applications are integrated without issues on the first try. This is especially helpful when aftersales, technical support and spare parts are needed. If an integrator does not have a good working relationship with the robot supplier, it may be cause for alarm — as the ability to provide comprehensive robot support at every stage of the project life cycle is crucial for application success and long-term performance.
Forward-thinking advice for robotic companies
Gemma said companies new to robotic automation should “Start small and grow into automation. Small- to medium-sized companies should especially identify something within the plant that is easier to automate. Then, learn the technology and understand how to build on it.”
Lindemann said, “Robotic integration is a journey that manufacturers should embrace — it’s not one project to complete, then you’re done. It’s a path to be followed.”
When integrated well, robotic technology should optimize operations to the point where corporate growth is possible. Finding a robotic integrator understands this and maintains a partner mentality to achieve a strategic vision utilizing high-performance robots and leading-edge peripherals will lead end users down a productive path toward successful robotic automation. ce
Peter Tarbell, director of partner business development, Yaskawa America — Motoman Robotics Division. Edited by David Miller, content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, dmiller@cfemedia.com.
Darren Henry and Vaughn Varma,
A control system integrator uses Git-based software to improve automation as well as increase onboarding of new hires and scaling quality.
Since 1996, engineering consulting firm DMC has helped clients improve productivity of their manufacturing facilities with custom automation software and control systems. They work in many industries such as automotive, food and beverage and even Navy battleships.
According to project director John Sullivan, who oversees the automation business for the western United States, the need for services has never been higher.
“At times, we’ve had to reluctantly turn down work because demand outpaced our ability to hire and train controls engineers fast enough,” he said.
Sullivan’s assessment is underscored by a recent Control Systems Integrators Association (CSIA) survey showing aggressive hiring of systems integration engineers in 2021, but also a 16.5% turnover rate across the field.
The biggest bottlenecks are onboarding new talent and best leveraging the use of senior engineers’ time. Software engineering students typically specialize in more common text-based programming languages versus the visual ladder logic diagrams used to program programmable logic controller (PLC) computers for machine automation. Consequently, young engineers need to be paired with experienced mentors for training that can take months.
At DMC, where software projects can range from a solo programmer up to 25 engineers, the summers tend to have larger teams when new talent can learn from their experienced colleagues.
Senior engineers’ schedules quickly get filled with frequent design reviews. By winter, Sullivan said, smaller teams become more prevalent as college grads are more able to work on their own.
To streamline its design review process, version control and collaboration, they rely on Gitbased software, which accelerates development for multiple PLC programming environments. This enables teams to work on the same files without the risk of overwriting work from others. Git branching and merging capabilities bring the same collaboration benefits to ladder logic programming as text language projects.
The visual diffing with comments provides easy-to-read, color-coded comparisons that do not require reviewers to download and open files within the original integrated development environment (IDE).
Code reviewers can detect and fix mistakes earlier
Sullivan said the automatic rendering of PLC programming languages and the ability to quickly visualize changes, without using the original IDE, significantly speeds up the feedback loop between junior and senior engineers.
“When leading multiple projects, our senior engineers are saving up to a day a week, because of the faster code reviews,” he said. “Plus, we're reviewing more frequently. We're catching more mistakes before they get deployed or tested. And because we always see the visualized code before merging, we're also making fewer mistakes.”
Understand how onboarding new talent and teaching them programming is a major bottleneck challenge.
Learn how Git-based software can remove some of the potential bottlenecks.
Discover the importance of having one source of truth for programming and the benefits of open communication for the team.
ONLINE
This case study was highlighted in a February 2023 webcast: https://www.controleng.com/ webcasts/improving-plcversion-control-and-devicebackup-using-modern-gitworkflows/
CONSIDER THIS
How can changes in PLC programming workflow improve your automation?
ANSWERS
code reviews by displaying PLC ladder logic and highlight-
Insights
Git-based software insights
Git-based software by Copia Automation is designed to accelerates development for multiple programmable logic controller (PLC) programming environments and prevent people from overwriting others’ work.
Developing a streamlined platform where programmers can learn from one another and develop a single source of truth is critical in reducing bottlenecks and letting younger engineers learn without tying up senior engineers.
Sullivan said the switch to Git-based software has made his team much more efficient.
“Git alone does a good job managing the project history but falls short when reviewing code,” Sullivan said. “Whenever someone committed a code change, our senior engineers needed to open up two copies of the development environment, do a compare between the two platforms, and manually copy the code before recommitting. We now see the changes right away and simply click a few buttons to merge those changes. A 45-minute process now takes 15 minutes.”
Overcoming a “10-year problem” for automation programming
Copia Automation’s Git-based version history captures all coding changes for the lifecycle of a project, allowing teams to revert to any earlier iteration if desired. The edit history is invaluable for collaborating team members to be aware of the latest project changes, but it is also useful for managing what DMC calls the “10-year problem.”
The challenge is maintaining the ability to provide ongoing support for machines and systems long after installation.
‘ One key to success is ’
“I recently heard from a customer who we last worked with us seven years ago. Both the engineer and the manager who worked on that project are gone. It’s so important to always be able to find the files from legacy projects,” Sullivan said. “I had another customer who had a power surge, and they lost their program. They unfortunately never managed to keep a copy of it. So we needed to grab old code and help them redeploy to a new set of hardware so they could get back up and running. Now, moving forward, anyone on our team will be able to handle the 10 Year Problem without the original engineer who worked on the project. Having the context and information from the entire lifecycle of a project is super valuable.”
Having one source of truth in a secure central repository also helps the team collaborate more efficiently with its manufacturing clients.
“We have customers operating facilities where their engineers are making small code changes on a regular basis. When things really go wrong, they call us,” Sullivan said. “And it’s our job to jump in and help figure out the problem. One of the keys to being successful is to be confident we have the latest code. Sharing the same repository enables this.”
Sullivan said he thinks it is “embarrassing” for the industry to still be relying on file names and shared folders. Git-based software, he said, helped them increased productivity and quality. ce
Darren Henry is vice president of marketing; Vaughn Varma is technical marketing manager at Copia Automation. Edited by Chris Vavra, web content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, cvavra@cfemedia.com.
CASE STUDY
READY ROBOTics
REAPS ROYALTY-FREE
REWARDS
BACKGROUND
Ready Robotics created
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
Tyler Wall, Mark T. Hoske,
PID tuning advice
Control loop tuning information, advice and optimization
What are proportional-integral-derivative (PID) loops, and how should PID loops be tuned? What advice do you have, using engineering and control methods, to optimize proportional-integral-derivative (PID) tuning? Control Engineering asked ChatGPT these questions in February 2023. The following advice was lightly edited for style, and links were added to past Control Engineering coverage on loop-tuning topics. [If you are an engineer with automation and controls experience in PID loop tuning and would like to share your PID expertise, please see https://www. controleng.com/contribute.]
PID loops: What they are and how to tune them
A PID loop is a type of control system algorithm commonly used in industrial, manufacturing and process control applications to regulate and stabilize a process variable, such as temperature, pressure, flow rate or level. PID loops are important in industrial, manufacturing and process control applications because they help maintain a stable and accurate process variable. Three parts of PID loops are:
Proportional control (P): The proportional control component responds to the error between the desired setpoint and the actual process variable. It adjusts the control output based on the difference between the desired value and the measured value. The proportional gain parameter determines the strength of this response.
Integral control (I): The integral control component corrects for any steadystate error that may persist in the system.
It continuously sums the error over time, and the resulting signal is fed back into the control output. The integral gain parameter determines the strength of this response.
Derivative control (D): The derivative control component anticipates the future error by measuring the rate of change of the process variable. It can help reduce overshoot and improve the response time of the system. The derivative gain parameter determines the strength of this response.
Proportional, integral and derivative components work together to create a feedback loop that constantly adjusts the control output based on the desired setpoint and the measured process variable. By using feedback to adjust the control output, the system can maintain a stable and accurate process variable, even in the presence of disturbances or changes in the system.
The parameters of a PID loop (proportional gain, integral time and derivative time) can be adjusted to optimize the system's performance. However, tuning a PID loop can be a complex task that requires knowledge of the system’s dynamics, operating conditions and performance requirements. ce
Review four control methods to optimize PID tuning, according to ChatGPT, are Ziegler-Nichols, Cohen-Coon, Internal Model Control (IMC) and Model Predictive Control (MPC).
Understand the PID tuning process, according to ChatGPT.
CONSIDER THIS
How many of your control loops are in manual, not optimized by available software?
Mark T. Hoske,
Digital twins advance digital transformation, control system integration
Control system integrators explain how simulation and digital twin software can advance competitiveness by enabling ideas, design, testing, training, installation, upgrades and optimization of automated systems.
Using simulation software and digital twins can help with effective integration of automation and controls to advance competitiveness, said Craig Salvalaggio, chief operating officer, Applied Manufacturing Technologies (AMT), and Keith Mandachit, PE, engineering manager, Huffman Engineering. The control system integrators spoke in the Control Engineering March 8 webcast, “How to automate series: Control system integration advances competitiveness.” Also see ChatGPT’s seven tips.
Simulation, digital twins for controls
Mandachit said system integrators need to understand customer needs. Being able to visually represent what those project needs in a simulation is even better. Simulation is an underused strategy, and he expects to see more of it “as we move into this digitalization age.”
Simulation software enables testing to happen before installation. It enables innovation through testing of ideas and strategies without the capital expenditure to build a system. It allows for operator training prior to having ready-to-operate system. All of those evaluative components mean that design is smarter, faster and more exact when the actual design comes together.
Salvalaggio touted simulation among his “lessons learned” recommendations, explaining that simulation software can be used to replicate discrete events, model plant processes and workflows and do virtual commissioning for automation projects.
Digital twins are underused in design
Digital twin software can help create and thoroughly test a machine or process without physically building and installing it, Mandachit said. For example, suppose a project is under consideration to run a conveyer through a machine. Creating a simulation can show if a machine design can keep up with the conveyer running at a certain rate of speed or easily show how a smaller machine might still meet objectives and fit in less floor space. The digital twin even can help with operator training prior to having the system ready for production.
Prior to more details being available for a digital twin, Mandachit said, we’ve always been able to do simulations in software with programming, hooking up some switches, force things on and off, manipulate data and register values and see how the logic would function. Expanding that to a digital twin shows how more processes interact and helps in planning, designing, testing and upgrading the control system design. Now, he said, we can test code and whole processes ahead of time, not just bits and pieces.
Salvalaggio suggested, for example, a digital twin could show how elements could be introduced into a work cell and determine effect on designed the application’s workflow, motion and perimeter guarding, to better plan, look at scenarios and potentially do virtual commissioning.
Simulation software advantages
Salvalaggio described simulation in three degrees of difficulty.
controleng.com
KEYWORDS: Simulation, digital twins, system integration, automation upgrades
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Explore simulation and digital twins use for automation and controls as explained by control system integrators.
Understand that digital twins are underused in automation project design and that simulation software advantages expand in digital twin implementations.
CONSIDER THIS
Are you using simulation and digital twins to expedite and improve migrations and upgrades?
ONLINE
Second in the “How to Automate” series is available for viewing until March 8, 2024.
AS PART OF the 2023 “How to automate series” of webcasts, system integrators explain, in part, how simulation and digital twins help advance competitiveness. Keith can create a digital twin of a machine or process to plan and test prior to building and installation. Courtesy: Control Engineering webcast, Huffman Engineering
1. Simulation can add a lot of value as a planning tool for visualization to help conceptualize system designs in a factory, helping with more than just a two-dimensional layout could do.
Insights
Digital twin and simulation insights
Two control system integrators explain advantages of using simulation and digital twin software for automation and controls.
The system integrators explain that digital twins are underused in automation project design and simulation software advantages expand in digital-twin implementations.
2. Going a step further, software can simulate feeds, payloads, kinematics, robotics, conveyers, product flow and process throughput, well beyond just one work cell’s design. Advanced simulations help with more engineering-level work, provide feedback for offline programming and reduce system integration and onsite installation time.
3. Most useful and challenging is a full digital twin that’s kept up to date as things change from asbuilt work-cell drawings to what actually happens in a facility. New information needs to update the digital model as part of workflow processes to realize “a ton of value.”
Salvalaggio said simulation and digital twin software capabilities are advancing, and costs are falling. “In five years, I think we’ll see digital twins more widely adopted,” especially as larger companies develop a critical mass of implementations and add value.
Mandachit said digital twins can help with optimization, to see if proposed changes will bring expected returns prior to risking time and resources to make physical changes to a system. Simulation and digital twin use helps facilities better plan to accommodate production demands and changes.
7 ways simulation software advances digital transformation
Control Engineering asked ChatGPT artificial intelligence (AI) software how automation and control applications can use simulation software. The edited response follows.
Simulation software can allows for testing of programming upgrades, redesigns, optimization and training in a safe, controlled environment prior to plant-floor implemention. See seven tips follow.
1. Identify the scope of the simulation: Clearly define the process to be simulated, with all inputs, outputs, and other factors that affect the system.
2. Choose the appropriate simulation software: Choose simulation software that is capable of accurately representing the system being modeled and has the necessary features for the analysis required.
3. Gather accurate data: Collect accurate data about the process being modeled, such as input/output data, operating parameters, and other relevant information. This will help ensure that the simulation accurately represents the real-world system.
4. Validate the simulation: Once the simulation is complete, validate it by comparing results with the actual results from the real-world system. This helps to ensure that the simulation is accurate and reliable.
5. Use the simulation for training: Simulation software can be used to train operators and engineers on new processes or upgrades. It provides a safe and controlled environment for testing and learning, without the risk of causing damage to the actual system.
6. Use the simulation for optimization: Simulation software can also be used for optimizing the process. By testing various scenarios and settings, engineers can identify the most efficient and effective way to run the system.
7. Iterate and refine: Use the simulation software to test and refine various designs, upgrades or optimization strategies before implementing them on the plant floor. This can help to save time, resources and prevent costly errors. ce
Mark T. Hoske is content manager and webcast moderator, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, mhoske@cfemedia.com. The “7 ways simulation software advances digital transformation” content was created using ChatGPT, and due to limits of AI tools, also edited and reviewed by Hoske.
Nick Cravotta,
AI in industrial applications
Artificial intelligence (AI) can help industrial manufacturing; building trust that decisions are right is critical.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is making decisions everywhere. In the factory and other industrial applications, artificial intelligence is scanning for product defects. It’s guiding robots across a shop floor. AI can tell you when a production line is about to go down – and how to fix the problem before it happens. AI will help engineers how to optimize production or cutback on waste. AI systems can help keep workers safe by identifying when they step into a dangerous area. Will people trust AI?
Decisions made by complex deep learning neural networks are often rendered without explanation. Since these systems are basically programming, decisions may lack explainability. This has been called Black Box AI. Ongoing research has been aimed at making AI decisions more transparent.
For those deploying AI, how do we know if we can believe what AI is saying? It’s one thing to deal with the repercussions of a poor buying recommendation or an incorrectly declined credit purchase. What happens when critical operations and safety rely on AI? Trust is a firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability and/or strength of someone or something. People need more than a black box to say “AI just works.” Users need to trust AI in ways such as:
• Explainability: Users need to know why AI systems make the decisions they do.
• Competence: Users have to understand the limits of AI. In addition, AI systems also need to be aware of and accommodate their own limitations.
• Operational transparency: Users must see how AI systems are operating in real-time and know why they behave the way they do.
• Predictability: Users have to be able to anticipate how AI systems might respond in particular situations.
• Ethics: AI systems must avoid ethical issues that can break trust if not addressed with care.
The importance of trust with AI
Irene Petrick, the former senior director of industrial innovation at Intel, said when it comes to trust, “We asked tech companies what was most important to them. About a third of their comments revolved around trust (Figure 1), such as did the AI use the right data in the right way. AI should drive more and better action quickly, in a way that anticipates other issues. If a user doesn’t trust the AI, this doesn’t drive action.”
Anatoli Gorchet, CTO at Neurala, describes trust issues that can arise from the limitations of generalization in his presentation at the 2022 AI and Smart Automation Conference. A common AI blind spot is environmental variance. If training model data is captured just in the morning, model accuracy will plummet in the afternoon or evening when the angle of the sun has changed. This creates a trust issue with users because a person would not make such a mistake.
Note that environmental variances can be extremely subtle. Consider a successful AI deployed to a new line that severely drops in accuracy. Even though engineers thought the line was identical to the original line, it wasn’t: The new operator was six inches taller than the original operator and blocked more background light, changing the environmental conditions sufficiently to bring the neural network down.
Gorchet points out that trust takes a lot of time to develop and but just a single event to break. The challenge is, how do we teach people to trust systems that can fail like this?
Producing data that can be trusted
AI models are built on data. Thus, it makes sense that if users are to trust an AI, they must be able to trust the data used to build it. Dominik Boesl, CTO at Micropsi Industries, shared a number of different ways data can impact trust.
Trust in data starts with careful capture of that data. “In one case, a pen was on the table during
Learn about the role artificial intelligence (AI) plays in industrial manufacturing operations.
Understand AI's limits as well as its potential and the human role in shaping and guiding its development.
Understand some of the ethical and moral changes to AI as well as how critical people's trust in the system is.
ONLINE
With this article online, see another graphic and more on:
-AI and competence
-Explainabilty builds trust in AI
-The role of ethics in AI.
Also see other AI and machine learning stories at https://www.controleng.com/ ai-machine-learning/ CONSIDER THIS
How much is AI growing at your company and what does it mean in the short- and long-term?
ANSWERS
FIGURE: Trying to explain how a neural network works to a user is not explainability and it doesn’t get to the heart of why the AI is choosing to do something a certain way.
Courtesy: Neurala/A3
training. The AI thought the pen was a point of reference,” Boesl said. “It takes just one image without a pen to show it isn’t essential.”
Developers also need to consider sampling bias, as it can affect the accuracy of the system. A common example of sampling bias are environmental conditions such as lighting. “AI is not always the same. There are different types and technologies. And what a person looks for doesn’t necessarily match what an AI is looking for. In 1995, NATO used recognition software to differentiate friendly from enemy tanks. It did not perform well.” After months of troubleshooting, they realized that training data had been taken from clean brochure pictures with bright lighting, not of tanks covered in mud or under low lighting.
“Variance is essential in data,” Boesl said. “Consider how Tesla demo drivers must have a 95% driving record. The car is being trained to expect a predictable driver. But not every driver will be predictable.” Adding variance removes blind spots by showing a wider sample of what is acceptable.
Insights
Artificial intelligence (AI) insights
AI's role is growing in manufacturing, but its ability to help manufacturers improve operations and grow the bottom line is tempered by the workers' ability to trust AI is making the right decisions.
Trust is a major component to AI and some of the key aspects include explainability, competence, operational transparency, predictability and ethics.
“With enough variance, there is no need to show undesired states, no need to say good or bad. We make sure to use a variety of white and colorful backgrounds to teach the AI not to count on the background. To get light independence, we use a video projector to light the system while training. As the light is constantly changing, this teaches the AI that light is not a relevant feature. And have a trained operator teach the AI rather than an engineer. The operator is the expert” working with the AI.
Dr. Nurali Virani, senior scientist – machine learning at GE Research and head of GE’s Humble AI Initiative, said, “At a fundamental level, if the model is too confident in its prediction in rare and challenging situations with limited/no training data, then it can be an extrapolation error. It helps to understand the user’s perspective. Many technicians and end users
have years and even decades of experience” and want to know how AI knows better than they do.
“There is also the matter of human error. If some data is labelled incorrectly, the AI will be unreliable for similar instances. If AI relies on that data for confident predictions, then it can lead to breach of trust. However, if AI can know, which labels are likely to be erroneous and be robust to some label errors, then it can ask for feedback to maintain trust.”
Gorchet believes that how an AI system is developed impacts trust. Consider that when developers change hardware, they might have to change the Cuda version, as well. Some of a user’s models might not be supported because Tensorflow is not supported with the new version. This might lead a user to question what else might not be working. It is critical to abstract these kind of development issues from users.
AI and competence
Another foundation of AI trust is awareness of limits. Virani said, “We have coined the term Humble AI to refer to an AI that is aware of its own competence, can ask for help, and grow its competence over time. When it sees it is beyond the region of its competence, it passes the decision to the operator or falls back to other safe modes of operation. Then new data can be worked into the models to raise AI competence. This is an important idea. An AI does not need to work everywhere at the outset. It can be used where it has enough data to be helpful – and trusted. The AI might not know how to diagnose a new fault in an industrial system. It says, ‘I don’t know, you’re the expert, please help me.’ However, the AI might know enough to say what the situation isn’t. ‘It’s not fault A, but it could be fault B or fault C.’”
When developers accept competence as a factor, this can build trust. Virani said, “Without competence, an AI will make decision even when it doesn’t know the answer.”
Rather than risk giving wrong answers and destroying trust, AI can narrow down the options. It is helpful. It is correct. It continues to build trust and reduce workload in areas where it has competence. ce
Nick Cravotta is a contributing editor for the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), a CFE Media and Technology content partner. This originally appeared on A3's website. Edited by Chris Vavra, web content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, cvavra@cfemedia.com.
Innovations
Product of The Year awards will be announced June 1
The Product of the Year program highlights some of the best new control, instrumentation, and automation products as chosen by print and online subscribers. Qualified subscribers are asked to select products based on technological advancement, service to the industry, and market impact.
Control Engineering, https://www.controleng.com/events-and-awards/product-of-the-year
LVDT position sensors, customized for application needs
LVDT position sensors are used by the energy sector as metrology tools in ensuring the proper operation of different power systems. (LVDT stands for linear variable differential transformer.) In applications, such position sensors can monitor gas turbine servo controls, fuel valve position and micro fuel valve openings in the operation of gas turbines. To reliably perform in these critical applications, LVDT displacement sensors can be customized to meet application needs; customers do not need to conduct expensive design reviews of standard position sensors or worry about meeting safety regulations and codes. NewTek can expand temperature ranges, tighten impedance specifications and use different sealing methods and housing materials.
Newtek Sensor Solutions, www.newteksensors.com
Flow and energy measurement system, calculations
Onicon’s System-1000 Flow and Energy Measurement System is a multi-channel interface for accurately measuring and reporting thermal energy usage, flow, temperatures, efficiency and other engineering parameters. The system is a dual-channel Btu meter that provides thermal energy measurement in chilled water, heating hot water, condenser water and domestic water systems. Energy measurement is based on signal inputs from matched precision temperature sensors and any of Onicon’s inline, insertion or clamp-on style flow meters. It can perform up to two thermal energy calculations simultaneously, and it allows for the addition or subtraction of two flow rates.
Onicon Inc., www.onicon.com
Plug-in motor controllers, integration
The small plug-in motor controllers of the CPB series from Nanotec can be integrated into existing applications and customer boards. Available in three sizes with rated power of 150, 300 and 750 Watts, they have the same features and identical pin assignments on the logic connector. As a result, several performance classes of a customized carrier board or multi-axis board can be realized. In combination with extended features such as the acceleration feed-forward and jerk-limited ramps, the field-oriented torque, speed and position control provides optimum dynamic performance and thus cycle time. Nanotec Electronic, www.us.nanotec.com
Point-of-load dc/dc converters
The digital DLynx III power modules are configurable non-isolated dc-dc converters that can deliver up to 320A of output current with a master/satellite configuration. The DLynx III product family includes 40-, 80-, 120-, and 160-amp (A) master dc/dc converters as well as 40A and 160A satellite modules. The master dc/dc converters can be used as standalone POL modules or can be used in tandem with satellites modules. When used together, the master and satellite modules can be deployed in higher-powered single-output configurations to meet growing board-level power requirements and power density demands or in dual-output configurations to power components with differing output voltage requirements. ABB Power Conversion, www.abbpowerconversion.com
INNOVATIONS
See more New Products for Engineers www.controleng.com/NPE
Triple throw rocker switch, single or double-pole
The K1S ON-ON-ON triple throw rocker is ideal as a forward-neutral-reverse (FNR) switch. Users can choose from 72 other standard legends with both normal and large-size rocker top styles for various operator functions. Its short-behind-panel, snap-in design fits in operator grips or panels and can working in the most demanding environments. The K1S is available in single- and double-pole configurations with maintained action. The double-pole version offers redundancy for each switch state, providing increased safety. Termination options include a connector or wire leads. The K1S contact system is sealed to IP68S and uses a flow-through design. Otto, www.otto-controls.com
VOC leaks in water
Analyzer is designed to provide real-time measurement of volatile organic chemical (VOC) leaks in clean or dirty water. More economical and accurate than lab analyzers prone to analytical errors, the 204 Permastream precisely measures total VOCs including aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons without false high readings or high alarms associated with UV fluorescence methods. The sensor quantities and displays values on a full color touch-screen human-machine interface (HMI) system, through a 4-20mA -
ernet and Modbus. The analyzer offers remote and web-based monitoring along with optional concentration relay alarms
Analytical Systems Keco, www.liquidgasanalyzers.com
signals, data, power
The 423 series M16 connector offers reliable connectivity for signals, data and electrical power with low contact resistance and gas tightness. These connectors have the tensile strength and non-detachable (IP67-level) connection needed for challenging applications such as the installation of gas meters, railroad technology, sensors and actuators, test and measurement, and industrial controls. They
binder USA, www.binder-usa.com
Temperature monitor has digital sensor
The Digi-Tru line offers worry-free temperature monitoring for the long term. The thermometers are equipped with a digital sensor that provides quick readings on a LCD dis-
a one-second response time. The battery, thanks to low power consumption, is designed to last at least a compact 3-in. round heavy-duty stainless-steel case, and are available in back, bottom or adjustable angle configurations, with industrial
Tel-Try Manufacturing Co., www.teltru.com
enables quick and complete shaft alignment without advanced training or complicated programs. The shaft alignment tool is also designed for skilled workers by them cover more machines with all the functionality needed on the plant floor — from thermal growth calculations to user defined tolerances and more. The Fluke 831 also fea-
Fluke Corp.,
Back to Basics
DCS UPGRADES
Process facilities must embrace more flexible DCS production and faster implementation to reduce time to market for new product developments.
In the past, upgrading a distributed control system (DCS) typically involved ripping out the old system and replacing it with a new one from a different vendor, or undergoing a hardware or software upgrade.
While DCS reliability and total cost of ownership from different vendors can vary, there is a lot less variation today in the overall functionality offered by DCS suppliers and this poses a challenge in more mature European process industry — such as in the pharmaceutical sector — where the transition towards smart manufacturing has become key to survival.
For production flexibility and agility, well-established industries must embrace new technologies, standards and trends. Pharmaceutical production plants must embrace more flexible production and faster process implementation to reduce time to market for new product developments. They need improved supply chain management to ensure better product quality and more stable/reliable product supply, and they need to reach target yields faster. The issue of relatively little incremental functionality and (economical) value of replacement DCS systems is a major constraint for achieving these goals as companies seek to digitalize operations, achieve smart manufacturing and advance towards more autonomous operations. A DCS is effectively a closed, so cannot integrate easily into other systems.
Moving forward with DCS upgrades
nect, communicate and integrate with other non-DCS systems — essential for the realization of autonomous operations — means the focus must change to implementing a new (autonomous) overall plant operating philosophy.
‘ The next horizon of value in the DCS domain is
in open platform architectures.
’
The traditional DCS has reached a point of diminishing returns as a source of unlocking major incremental value (flexibility and agility) for transitioning to digital and autonomous operations. Plant owners and operators should now place more focus on roadmaps to autonomous operations, versus a DCS technology or migration roadmap. The DCS will continue to be important in how plants operate, but the next horizon of value in the DCS domain is in open platform architectures — for example Open Process Automation Standard (O-PAS) and module-type packages (MTP) — and less in the DCS. Practical steps when when considering future process control strategies include:
• Insert OPA gateway in current DCS and continue technology roadmap within the OPA space.
In moving towards autonomous operations, horizontal and vertical integration between and across systems is critical. Horizontal integration refers to the integration of the different on-premise systems. Often these systems will employ different interfaces/protocols, such as OPC UA, Profibus DP, Modbus TCP/IP or the IEC 61850. Vertical integration refers to integration with the business domain, the cloud (for example through MQTT interface), remote centers or industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) devices where cybersecurity is crucial in supporting different architectures and protocols.
The integration of multi-site systems within a “system of systems” adds complexity. The limited DCS ability to con-
• Use new trends and standards like MTP, AI, ML and IIoT to improve machine integration, enhance operator support, reduce overall system complexity and pursue flexible, modular plants.
• Adopt a data integration strategy that includes cybersecurity for data reliability/protection. Define a user roadmap for digitalization and autonomous operations using the independent smart industry readiness index (SIRI) benchmark. ce
- Gaetano Micera is director life science industry Europe at Yokogawa Europe B.V. This originally appeared on Control Engineering Europe 's website. Edited by Chris Vavra, web content manager, Control Engineering , CFE Media and Technology, cvavra@cfemedia.com.
controleng.com
KEYWORDS: distributed control system, process control
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Learn why upgrading a distributed control system (DCS) can be challenging. Understand what role the industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) can play in connecting the DCS to other devices.
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Customers
Precise. Powerful. Modular.
Servo motors and gear units from SEW-EURODRIVE
Servo motors and gear units offer a high degree of dynamics and performance with a compact design, making them excellent for confined spaces. Multiple frame sizes and torque ratings makes them the perfect fit in material handling, hoist and gantry
applications, and a wide variety of machine automation applications. Their modular design allows for direct gear unit mounting without adapters or couplings. Pair that with the option of single-cable technology and you’ve got a flexible, precise servo drive solution.
