www.controleng.

com
 Productivity to your next project
Add moreProductivity
with advanced, low-cost controllers from AutomationDirect
Productivity3000 CPU
starting at

Productivity1000 CPU $425.00

P3-530
priced at
$171.00
P1-540 2018

Productivity2000 CPU
priced at
$258.00
P2-550
Productivity

ProductivitySeries
Pr
Prod

Productivity1
Productivity1000
More Productivity for less! Starter Kit
ONLY
The Productivity Series of controllers provides a scalable controls $295.00
solution with three low-cost hardware platforms and one P1-START
FREE, powerful programming package. Write a program in one
controller and easily port to another so that no matter the
application, big or small, Productivity has the I/O, communications
and affordability you need. Getting started with Productivity has
• Expansive 50MB of user memory with tag name addressing for custom never been easier or more affordable. The
memory allocation Productivity1000 starter kit has everything
• Scalable product offering capable of handling large control systems with you need to get a jump start on your
thousands of I/O points (up to 59,840 I/O points possible) down to simple next project including PLC with CPU, I/O
applications with minimal I/O and tight budget constraints modules and power supply, connectors,
• Numerous onboard communication ports to meet in-house and on-site programming cable, and much more.
network requirements with Modbus, ASCII and EtherNet/IP™ support
• Access to remote installations using integrated web server and/or
mobile app
• Built-in data logging up to 32GB Dozens of How-To PLC videos also available
• Real-time data displays (on select CPUs and analog modules) to help you get up and running fast:
www.go2adc.com/productivity-vids
www.ProductivityPLC.com

FREE Productivity Suite tag-based programming

software with projects that easily convert from
one hardware platform to another

Order Today, Ships Today!

* See our Web site for details and restrictions. © Copyright 2019 AutomationDirect, Cumming, GA USA. All rights reserved. 1-800-633-0405 the #1 value in automation

input #1 at www.controleng.com/information
Affordable HMIs for any budget
Starting at only $98.00
$98.00,, you’re guaranteed the savings you need
C-more HMIs
starting at:
$472.00
(EA9-T7CL-R)

C-more micro HMIs

starting at only:

2019 $98.00
(EA3-S3ML-RN)

FINALISTS
®

The C-more and C-more Micro HMI families provide a

variety of affordable options and features to meet your
operator interface needs, no matter the project size or Research, price, buy at:
complexity. Whether your application requires advanced www.automationdirect.com/cmore
interfacing or just the basics, we have a low-cost HMI
www.automationdirect.com/cmore-micro
solution for you.
• C-more advanced touchscreen HMIs are available in a variety
of sizes including 6, 7, 8, 10, 12 and 15 inch, with widescreen
options. Advanced functionality includes animations, logic, math,
alarming, remote accessibility (web server and mobile app) , data
logging and a myriad of supported communication protocols.
• C-more Micro non-touch and touchscreen HMIs are available
in a variety of sizes starting at 3 inches. With free programming
software and a starting price of $98.00, these micro HMIs
provide the basic functionality needed for small systems and
cost-conscious applications.

Order Today, Ships Today!

* See our Web site for details and restrictions. © Copyright 2019 AutomationDirect, Cumming, GA USA. All rights reserved. 1-800-633-0405 the #1 value in automation

input #2 at www.controleng.com/information
input #3 at www.controleng.com/information
 Vol. 66
Number 2

FEBRUARY 2019

25 | Network, control system upgrade

helps reduce energy costs
26 | Maximize production efficiency with
high-end power measurement

INSIDE MACHINES
M1
Robotic coveR images: Courtesy of Robotic Industries Association (RIA) and
M1 | Demystifying robot offline
programming
clockwise, starting top left, Cenit North America Inc., Hypertherm Robotic Software Inc.,
Octopuz Inc., and RoboDK Inc. See three related articles in this issue, starting after p. 27.
M3 | Robotics and AI improve factories
of the future
INSIGHTS M5 | Collaborative robots accelerate
5 | Legalities: Reduce risk of non-payment M7 | Global low-voltage motor market
bounces back
6 | Low-cost field control network
M8 | Selecting a scope for a variable
8 | Technology Update: R&D tax credit help frequency drive
NEWS
10 | Four machine vision software
INNOVATIONS
advances; Special interest group for 38 | 2019 Control Engineering
internet protocol; Online headlines Engineers’ Choice Awards
14 | Think Again: Use the positive effects BACK TO BASICS
of automation to plan ahead 56 | Help for automation design,
selection, implementation
ANSWERS
ONLINE
16 | How to select a process control system
• Enabling process industry
18 | Upgrading your hardware,
digital transformations
software systems
• Four process closure benefits
20 | Proactive management of plant
cybersecurity • Model developed to identify artificial
intelligence blind spots
24 | Best practices to help
improve system security • Vision-guided robot technology benefits

CONTROL ENGINEERING (ISSN 0010-8049, Vol. 66, No. 2, GST #123397457) is published 12x per year, Monthly by CFE Media, LLC, 3010 Highland Parkway, Suite #325 Downers Grove, IL 60515. Jim Langhenry, Group
Publisher/Co-Founder; Steve Rourke CEO/COO/Co-Founder. CONTROL ENGINEERING copyright 2019 by CFE Media, LLC. All rights reserved. CONTROL ENGINEERING is a registered trademark of CFE Media, LLC used under
license. Perio dicals postage paid at Downers Grove, IL 60515 and additional mailing offices. Circulation records are maintained at 3010 Highland Parkway, Suite #325 Downers Grove, IL 60515. Telephone: 630/571-4070.
E-mail: customerservice@cfemedia.com. Postmaster: send address changes to CONTROL ENGINEERING, 3010 Highland Parkway, Suite #325 Downers Grove, IL 60515. Publications Mail Agreement No. 40685520.
Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: 3010 Highland Parkway, Suite #325 Downers Grove, IL 60515. Email: customerservice@cfemedia.com. Rates for nonqualified subscriptions, including all issues: USA,
$165/yr; Canada/Mexico, $200/yr (includes 7% GST, GST#123397457); International air delivery $350/yr. Except for special issues where price changes are indicated, single copies are available for $30 US and $35 foreign.
Please address all subscription mail to CONTROL ENGINEERING, 3010 Highland Parkway, Suite #325 Downers Grove, IL 60515. Printed in the USA. CFE Media, LLC does not assume and hereby disclaims any liability to any
person for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions in the material contained herein, regardless of whether such errors result from negligence, accident or any other cause whatsoever.

www.controleng.com control engineering February 2019 • 3

input #4 at www.controleng.com/information
INSIGHTS
LEGALITIES FOR AUTOMATION AND INTEGRATION
Brian Clifford, Faegre Baker Daniels

Reduce risk of non-payment

from new automation customers
A letter of credit can help guarantee payment or performance by a customer or integrator
that has not yet established a credit history with the other party to the arrangement—especially
if offices of the two parties are far apart.

P
articipants in the control systems indus-
try are increasingly crossing borders—
both national and international—to
either find or provide the unique exper-
tise that defines this industry. I am often
asked what steps can be taken to ensure payment
or performance by a customer or integrator that
has not yet established a credit history with the
other party to the arrangement, especially when
the potential new contract may be with a start-
up company or business that is headquartered
far from the other party’s offices. While there are
many techniques, ask if a letter of credit can be
posted at the start of a new relationship.
‘
by the entity providing the letter of credit before the A beneficiary
end of such term—or that the ILOC is renewed or
replaced prior to the expiration date if there is still should ensure
work to be performed, items to be delivered or pay- that the amount
ments to be made.
At sight instrument: This is a term of art used of the letter of
with letters of credit. Basically, it means the ben-
eficiary is entitled to payment from the bank that credit is suffi-
issued the letter of credit by presenting a written cient to cover the
demand for payment (or other similar documen-
tation stated in the ILOC). The issuing bank gen- expected aggre-
erally is not permitted to dispute whether or not
the entity providing the letter of credit actually
gate amount of
owes the sought-after payment to the beneficia- financial obliga-

’
ry. For example, the bank generally cannot refuse
Letter of credit can build trust payment to the integrator by alleging the work was tions.
Letters of credit are widely available from bank- incorrectly performed or that the goods that were
ing institutions worldwide, have relatively low delivered had defects. Likewise, the bank could
maintenance costs to the company obtaining the
letter of credit, and can provide payment security
not dispute a default by the integrator providing
the letter of credit to avoid making a payment on
More
M INSIGHTS
to the other party (for payment for its services and demand of the integrator’s customer.
deliverables for the integrator, or for protection Amount: All letters of credit have a maxi- KEYWORDS: Legalities,
from defaults from the customer) as the parties mum payment limit. A beneficiary should ensure letter of credit, system
work together to establish other long-term credit the amount of the letter of credit is sufficient to integrator
arrangements or to build trust based on positive cover the expected aggregate amount of all finan- Hiring newer firms can
bring risks.
historical experiences. cial obligations that may be outstanding with its
Letter of credit can lower
counterparty to the contract at any given time. For risks.
Terms in letter of credit example, if the integrator has “net 30” payment Terms change meaning of
Here are a few key terms companies and inte- terms with its customer, this may be the value of a letter of credit.
grators should look for in any letter of credit: 2 to 3 months of average invoices (assuming the
CONSIDER THIS
Irrevocable: As the name implies, an irrevo- beneficiary suspends performance and deliveries
When other aspects of a
cable letter of credit (ILOC) cannot be cancelled if the outstanding balance grows too large or too young system integrator
or revised without the consent of the beneficia- delinquent). firm seem positive, a letter
ry (here, the company or integrator providing the With the added security of a letter of credit, of credit can lower potential
services or deliverables). Such a term gives com- it may be possible to expand customer or service risk when establishing a
fort to the beneficiary that payments will be made, provider base with less risk. ce business relationship.
or money will be available to address the results ONLINE
of a default, even if the entity providing the ILOC If reading from the digital
experiences financial difficulty. Brian Clifford is a partner in the automation and edition, click on the headline
Term: Even though the letter of credit is irre- robotics practice of Faegre Baker Daniels, a law for more resources.
For other discussion of
vocable, it generally will still have a defined expi- firm in the U.S., U.K. and China. Edited by Mark T. engineering-related legal
ration date. A beneficiary should check to be sure Hoske, content manager, Control Engineering, CFE issues, search “Faegre” at
all payment or performance obligations are satisfied Media, mhoske@cfemedia.com. www.controleng.com.

www.controleng.com control engineering February 2019 • 5

INSIGHTS
international
Stone Shi, Control Engineering China
Low-cost networking
CC-link ie Field Basic is an option for smart factory network
architectures where low-cost control networks are needed.
T
o realize the “one-network for all”
smart factory network architec-
ture, more industrial equipment
is using real-time Ethernet as con-
trol network to realize the interconnection
among devices. Is there a more economi-
cal and simpler industrial control network?
CC-Link IE Field Basic is an optimal
choice for realizing low-cost control equip-
ment network according to several sources.
Before the release of CC-Link IE Field
Basic (the earliest Gigabit industrial Eth-
ernet released in the industry), CC-Link
IE has been widely applied in industries
such as automobile; liquid crystal dis-
play (LCD); rubber; computers, com-
munications, consumer electronics (3C);
and others. Its biggest characteristic is it
seamlessly fuses high-speed large-capac-
ity communications and the system,
guaranteeing stability and real-time data
performance.
CC-Link IE has two types of network
protocol: CC-Link IE Control used for
communication between controllers, and
CC-Link IE Field used for communication
between controller and field equipment.
Lower cost, ease of use
With the development of industrial
Internet of Things (IIoT), the traditional
low-end equipment and small-scale equip-
ment often isn’t networked. Compared
with high speed networks, such equipment
focuses more on the low cost and conve-
nient use of networking.
Users always hope for more economi-
cal products to build lower-cost systems
such as small-scale equipment that can
meet control requirements with 100 Mbps
input #5 at www.controleng.com/information
Remote I/ O of CC-Link IE Field Basic
was first developed by Tianjin Sentinel
Electronics. Courtesy: Control Engineer-
ing China, CC-Link
communication performance. Even for
small-scale equipment, visualization for
connected equipment and connections
with higher-level information systems are
needed, said Gan Shuang, senior engineer
of CC-Link Partner Association (China).
Equipment manufacturers hope one
hardware device can work with multiple
networks while providing lower develop-
ment costs. Low-cost slave station equip-
ment and simple and low-cost master
station functions are under development.
The bus network, CC-Link IE Field
Basic, based on standard 100 Mbps Eth-
ernet, provides a low-cost control network
for small-scale systems that do not need
high-speed control.
“CC-Link IE Field Basic can realize
the real-time communication needed for
equipment control via software at network
protocol application layer while commu-
nication with CC-Link IE is ensured,” Gan
Shuang said. Special chip and interface
board is not needed. ce
Stone Shi is executive editor-in-chief, Con-
trol Engineering China. Edited by Mark T.
Hoske, content manager, Control Engineer-
ing, CFE Media, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
M More
INSIGHTS
KeyWORDs: Industrial networks, device
networks
Device networks can be lower cost and
easier to implement.
Using a standard processor decreases
networking cost.
Having source and sample code eases
product development.
CONsIDeR THIs
What needs networking to increase value?
ONLINe
If reading from the digital edition, click on
the headline for more on this topic.
See links to international editions at
www.controleng.com/international.
6 • February 2019
 POWER
We stock enough power to
brew a 12 oz. cup of coffee
for the entire population
of New Orleans.

Put that in your mug and drink it.

input #6 at www.controleng.com/information

© Allied Electronics & Automation, 2019 Get your A&C fill at alliedelec.com 1.800.433.5700
INSIGHTS
Technology UpdaTe
Tracy Lustyan, alliantgroup

How the R&D tax credit can benefit

control system and process engineers
The research and development tax credit can help control systems and process engineers
offset the mounting costs from product and service enhancements.

I
t’s not often a company’s day-to-day servic-
es can lead to tax relief, but that’s the case for
control system and process engineers.
Designing and implementing systems that
function efficiently is the main priority for
these engineers. To do so, system enhancements con-
tinuously need to be developed, which more often
than not means one thing: spending money.
The types of technical enhancements that
embody an engineer’s daily work activities are exactly
what the research and development (R&D) tax cred-
it, which brings in an estimated $10 billion annually Companies with a cross-disciplined approach
for U.S. businesses, was created to spur. to design and production in controls and auto-
mation can qualify for the R&D tax credit, an
Complexities turned into credits estimated $10 billion annually for U.S. busi-
Projects involving automation and system com- nesses that can take advantage it. Courtesy:
munications are becoming more complex, and the alliantgroup
trends of staff downsizing do not help. This

M More
INSIGHTS
KEYWORDS: R&D, tax credit cy systems, and as work processes become
The types of technical
enhancements that embody
an engineer’s daily work
activities are what the R&D
tax credit was created to
spur.
As new technologies are
condensed and require a
direct connection with legacy
systems, the innovations
brought forward by engineers
are more than likely to qualify
for the R&D credit.
Companies whose business
practices rely on innovation
should consider the credit if
they haven’t already done so.
CONSIDER THIS
Does your company qualify
for the R&D Tax Credit?
ONlINE
Link to more online rom
this author, resources, tax
incentives and related content
under www.controleng.com/
magazine February 2019.
leaves engineers to create more innova-
tions. As new technologies are condensed
and require a direct connection with lega-
more streamlined, the innovations brought
forward by engineers are more than likely to
qualify for the R&D credit.
Although the R&D credit is underused
by many industries, system integrators
have claimed approximately $246 million
in overall credits. Furthermore, more than
$22 million in tax credits and incentives
have been claimed for 52 members of the
National Systems Contractors Association
since 2002.
Companies shouldn’t operate under the
false assumption the credit is only for com-
panies that don lab coats and work with test
tubes. There is no need for innovations to
be technical or even complicated to quali-
fy for the credit. There also doesn’t need to
be a heavy engineering presence during the
design, testing, or implementation process.
From manufacturing to robotics or oil
and gas extraction, it’s hard to find an indus-
try involving control systems the R&D cred-
it couldn’t apply to. The cross-disciplined,
technical nature of the work done by system inte-
gration companies make them some of the best
candidates for the credit, which has saved U.S. busi-
nesses billions of dollars.
Some applicable activities that would qualify for
a control system or process engineer include:
• Developing schematic drawings for the
integration of system components.
• Performing evaluations and system tests to
ensure optimal functionality.
• System operation sequencing.
• Control system programming.
• Implementing automated systems such as pro-
grammable logic controllers, human-machine
interfaces, information systems, motion/pro-
cess control, robotics, radio frequency identifi-
cation, and 3-D laser scanning.
The power behind the credit will enhance com-
pany innovations as well as their contributions to the
U.S. economy. ce
Tracy Lustyan is a managing director for alliantgroup
and is based in the Chicago office. Edited by Jack Smith,
content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media,
jsmith@cfemedia.com.

8 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

 Stop paying twice!
Problem: Inefficient drive systems create heat.
And, hundreds of drives = a ton of heat. So,
you pay for energy twice - first to convey the
product and second to cool the air. Time to
switch gears…

Solution: MOVIGEAR® Mechatronic drive from

SEW-EURODRIVE. It combines an IE4 motor,
gearing, and advanced electronics into one
highly efficient unit minus all of the heat.

Now that makes a ton of cents!

movigear.com / 864-439-7537

input #7 at www.controleng.com/information
INSIGHTS Digital edition? Click on headlines for more details.
NEWS See news daily at www.controleng.com/news

Four machine vision software advances

The capabilities of a given machine
vision or embedded vision system rely
on more than just the hardware of the
camera. The central hardware compo-
nents of a camera often are viewed as
solely responsible for the system’s perfor-
mance—components such as the sensor,
the lens, the interface and more are given
all the credit, but software can be just as
impactful.
The software used in machine vision
and embedded vision systems has been
making major advances. From the food
and beverage industry to the electronics
industry, improving machine vision soft-
ware is having an impact.
While advances have happened across
the board, there are four areas in which
major gains have been made.
1. High dynamic range
inspection
The electronics industry is run-
ning their lines faster and with higher
resolution, introducing higher signal-to-
noise ratios (SNRs). Companies are using
machine vision software to reduce SNRs
for more accurate inspections. Depend-
ing on the manufacturer’s need, this soft-
ware can be highly customized.
2. Optical character
recognition software
Optical character recognition (OCR)
historically has been limited to black text
on white backgrounds, but this is rare-
ly the case in real-world manufacturing.
New OCR software can detect characters
on busy backgrounds, and some of the
newest software even can recognize char-
acters when new fonts are introduced.
3. 3-D imaging
A number of manufacturers have been
developing photometric 3-D algorithms
to read 3-D text, among other things.
Some forms of 3-D vision software com-
bine multiple images of the same part to
enhance contrast in 3-D images for more
accurate imaging results.
4. Deep learning
Some companies are making strides
in deep learning, and this technology is
one of the latest buzzwords. A few of the
largest software developers have image
classification tools based on deep learn-
ing that detect hard-to-define defects
and product variations.
Machine vision software plays a crit-
ical role in the performance of a vision
system. Today, identifying the right
software for a machine vision applica-
tion is as important as finding the right
hardware.
This article originally appeared in
Vision Online. AIA is a part of the Asso-
ciation for Advancing Automation (A3),
a CFE Media content partner. Edited
by Chris Vavra, production editor, CFE
Media, cvavra@cfemedia.com.

Special interest group for Headlines

internet protocol launched online

C
AN in Automation’s (CiA) international users’ and manufacturers’ Top 5 Control Engineering articles
Jan. 14-20
group has established the CAN XL Special Interest Group (SIG). Sever- Articles about MQTT as an IoT message
al original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), Tier 1s, chipmakers, and transport, industrial controller selection, hot
other interested parties including tool suppliers discussed desired features for 2018 Control Engineering topics, improving
the CAN XL data link layer. The participants elected Dr. Arthur Mutter (Bosch) industrial network communications, and IIoT
software’s future were the most-viewed from
as chairman; Reiner Zitzmann, the CEO of CiA, is the SIG secretary.
Jan. 14-20, 2018.
The SIG experts requested backwards compatibility with CAN FD for the
CAN XL protocol. The CAN XL data link layer is intended for TCP/IP commu- Machine vision use growing in
food and beverage industry
nication, simple radar sensors, and eCall devices.
The food and beverage industry has been an
“In this two-day inaugural meeting, the experts evaluated already very early adopter of machine vision technology.
detailed protocol features,” said Holger Zeltwanger, CiA managing director.
The Benefits of a Standardized
Additionally, the participants discussed the requirements for the physical Communications Layer:
media attachment (PMA) sub-layer, which normally is implemented in a trans- Your Questions Answered
ceiver chip. The desired speed is in minimum 10 Mbit/s. The signal improve- Webcast presenters Sam Elsner and Philip
ment circuitry (SIC) transceivers specified in CiA 601-4 already achieve 8 Bard answered questions about topics such
as data acquisition reliability, communication
Mbit/s. The edge symmetry and the voltage amplitude need to be improved. layers and cybersecurity, and more.
The SIG will organize plug fests to prove prototype implementations. The
Vacuum gripper benefits for
CAN XL protocol could be used for interoperability tests. “If we are fast, we
collaborative robots
can schedule a first plug fest beginning of 2020,” Zeltwanger said. Vacuum grippers can be beneficial for col-
- Edited from a CAN in Automation (CiA) press release by CFE Media. CAN in laborative robots, but the type of application
Automation is a CFE Media content partner. and the potential costs associated with them
need to be considered.

10 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

The power of space
If you could use a product in your control panel that required
up to 69% less space than traditional solutions, while providing
up to 200 kA SCCR, would you?

input #8 at www.controleng.com/information
Go big, by going small
The next evolution has arrived. The BussmannTM series Low-PeakTM
CUBEFuseTM and UL® 98 Listed Compact Circuit Protector disconnect
switch are now available up to 400 amps.

input #9 at www.controleng.com/information
The Compact Circuit Protector for Class CF CUBEFuse is now available in higher
amp ratings, and it still delivers the smallest footprint compared to any Class J fused
disconnect solution — requiring up to 69% less space.

Freeing up space is powerful, and we’ve done just that, while packing up to a 200 kA
short-circuit current rating.

What will you do with all that space? CUBEFuse.com

INSIGHTS
ThinK AgAin ®

3010 Highland Parkway, Suite 325, Downers Grove,

IL 60515. 630-571-4070, Fax 630-214-4504

Use the positive effects of Content Specialists/Editorial

Mark T. Hoske, Content Manager

automation to plan ahead 630-571-4070, x2227, MHoske@CFEMedia.com

Jack Smith, Content Manager
630-571-4070, x2230, JSmith@CFEMedia.com
Kevin Parker, Senior Contributing Editor, IIoT, OGE
Automation helps manufacturing employment, exports, and pro- 630-571-4070, x2228, KParker@CFEMedia.com
Emily Guenther, Associate Content Manager
ductivity. Key concerns include training, raw materials, and trade.

P
ositive economic health of man-
ufacturing because of automa-
tion, advice about planning, and
mounting interest payments will lead to an
economic depression (with a D) around
2030. Without reductions in U.S. govern-
630-571-4070, x2229, eguenther@CFEMedia.com
Amanda Pelliccione, Director of Research
978-302-3463, APelliccione@CFEMedia.com
Chris Vavra, Production Editor
CVavra@CFEMedia.com

expansion plans for an automa- ment spending and surplus paydowns of

tion trade association and stan-
dards group were among views shared at
the A3 Business Forum in January. The
Association for Advancing Automation
(A3) annual meeting covered topics related
to its constituent organizations, the Robot-
ic Industries Association (RIA), Motion
Control and Motor Association
(MCMA), and AIA (Advancing
Vision and Imaging).
Manufacturers plan
Automation is the hero of
the U.S. manufacturing growth
story because advancing tech-
nology creates jobs and oppor- Mark T. Hoske,
tunities as it displaces some Content Manager control, robotics manufacturing
the massive debt by 2020, the 2030 depres-
sion is unavoidable, Beaulieu explained,
with no way to “spend out of it” as the abil-
ity to borrow more ends.
Options include gaining awareness and
foresight within your markets, borrow-
ing during prosperity, and paying down
debt in time to get the resources,
tools, and talent to prosper dur-
ing pending downturns, he said.
2019 market, training
Alex Shikany, vice president
of AIA, part of A3, said opti-
mism continues to be very high
in the machine vision, motion
Contributing Content Specialists
Suzanne Gill, Control Engineering Europe
suzanne.gill@imlgroup.co.uk
Ekaterina Kosareva, Control Engineering Russia
ekaterina.kosareva@fsmedia.ru
Seweryn Scibior, Control Engineering Poland
seweryn.scibior@trademedia.us
Lukáš Smelík, Control Engineering Czech Republic
lukas.smelik@trademedia.us
Aileen Jin, Control Engineering China
aileenjin@cechina.cn
Editorial Advisory Board
www.controleng.com/EAB
Doug Bell, president, InterConnecting Automation,
www.interconnectingautomation.com
David Bishop, president and a founder
Matrix Technologies, www.matrixti.com
Daniel E. Capano, president, Diversified Technical Services Inc.
of Stamford, CT, www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-capano-7b886bb0
Frank Lamb, founder and owner
Automation Consulting LLC, www.automationllc.com

people and creates better jobs industries. Many indicators sug- Joe Martin, president and founder
Martin Control Systems, www.martincsi.com
with higher pay. Automation gest solid growth, but he noted Rick Pierro, president and co-founder
helps manufacturing employment, (high- a softening in the market, slower growth, Superior Controls, www.superiorcontrols.com

est in 11 years), aids exports, and adds in the last three months. Among the larg-
productivity, according to Dr. Alan Beau- est concerns for manufacturers, Shikany
lieu, president, ITR Economics, who said, are attracting and retaining a quality
gave a global 2019 economic outlook and workforce, price increases in raw materials,
forecast. trade uncertainties, and rising health care
Looking at the rate of change for a and insurance costs.
12-month average growth rate is particu- Shikany, citing various sources, said 2.4
larly useful for organizations. million jobs will be unfilled because of the
He said 2018 growth of 3.9%, while skills gap by 2028, and, as a result, $454 bil-
revised upward, is not sustainable because lion in economic output is at risk of being
of the large size of the U.S. economy, and lost. While automation may eliminate as
recessionary pressure will likely come in many as 75 million jobs globally, 133 mil-
the second half of 2019 in some markets. lion new jobs will be created by automa-
Economic growth will resume from tion, according to the World Economic
2020 to 2022. “What do you need to do Forum, Future of Jobs Survey, 2018.
to get ready for that?” he asked, because A3 announcements from president Jeff
“Competitors will outdo you.” Burnstein included a plan to increase A3
Continued U.S. deficit spending, infla- branding, and encouragement for attend-
tion, health care costs, demographics, and ing the Automate show April 8-11.
Think again about economic cycles
Mark Voigtmann, partner, automation practice lead
Faegre Baker Daniels, www.FaegreBD.com
CFE Media Contributor
Guidelines Overview
Content For Engineers. That’s what CFE Media
stands for, and what CFE Media is all about –
engineers sharing with their peers. We welcome
content submissions for all interested parties in
engineering. We will use those materials online, on
our website, in print and in newsletters to keep
engineers informed about the products, solutions
and industry trends.
www.controleng.com/contribute explains how
to submit press releases, products, images and
graphics, bylined feature articles, case studies, white
papers, and other media.
* Content should focus on helping engineers solve
problems. Articles that are commercial or are critical
of other products or organizations will be rejected.
(Technology discussions and comparative tables may
be accepted if non-promotional and if contributor
corroborates information with sources cited.)
* If the content meets criteria noted in guidelines,
expect to see it first on our Websites. Content for our
e-newsletters comes from content already available on
our Websites. All content for print also will be online.
All content that appears in our print magazines will
appear as space permits, and we will indicate in print

M More
INSIGHTS
INSIGHT
and how your business is planning
ahead by investing in automation tech-
nologies, workforce, and other areas as
if more content from that article is available online.
* Deadlines for feature articles intended for the print
magazines are at least two months in advance of the
publication date. Again, it is best to discuss all feature
articles with the appropriate content manager prior to
www.controleng.com needed to accelerate through economic submission.
www.a3automate.org/one-a3 downturns. ce Learn more at: www.controleng.com/contribute

14 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

Excess Inventory ?

info.radwell.com/asset-recovey-program
We buy it!

Sellto@radwell.com
It takes 3 simple steps
Scan with your phone to learn more
800.884.5500 ext 824

Lower your warehousing costs, reduce your

aging and slow moving inventory by selling it
to Radwell.com

input #10 at www.controleng.com/information

ANSWERS
CONTROL SYSTEM SELECTION
Lynn Njaa, Maverick Technologies

Selecting an effective
process control system
Selecting a process control system (PCS) involves experienced
personnel and understanding critical elements for operations.

T
he process control system (PCS) ties all
the automation elements of a process
manufacturing unit together and affects
every aspect of operations. As the brain
and central nervous system of a facility, its
performance level and quality is crucial to keep opera-
tions running smoothly.
As new technology is introduced in the automation
and control industry, now is the time for manufactur-
ers to modernize a process control system
based on the facility’s specific needs and process, while
considering the three following critical factors:
1. To begin, the team should review what the
company makes and how these products are
produced.
2. Next, they should specify the critical to qual-
ity (CTQ) parameters, which have the great-
est effect on quality and efficiency. Key

M More
ANSWERS
KEYWORDS: process control
system (PCS)
Factors to consider for PCS
implementation projects
Installing a PCS is an infrequent
and complex process.
Bringing in an experienced and
independent platform automation
partner can be invaluable.
COnSiDER thiS
What elements would your
facility require for a PCS
installation?
OnLinE
Read more about process
control systems online at
www.controleng.com.
(PCS) platform to improve efficiency and
operational performance.
Factors for choosing a PCS
It is necessary to weigh all system infra-
structure options. An educated decision
will have a positive impact on the facility’s
ability to produce effectively and profitably.
The assigned project team, which may
include outside consultants, should know
the challenges inherent in the decision-
making process. They must plan early and
set a positive course, steering clear of sub-
jective or emotional views based on past
experiences and focus on delivering the
best strategy. Tools and methods exist to
help shed more objective light on these
types of projects so groups can make more
informed decisions. Teams can then decide
stakeholders—operators, process engineers,
maintenance, production management, and
others—involved in the automation project
must help determine the CTQ list. One of the
first questions stakeholders should ask is what
makes a day successful from an operational
standpoint, and where does the the PCS fit?
The list of CTQ elements should be arranged
with the most important element at the top
(Table). This approach helps sort the strengths
and weaknesses of each PCS.
3. The next step is to rank each vendor on its
ability to meet each requirement. All items
listed will need to be considered for its per-
formance now and going forward— vendors
must be flexible to deal with emerging tech-
nology trends. Such track records can be use-
ful to predict how a vendor will respond to
new waves of technology.

A PCS installation or migration project is a major

investment. Choose wisely when selecting the next
PCS platform and consider the experienced people
who will help ensure the project is successful. ce

Lynn Njaa is a senior consultant for Maverick Tech-

Table: Side-by-side comparison of PCS strengths and weaknesses for
various requirements. Courtesy: Maverick Technologies
nologies’ DCSNext and leads team efforts to pro-
vide consulting and other front-end engineering
services. Maverick Technologies is a CFE Media con-
tent partner. Edited by Emily Guenther, associate con-
tent manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media,
eguenther@cfemedia.com.

16 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

input #11 at www.controleng.com/information
ANSWERS
PROCESS CONTROL SYSTEM UPDATE
Travis Cox, Inductive Automation
Upgrading hardware, software
An open, interoperable approach allows companies to get best-in-class
hardware and software upgrades. See 10 reasons to upgrade process controls.
D
istributed control systems (DCSs),
supervisory control and data acquisi-
tion (SCADA) software, and process
controls are vital manufacturing sys-
tems. Keeping these systems up-to-
date is very important. Reasons why these systems
need to be upgraded include these 10:
1. Operating system (OS) obsolescence
2. Islands of information (independent systems)
3. Decentralized maintenance
4. Yearly software maintenance costs
5. New requirements the system can’t handle
6. Being stuck to specific OS, hardware, or
versions of software
7. Security concerns
8. Open standards rather than proprietary
9. Third-party system integration
10. An open, interoperable, and secure
foundation.
Many organizations are faced with aging infra-
structure and old software. With the introduc-
tion of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and
increased demand for data from the business, the
worlds of operations technology (OT) and informa-
tion technology (IT) are colliding. Upgrades, which
may include a newer version of the same software
platform or upgrading to a new software platform,
M More
ANSWERS
are more important than ever.
When identifying potential upgrades,
there are three main categories to keep in
Keywords: Software mind: cost, security, and new technology.
upgrade, hardware upgrade,
cybersecurity Reasons for constant upgrades
Companies need to upgrade One of the biggest drivers for upgrades
hardware and software systems.
is OS obsolescence. Several industrial soft-
Upgrade considerations: Costs,
cybersecurity maintenance, and ware packages rely on specific versions of
technology upgrades. Microsoft Windows or specific hardware
Move to an open, interoperable and will not run on newer versions with-
platform for flexibility, strong ROI. out an upgrade. IT departments are forced
Consider this to perform these upgrades for security
What are key criteria when and maintenance reasons. Systems cannot
moving to new process control be air-gapped anymore; significant risk is
software? involved when deciding not to upgrade.
online That gives the operations team little
Read this at www.controleng. choice in carrying out the upgrade. They
com for more on control software must decide—based on cost, maintenance,
upgrades, cybersecurity. and technology—to stay with the same
18 • February 2019 control engineering
software vendor or switch to a new one. Expensive
yearly costs for software maintenance and support are
another driver toward upgrades. Organizations typi-
cally move to new software platforms with lower costs.
Many software platforms don’t cover upgrade protec-
tion to newer versions, or upgrades to newer versions
are not compatible. It’s important to install packag-
es that have backward compatibility or packages that
provide a straightforward path to the newest version
during an upgrade.
It’s important that all communication on an indus-
trial network is encrypted following today’s standards.
Software should be pen tested to identify any potential
vulnerabilities such as no encryption, “human-in-the-
middle” attacks, session hijacking, and others.
Push toward open standards
Sometimes, the largest drivers in upgrades are new
requirements, architecture changes, third-party inte-
grations, and a shift to open standards. Customers
don’t want proprietary/closed systems that are diffi-
cult to upgrade or replace. Instead, the shift to open
standards allows for using best-in-class software and
hardware from multiple vendors.
Using open standards such as OPC UA, MQTT,
SQL, HTTP/HTTPS, and REST/SOAP allow for plug-
and-play interoperable systems. These are standards
OT and IT can understand. OT and IT should work
together rather than independently. Upgrading these
systems can allow for data sharing across the enter-
prise. Upgrades may be expensive up front, but pro-
vide plenty of long-term return on investment (ROI).
The most important consideration is understand-
ing how a system will operate by itself and how it fits
into the enterprise. Open, interoperable, and secure
platforms provide companies flexibility and are easi-
er to maintain. It’s much easier to upgrade or replace
individual pieces than the entire infrastructure.
The industry is changing and demanding open,
interoperable, and secure systems. The good news is
modern software and hardware companies are evolv-
ing to incorporate these standards. Those upgrading
systems should find software and hardware that meet
requirements. ce
Travis Cox is co-director of sales engineering at
Inductive Automation. Edited by Chris Vavra, pro-
duction editor, Control Engineering, CFE Media,
cvavra@cfemedia.com.
www.controleng.com
—
MARCH 4-7, 2019 | GEORGE R. BROWN CONVENTION CENTER | HOUSTON, TEXAS

ABB Customer World

Connect. Learn. Lead.

ABB Customer World (ACW) addresses the most pressing issues you face,
from increasing productivity to meeting rising customer expectations.
The event provides an unparalleled opportunity to engage with your peers
and our experts to discuss the future of industry, mobility, work, energy and
cities – and how it impacts your business.

Choose from hundreds of workshops, including expanded hands-on training sessions,

keynotes and panel discussions. Explore more than 120,000 square feet of exhibits
that will showcase the latest digital technologies. See and experience the broadest
showcase of ABB solutions and talk directly to the people behind the technologies.
Event registration is FREE for all ABB customers and industry professionals.

Learn more and register today at: events.abb/acw

input #12 at www.controleng.com/information
ANSWERS
CyberseCurITy In OT And IT
Cyberse
Camilo Gomez, Yokogawa Electric Corp.
Proactive management
of plant cybersecurity
A combination of information technology (IT) and operations technology
(OT) cybersecurity expertise is required to manage the influx of Industrial
Internet of Things (IIoT) devices and increased IT/OT integration.
T
he inward-looking plant control system is
giving way to a wider and flatter network
architecture, which requires a different
cybersecurity focus. Operations technol-
ogy (OT) is undergoing a sea change in
goals, structure, and management—as is information
technology (IT) with the integration of the plant con-
trol system with the business systems. This makes it
necessary to manage giant data flows inside the plant.
The physical plant continues to be important, but
it is complemented and managed by the virtual plant,
a concept that makes possible a “digital twin” of the
actual plant. Management and operations can use the
digital twin to experiment and improve operational
efficiency. New tools and process controls are becom-
ing available. Robots and virtual reality can be used in
hazardous areas to improve operator safety, and sim-
pler, easier-to-operate advanced process control
systems are becoming common.
Outside the plant, the cloud and related appli-
cations have made the Industrial Internet of
Things (IIoT) practical and useful. An IIoT
implementation proliferates new sen-
sors inside and outside the plant to
improve plant performance.
Open process automation
(OPA) initiatives—intended
to produce a common plat-
form so controllers, sen-
sors, and software can work
together without compati-
Figure 1: bility issues (Figure 1)—have
Cyber threats been added.
are proliferating These trends are occur-
due to increased information technol- ring simultaneously and have
ogy/operations technology (IT/OT) contributed to disruption.
integration, along with the advent of Old ways of running process
the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) plants are not competitive
and open process automation (OPA) in many process industries.
initiatives. All images courtesy: Disruptive events can create
Yokogawa Electric Corp. innovation and add value.
20 • February 2019 control engineering
OT cybersecurity transformation
Traditionally, sensors and controllers have been
connected to the plant control system using wires or
using wireless protocols. OT cybersecurity has focused
on protecting the plant control network and keeping
unauthorized users from invading the control systems.
However, OT cybersecurity is now transforming.
The principles and practices of OT cybersecuri-
ty are being used in non-traditional automation sec-
tors, such as building automation, transportation, and
medical automation. What used to be a hard-wired
perimeter has moved outward from the plant and
become virtual. The 2-D structure of OT cybersecu-
rity is 3-D with the inner applications, level 0 and 1
devices and applications, and sensor devices connect-
ed directly to the cloud. From there, they’re connected
to the automation systems; maintenance, repair, and
operation (MRO) systems; and plant business systems.
Plant operations personnel always have recognized
the need for functional safety. The rise of OT cyberse-
curity has made it clear an insecure plant is an unsafe
plant. Cybersecurity and functional safety mirror,
overlap, and complement each other. Security of the
safety instrumented system (SIS) is a critical function,
the same as basic plant control system security.
With fully integrated business systems, the cyber-
security of the entire value chain is critical. Making a
supply and a distribution chain integrated and secure
are essential in today’s enterprise. OT cybersecurity is
no longer a static function; it is a fluid and continu-
ously changing entity that must be managed carefully.
OT cybersecurity threats, defenses
As the function and footprint of OT cybersecuri-
ty have grown and changed, the threats it faces have
broadened. Traditional cybersecurity evolved to deal
with threats in the IT environment such as email
phishing, human-in-the-middle penetration attacks,
malware, and disaffected employees. First-generation
OT cybersecurity began with IT-derived implementa-
tions such as perimeter security and air gaps.
www.controleng.com
 Shorten your
time to market
Integrated engineering with the
Totally Integrated Automation Portal

The Totally Integrated Automation (TIA) Portal shortens your

time to market, increases the productivity of your plant through
additional diagnostics and energy management functions, and
offers you broader flexibility by connecting to the management
level. It provides you with unrestricted access to our complete
range of digitalized automation services, from digital planning
and integrated engineering to transparent operation. This is
why the TIA Portal is your perfect gateway to automation in the
©2019 Siemens Industry, Inc.

Digital Enterprise.

input #13 at www.controleng.com/information usa.siemens.com/tia-portal

 ANSWERS
CyberseCurity in Ot and it
Figure 2: Cyber-
security must be
applied in the
process industries
from the enter-
prise to the appli-
cation level.
The second generation of threats was more plant-
centered. Advanced persistent threats (APTs) con-
tinue stealthy attacks from outside the enterprise
aimed at IP theft or destruction of plant operations.
The third and current generation of threats is
persistent and focused on causing harmful disrup-
tion to plant operations. It potentially is destructive
to machinery and systems. Threats have evolved to
‘
become OT-specific as hacking has evolved, as well.
The plant of OT cybersecurity defenses have been reactive,
complacent, and conformance-oriented. They typ-
the future will ically are based on IT technologies, not always a
good fit for OT purposes and have often evolved
integrate opera-
slowly into OT security technologies. They have
tional reliability been based traditionally on conformance to stan-
dards and based on lifecycle, certifications, and
monitoring, regulations. These defenses are relatively easy to
penetrate, especially with APTs, and provide an
security moni- unrealistic sense of security.
toring, and net- Standards such as ISA/IEC 62443, the NIST
framework, NERC CIP, and others have provided
work monitoring a framework and a path forward to designing good
OT security postures for plants. The ISA Securi-
with process ty Compliance Institute has provided “ISA Secure”
’
component certification since 2010. Standards com-
monitoring. pliance does not necessarily result in adequate or
increased cybersecurity protection.
OT cybersecurity challenges
The basic OT cybersecurity challenge is to deal
with the ongoing industry transformation. First, it is
necessary to assess the effectiveness of traditional con-
trols and cyber tools. Traditional penetration testing
has been used for this. The problem is it is very dif-
ficult to operationalize these traditional tools without
considerable training and overhead to get from the
theoretical to the practical.
The current challenge is moving the perimeter
from the physical plant and a network-centric focus
22 • February 2019 control engineering
to the virtual, which requires providing security to
edge components and applications (Figure 2). Edge
devices are numerous and proliferating. This makes
it impossible to provide a secure cyber environ-
ment without protecting edge devices in real time
to maintain security for each Level 0 and 1 device.
One main issue is the increase of poorly-secured
IIoT devices being installed in plants to send data to
the cloud and then to the plant. These IIoT devices
can provide intrusion vectors that are overlooked by
plant operators and engineers eager to get more data.
The plant is insecure if the supply chain is inse-
cure. The high integration between the supply chain
and the control system required in modern process
plants makes the supply chain a vector for poten-
tial attacks.
Active anomaly detection is needed to main-
tain a secure plant network. This makes it possible
to achieve the posture of predictive and preven-
tive response instead of reactive and conformance-
oriented activity. This includes outside-the-plant
threat intelligence. Often the best option is to move
from a reactive approach to an adaptive security
posture.
The plant of the future will integrate opera-
tional reliability monitoring, security monitoring,
and network monitoring with process monitor-
ing. Detection will be transformed from signature-
based detection to anomaly detection.
OT cybersecurity must be integrated with man-
agement of change functions, alarm management,
safety systems, and security information and event
management. The entire plant operational system
revolves around security and safety. For many pro-
cess plants, it can be difficult to implement a mod-
ern functional security position. This is where
companies specializing in cybersecurity can be of
assistance to process plants. ce
Camilo Gomez, global cybersecurity strategist, Yok-
ogawa Electric Corp. Edited by Chris Vavra, pro-
duction editor, Control Engineering, CFE Media,
cvavra@cfemedia.com.
M More
ANSWERS
Keywords: cybersecurity, OT cybersecurity,
Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)
Process cybersecurity threats are more sophisticated.
Information technology (IT) and operations technology
(OT) are merging and need to cooperate.
Process plants need adaptive security.
Consider this
How can cybersecurity strategies add security?
online
Read this story online at www.controleng.com for more
about OT cybersecurity.
www.controleng.com
YOU DESERVE industry leading process sensors

-15 %
for example:
Temperature sensor TN2511 $294.95
Item no. 102580 MSRP: $347.00

Temperature, pressure automation24.com/temperature-sensors

and flow sensors
from ifm
 Bright LED displays for -15 %
easy visibility for example:
Flow sensor SI5010 $283.05
 Robust housing and Item no. 100590 MSRP: $333.00

IP67/IP68/IP69K ratings available

automation24.com/flow-sensors
 Sleek compact designs

 Easy pushbutton setup and

integration in numerous applications

 IO-Link for continuous device -15 %

communication
for example:
Pressure sensor PI2796
$523.60
Item no. 100360 MSRP: $616.00

automation24.com/pressure-sensors

YOU DESERVE fast delivery – all products in stock in our US warehouse

Automation24 – your online supplier for automation technology

Continuously growing Best service Exceptional Same-day

brand selection with tech support pricing shipping

Need technical support? We are happy to advise you personally! LIVECHAT

+1 800-250-6772 (toll-free) mail@automation24.com www.automation24.com

LIVECH.com
+1 610-981-2900 AT
Werner Lamberger
input #14 at www.controleng.com/information Technical Support Engineer

LIVECH
ANSWERS
CYBERSECURITY
Ken Robinson, Southland Energy, a division of Southland Industries
Best practices to help
improve system security
With increased connectivity between different devices, it’s critical
to implement additional cybersecurity measures.
C
ybersecurity vulnerabilities can affect
our everyday lives. Energy management
and control systems (EMCS) are seldom
top-of-mind for the general public. An
EMCS is, in some ways, a glorified ther-
mostat designed to ensure conditions remain com-
fortable within a building. Normally, there is no cause
to worry about it. However, EMCS, and similar sys-
tems called supervisory control and data acquisition
(SCADA), control equipment whose proper opera-
tion is fundamentally critical to a building.
Shutting down any of these mechanical systems
threatens the building’s ability to function properly.
Sabotaging a building does not necessarily require a
direct attack. It can be as simple as shutting down a
fan or a boiler at the right moment.
EMCS security
Historically, EMCS security wasn’t an issue. Most
had limited or no connections to the outside world
and operated on proprietary networks, separate from
the standard Ethernets of the information technol-
ogy (IT) world. In some ways, this ano-
nymity was the best defense since the
M More
ANSWERS
level of security designed into the systems
was often low, and system users gave little
attention to the issue.
KEYWORDS: Cybersecurity,
cyberattack Cyberattacks on industrial systems
Energy management and that control processes are common. In
control systems (EMCS) control 2015, 295 attacks on such systems were
equipment that is fundamentally reported to U.S. authorities. By 2017, that
critical to a building.
number exceeded 1,000. Despite this, all
Best practices against
cyberattacks
major communication protocols for facil-
A variety of offline/online
ity and industrial control systems are vul-
tactics can be used to improve nerable to a cyberattack.
cybersecurity. This problem is exacerbated because
COnSiDER thiS building and industrial engineers are not
Are your employees aware of
typically IT or cybersecurity experts. Their
measures to take to increase focus is on ensuring the systems perform
cybersecurity? their intended tasks with security as a sec-
OnLinE ondary concern. In many cases, the spec-
Read more information about
ifying engineers, installers, and building
cybersecurity on operators lack the awareness or training
www.controleng.com. needed to ensure these systems are secure.
24 • February 2019 control engineering
Ways to increase system security
Defending these systems against potential attacks
can be broadly divided into two categories: internal
and external attacks. External attacks are likely to orig-
inate from the internet. For this reason, all internet
connections should be treated as potentially hostile
and secured against intrusion. Several defense options
should be explored such as:
• No internet connection – While secure, this
severely limits the functionality of modern sys-
tems, which need to exchange data with a host of
other applications or need to be monitored/
controlled from remote locations.
• Remote desktop application – This requires a
dedicated software package running on a remote
computer. While effective, this creates another
point of vulnerability at the remote computer,
which must likewise be protected.
• Virtual private network (VPN) firewall – Simi-
lar to a remote desktop, but with a more secure
connection. The remote computer still requires
protection.
• Dedicated EMCS/SCADA web server – Rather
than connecting an EMCS directly to the inter-
net, a separate server is placed behind a firewall
with restricted access to the server.
Any of these, or implementing a combination of
these options, will improve a system’s security. All
of them, however, will be useless if a hacker obtains
authentication credentials from an end user. Guard-
ing against this requires the same policies found
in IT departments, which mandate strong, fre-
quently changed passwords and active protection
against probes such as phishing emails that try to
lure users into disclosing their passwords. In addi-
tion, physically protecting the system components
behind locked access is a must. ce
Ken Robinson is the director of operational excellence
for Southland Energy, a division of Southland Indus-
tries, a CFE Media content partner. Edited by Emily
Guenther, associate content manager, Control Engi-
neering, CFE Media, eguenther@cfemedia.com.
www.controleng.com
ANSWERS
POWER MONITORING CASE STUDY
Nelly Ayllon Lazo, PI North America

Network, control system upgrade

A system integrator supplied an industrial Ethernet network and PLCs to an
expanding food supplier and created $125,000 in annual energy savings.

A
national food supplier sought to expand Global Controls
its Boca Raton, Fla. distribution center Solutions LLC (GCS),
due to growing business demand. This a system integrator,
project required additional refrigeration helped achieve a
equipment, which potentially meant food supplier’s goal
higher energy bills. The company was looking to of improved energy
reduce energy costs and modernize its control system. efficiency with pro-
Global Controls Solutions LLC (GCS), a system grammable logic
integrator, wanted to achieve the company’s goal with controllers (PLCs)
programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and a Profinet and a Profinet
industrial Ethernet network. This network transmits industrial Ethernet
data from the refrigeration system to help the facility network to improve
limit electrical charges in real time. overall operational
“At $ 0.02/kilowatt hour (kWh), energy wasn’t efficiency. Courtesy:
a big issue, but now at $ 0.145/kWh, it represents a outages; the generator is designed as a full-time run Global Controls
significant operating burden,” said Vito Lampugn- unit. Fuel oil is sent automatically from large storage Solutions
ano, GCS president. “Calculations after the control tanks to the day tanks used to feed the generator.
system upgrade showed roughly 960 kW) were load The distribution center is served by a central
shed, which calculates into a savings of approximately ammonia system using liquid recirculation for the low
$125,000 per year in utility charges.” temperature evaporators and direct expansion for the
medium and high-temperature evaporators.
Phase 1: Load shedding The old control system could not provide “the
During phase 2 operations, the facility’s electri- kind of data flow we needed to optimize operational
cal system is designed to shed “on” peak loads to take efficiency,” Lampugnano said. “The distributed con-
advantage of favorable electric rate schedules. Known trol system now monitors all refrigeration plant pres-
as “peak shaving” or “load shedding,” it enables the sures and temperatures, atmospheric dry and wet bulb
facility to reduce equipment energy consumption dur- temperatures, equipment operating times,
ing peak electric utility cost times. During daily load plant operational set points, and system
shedding, selected refrigeration equipment and parts
of the electrical system are load shed (turned off).
optimal set points.”
It controls the switchgear, the gener-
ator, and the compressors via a Profinet
M More
ANSWERS
Keywords: Profinet,
Phase 2: Load shifting industrial Ethernet backbone. Pressure programmable logic controller,
During phase 2 operations, the facility’s energy and temperature data are updated and Ethernet
supply shifts from the electric utility to the on-site recorded to identify operating trends. This A system integrator provided
PLCs and a Profinet industrial
generator. This “load shifting” refers to the ability to makes it possible to adjust and optimize
network to improve operations.
take the facility off the grid at peak times or at the the refrigeration equipment.
The Profinet network helped
request of the utility. The refrigeration plant is set up Being able to control and monitor an streamline communications and
so the local electric utility can ask the facility to go integrated system and analyze the trend- energy efficiency to optimize
offline during power outages, shortages, and weath- ing data this integration enables are “key to operations efficiency.
er-related incidents. During load shift operations, all optimizing processes, making them more The network upgrade will provide
electrical loads and refrigeration equipment are in full reliable and reducing energy and other the food supplier with $125,000 of
utility savings per year.
operation, powered by the generator. operating costs,” Lampugnano said. ce
Expansion included a 2 MW generator and a 4,000 Consider this
A main switchgear that was interfaced with the exist- Nelly Ayllon Lazo, technical market- What benefits can smarter
ing switchgear. The generator and switchgear were ing director, PI North America. Edit- networking provide?
networked to operate the facility during load shifting. ed by Chris Vavra, production editor, online
A standby generator originally was used to operate the Control Engineering, CFE Media, Read this story online at
plant at nominal energy levels during normal power cvavra@cfemedia.com. www.controleng.com for more.

www.controleng.com control engineeering February 2019 • 25

 ANSWERS
POWER MONITORING
Sree Potluri, Beckhoff Automation

Maximize production efficiency

with high-end power measurement
Machine-friendly I/O hardware for high-end measurement technology contin-
ues to grow, optimizing power monitoring and eliminating harmonic distortion.

O
ver the past decade, power measurement
technology has continued to advance—
giving controls engineers many options.
Black box technologies are no longer the
only options for power monitoring. High-end mea-
surement strategies exist as extensions of standard
machine control platforms. System-integrated input/
output (I/O) terminals gather data to be analyzed in
the cloud or on a local PC and also perform power
analysis on the hardware.
High-end measurement I/O modules provide cost-
effective options to enhance each of the main energy
measurement categories including power monitoring,
power measurement, and maintenance. Because these
I/O terminals are open, they help plants expand the
range of power measurement data that can be gath-
ered and analyzed.
Adding high-end power measurement technology
to each machine and production line will allow engi-
neers to optimize equipment performance, diagnose
issues faster, and complete predictive maintenance as
irregularities begin occurring, which increases plant
uptime, efficiency, and profitability.
EtherCAT-enabled I/O modules for power mon-
itoring offer sampling rates at a resolution of 50 µs,
which is capable of monitoring any dynamic system.

The right
people
make all the
difference.. ™

For plant owners and operators, safety is an abiding concern. For Hargrove, it’s an obsession. In the
engineering, procurement, and construction projects we manage, Teammates like Controls + Automation
Process Safety Leader Chet Barton, PE, refuse to take chances with the wellbeing of anyone who might be
affected by our work. It’s a standard we just don’t compromise.
hargrove-epc.com / 877.123.4567 / input #15 at www.controleng.com/information
These modules also simplify power mon-
itoring by providing values of three-phase
voltage up to 690 V ac or 400 V dc and cur-
rents up to 5 amps.
High-end power monitoring is used
for grid analysis and monitoring incoming
power. It is often used at the machine level
and these modules can provide informa-
tion necessary to correct harmonics in the
power supply from the utility, which cause
distortion and undesired results.
The combination of fast sample rates
and application-specific capabilities leads
to better and more actionable data insights.
High-end power measurement modules
help accomplish this through three key
such as message queuing telemetry trans-
port (MQTT), OPC Unified Architecture
(OPC UA), or advanced message queu-
ing protocol (AMQP) to further analyze
or compare the performance of individ-
ual machines against the entire line and
plant. Further calculations can determine
root-mean-square (RMS) values for volt-
age and current, minimum and maxi-
mum values, and the system’s harmonics.
The increased efficiency and produc-
tion delivered by high-end measurement,
along with more affordable packages,
gives the power for machine and plant
optimization directly to the controls
engineer. ce
Sree Potluri is an I/O product market-
er from Beckhoff Automation. Edited by
Emily Guenther, associate content man-
ager, Control Engineering, CFE Media,
eguenther@cfemedia.com.

WIRED FOR THE FUTURE

technologies along with the advantages
PC-based control platforms provide.

Distributed clocks,
oversampling, timestamps
Like other EtherCAT devices, high-
end power measurement modules rely
on distributed clocks, oversampling, and
timestamps to provide high-precision
data. These EtherCAT technologies work
together to provide high sample rates
with precise synchronization among all
devices at less than 1µs.
These technologies are even more
effective when they’re combined with
PC-based control. When using an indus-
trial PC and automation software for
machine control and monitoring, the
process data acquired through high-end
measurement modules can be further
analyzed using existing software libraries
on the machine.
Ethernet and Bus Solutions Keep Your Smart Factory Connected
In addition, the data is transmitted
from the local controller to the cloud
LAPP ETHERLINE® and UNITRONIC® Fieldbus cables
using common communication protocols and connectors withstand the challenging conditions
of the industrial environment while providing high
performance, data transmission quality and reliability.

M More
ANSWERS
These cables are just one of the ways LAPP is
leading the way in Industrial Data Communication
(IDC)—guaranteeing the long-term success of your
KEYWORDS: Power measurement, automation efforts.
harmonics, EtherCAT
Eliminating harmonic distortion with high- • High data transmission rates
end power measurement technology
• Improved efficiency and workflow
Benefits of high-end measurement
technology. • Enhanced monitoring and control
COnSiDER thiS • Quick assembly using RJ45 or M12 connection
How can you use power measurement technology
technology to resolve/predict power quality • Common bus systems (UNITRONIC®):
issues?
DeviceNet™, PROFIBUS®, CAN/CANopen,
OnLinE INTERBUS® —and more
Read more online about high-end power
measurement technology and performance
improvements at www.controleng.com.
ETHERLINE ® UNITRONIC ®
FIELDBUS
lappusa.com
February 2019 • 27
input #16 at www.controleng.com/information
ANSWERS
INSIDE MACHINES: COVER STORY
Tanya M. Anandan, Robotic Industries Association (RIA)

Demystify robot programming

Software suppliers are disproving preconceptions about robot offline
programming (OLP) being too complicated or not cost-effective.

E
ven though offline programming (OLP) from one XYZ coordinate to another XYZ coordinate.
has come a long way, misconceptions about It can include multiple robots mounted on external
it still linger. A lot of robot programming axes working with multi-axis workpiece positioners,
in the welding industry still is done man- or coordinating on an assembly line. All this move-
ually, point by tedious point, with a teach ment and planning, however, can get complicated.
pendant. Many still remember the old days of robot- “A lot of customers purchase a robot thinking it
ics that overpromised and under delivered. Dreamers will behave like a computer numerical control (CNC).
and doers have been working to exceed expectations. This is not the case,” said Albert Nubiola, CEO of
Simulation and OLP software has evolved and RoboDK Inc. “CNCs are easy to program. The work-
become smarter, faster, more flexible, and reliable. space is properly defined. It’s like a cube.” However,
This is a new era in ease of use and OLP software sup- robots have a spherical workspace, and because of
pliers are here to demystify the softer side of robotics. joint limits and robot singularities (points at which a
Most simulation and OLP solution providers will robot movement is not mathematically predictable),
tell you it’s not one or the other. Simulation and OLP there are certain types of movements you cannot do.
go hand in hand. Though the terms oftentimes are OLP helps avoid errors when programming a robot.
used interchangeably, but you can have simulation In robotic machining, there could be hundreds to
without OLP but you cannot have OLP without simu- thousands of points,” Nubiola continued. “Nobody
lation. Robot simulation is the 3-D representation of would ever be able to program that point by point
a robotic cell or production line. It visually demon- using a teach pendant. You definitely need software to
strates how a robot moves along a path or trajectory be able to do that offline.”
Simulation can be used for a proof of concept such
Figure 1: Offline as a robot integrator’s sales tool to demonstrate how
programming (OLP) a robotic system will perform. With simulation, users
software accurately can detect possible collisions between the robot, tool-
simulates a robotic ing, fixtures and any safety fences. Simulation can ana-
welding process lyze joint limits, singularities, and reach issues. Plus, it
using calibrated can reveal a host of eye-opening issues that save time
data for robot kine- and money in the long term. OLP uses simulation to
matics, external output robot-specific code that can be loaded onto the
axes, and workpiece physical robot controller and run the program. Post
positioners. Cour- processors turn programming code into a language
tesy: CENIT North the robot can understand. Robot manufacturers have
America Inc./Robotic their own proprietary programming languages, which
Industries Associa- means third-party software must be multilingual.
tion (RIA)
When OLP makes sense
Figure 2: A collaborative The main impetus for OLP is robot downtime,
robot is programmed which is the time required to manually program a
offline, saving operators robot point by point with a teach pendant. There also
months of manual pro- are costs associated with the machine’s downtime and
gramming time for this the programmer’s labor.
tedious railway mainte- “If an end user is manually programming a robot
nance process requiring on the teach pendant (online), they have to shut
hundreds of repetitive down production in order to program the part,” said
movements. Courtesy: Rob House, director of sales at Octopuz Inc. “The
Hypertherm Robotic Soft- benefit of using offline programming is you can be
ware Inc./RIA running production, and you can program your next
two, three, or five parts offline in the software and

M1 t February 2019 CONTROL ENGINEERING www.controleng.com

then once you’re ready to start a new job, you can
just switch over the program and then start your pro-
duction again.”
OLP is best-suited for complex path planning
applications that require a lot of points such as
welding, trimming, laser cutting, deburring, ther-
mal spraying, painting, laser cladding, and additive
manufacturing. OLP isn’t as beneficial for simple
pick-and-place applications, assembly, packaging,
and palletizing. These applications still can be pro-
grammed using offline software, but users may not
realize their return on investment (ROI). It’s more
cost-effective to program manually if the process has
only four or five points.
“If you’re spending as much time programming in
software as you do with a teach pendant every single
time you have a new part, you’re not any better off,”
said Garen Cakmak, senior director at Hypertherm
Robotic Software Inc. “For robots in a high-mix, low-
volume environment, software needs to be easy.”
Improving ease of use is top priority for these soft-
ware developers. But simulation and OLP are pointless
if they don’t accurately reflect reality.
Calibrate and don’t deviate
For OLP to work, the virtual world must match
the real world. This means the simulation must rep-
resent the physical robotic cell accurately.
“The virtual environment in OLP software has to
be an exact replication of the actual workcell on the
shop floor, which is not the case in most situations,”
said Helmut Ziewers, vice president of digital factory
solutions for Cenit North America Inc. “The devia-
tions between a computer-aided design (CAD) model
and the physical part associated with that CAD model
can be minor or significant, especially in conjunction
with less than perfect tooling. We still see major issues
and people saying we can’t do this offline, because of
those deviations.” However, those deviations are not
insurmountable. Calibration is critical.
“If we are off just a few millimeters or centime-
ters, you can create as many offline programs as you
wish,” Ziewers said. “They will never fit. We have to
know exactly how that robot was set up on the shop
floor, and there must not be any deviations or else
the OLP won’t work. The toolpath, the trajectory will
always be off. This was the case with Crown.”
Crown Equipment Corp. manufactures powered
forklift trucks. Its Roding, Germany, facility has sev-
eral complex robotic welding systems with external
axes and multi-axis workpiece positioners. Faced with
production bottlenecks caused by time-consuming
manual robot programming, Crown Roding decided
to explore if OLP was feasible. Their journey was not
without a few hiccups. Some on the Crown team were
skeptical while others were eager to try OLP.
Cenit was one of two suppliers brought into partic-
ipate in a benchmarking study. Ziewers said they took
CAD drawings provided by Crown’s automation inte-
grator and created the virtual robotic workcell in their
www.controleng.com
Figure 3: An arc welding cell uses OLP to help meet production demand by
cutting programming time in half and reducing robot downtime. Courtesy:
Octopuz Inc./RIA
Figure 4: OLP soft-
ware simulates robot
path planning for a
novel inspection sys-
tem under develop-
ment at NASA. The
system uses collabora-
tive robots equipped
with infrared cameras
to test for defects
in composite aircraft
structures. Courtesy:
RoboDK Inc./RIA
software. Based on those drawings, they created the
robot program and ran it on the physical workcell. But
something was off.
Cenit engineers arrived on site to physically cali-
brate Crown’s workcell.
“We found out what the differences
were, dimensionally,” Ziewers said. “We
applied those differences in our soft-
ware and then adjusted the offline pro-
M More
ANSWERS
gram based on the new setup in the virtual Keywords: robots, robot
programming, collaborative robots
world. This matched exactly the physical
Robot offline programming (OLP)
setup from the shop floor, and the robot
is though of as complex and costly.
program worked perfectly. ce Changes make programs easy-to-
use and flexible for many uses.
Tanya M. Anandan is contributing editor Program collaborative robots for
for the Robotic Industries Association (RIA) challenging applications.
and Robotics Online. RIA is a not-for-prof- oNLINe
it trade association dedicated to improving Read this article at
the regional, national, and global competi- www.controleng.com for more
tiveness of the North American manufac- information about robot programming
turing and service sectors through robotics including: Easier programming,
fewer constraints, one software with
and related automation. This article orig- multiple robot brands, collaborative
inally appeared on the RIA website. The robot programming, less
RIA is a part of the Association for Advanc- programming more producing, and
ing Automation (A3), a CFE Media content four additional images related to OLP.
partner. Edited by Chris Vavra, production CoNsIder thIs
editor, Control Engineering, CFE Media, Where can OLP help your company
cvavra@cfemedia.com. in the short- and long-term?
control engineeering February 2019 • M2
 ANSWERS
INSIDE MACHINES: COVER STORY
Dr. Keshab Panda, L&T Technology Services
Robots
powered by
artificial intelligence
and machine learning
are being employed
to carry out mun-
dane, repetitive tasks
and more complex
functions such as
improving quality,
throughput, enhanc-
ing employee safety,
reducing waste and
increasing customer
satisfaction. Cour-
tesy: L&T Technology
Services
M More
ANSWERS
KeyWORDs: Robotics,
artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence and
robotics add efficiencies.
Human talent augments
robotic implementations
Software makes robots
easier to program.
CONsIDeR THIs
Does your plant invest in
future competitiveness?
ONLINe
If reading from the
digital edition, click on
the headline for more on
human talent, robots.
M3 • February 2019
Future robotics, AI
Robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) will improve
quality, throughput, safety, consistency, and more.
D
eployment of robots,
artificial intelligence
(AI), and machine
learning-based systems
could bring many performance ben-
efits for organizations. These benefits
include improved product and service
quality, greater throughput, enhanced employ-
ee safety, reduced variability, waste reduction, and,
most importantly, higher customer satisfaction.
It is incorrect to regard robotics and factories of the
future as new concepts because they have existed for
decades; it is the perspective around them has evolved
over time. When Henry Ford replaced horse carriages
with automotive engines, robotics became the driving
force of our lives. His assembly line became the blue-
print for later designs of manufacturing plants.
Contrary to science fiction writer Isaac Asimov’s
“Three Laws of Robotics,” which largely set the rule-
book for human-machine interactions, progress in
robotics, AI, and machine learning have brought in
a new age of cognitive automation. The machines of
today complement human performance in a range of
work activities, including ones requiring perceptive
capabilities that are in congruence with Ford’s man-
ufacturing breakthroughs. They are providing the
groundwork for the factories of tomorrow.
As emerging technologies become more advanced
and sophisticated, new knowledge, and portfolios
have come into existence at an increasing rate using
deep data domain expertise to complement the deci-
sion-making process.
AI and machine learning-based systems have
become economical, more adjustable, more compli-
ant, and are transforming manufacturing.
As the technology becomes increasingly straight-
forward to implement, the business decisions will be
augmented by adoption of robotics. However, to cap-
ture the full value of these opportunities, organiza-
tions will need to take a holistic tactic and bring their
automation strategy as close as possible with the cur-
rent and future needs of the business.
A research report by Technavio said the global
robotics market size will grow by more than $32 bil-
lion from 2018 through 2022, at a compound annual
growth rate (CAGR) of more than 11%. An estimate
by Statista projected the robotics market to be worth
almost $500 billion globally by 2025.
The rapid growth of emerging technology, wide-
control engineering
spread use of wireless applications, surge in the adop-
tion of Internet of Things (IoT), and advancements in
AI and machine learning are some factors expected to
drive the growth of the global robotics market.
These upcoming technology trends are already
renovating business models across every sector and
unbolting massive market and innovation opportu-
nities. However, it should be also kept in mind these
emerging tools and associated competitive advantages
will be impermanent if industry leaders don’t capital-
ize and adapt to disruptive technology opportunities.
For manufacturing organizations to remain competi-
tive and relevant, they must conceive a well thought
strategy supported by emerging technologies and
robots for their value chain, from beginning to end of
production and the supply chain.
New robot capabilities
Even robots are expected to think out-of-the-box
rather than follow orders. The rise of machine vision
technology juxtaposed with the progress in the IoT
domain has given machines the ability to process
instructions and images on their own and think about
the next steps in the sequence of activities. This tech-
nology enables the robots to “see” and, as they mature,
the robots will augment their ability to apply logic to
things, and learn on their own.
Collaborative robots will continue to flourish with
easier programming, integration, and operations.
Robots could be placed anywhere on the manufac-
turing floor and perform any task. With technology
advancements such as embedded 3-D vision, multi-
spectral and hyperspectral imaging combined with AI,
machine learning, and deep learning, industrial robots
will be empowered to improve themselves.
Assembling, using, and maintaining robots
have become faster and less costly with exponential
increase in computing power, advancements in soft-
ware-development approaches, and augmentation of
networking technologies. Robots are loaded with sen-
sors and actuators that self-monitor and report the sta-
tus of the robot to the control system, to aid process
control and collect data for maintenance, and for con-
tinuous improvement and troubleshooting. ce
Dr. Keshab Panda, is CEO and managing director,
L&T Technology Services. Edited by Mark T. Hoske,
content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media,
mhoske@cfemedia.com.
www.controleng.com
 2018
input #17 at www.controleng.com/information
WINNER
ANSWERS
INSIDE MACHINES: COVER STORY
Enrico Krog Iversen, OnRobot; Michael Majchrzak, Control Engineering Polska
Collaborative robots accelerate
Get answers about expansion of industrial robotics from an
end-of-collaborative robot tooling company executive.
C
ollaborative robots add productivity
to manufacturing and executives from
OnRobot answered related questions
on the topic during the Forum Coboty
2018 in Wrocław, Poland, organized by
Encon-Koester. OnRobot is a new Danish company
that provides plug and product end-of-arm tooling to
help manufacturers with collaborative robots. Univer-
sal Robots ex-managers formed the company in June
2018. Enrico Krog Iverson, CEO of OnRobot, pro-
Enrico Krog vides answers while visiting Poland, among more than
Iversen is CEO of 80 countries where OnRobot is selling its products.
OnRobot. Courte-
sy: OnRobot and Control Engineering Poland (CEP): Why would
Control Engineer- Teradyne, without prior products in robotics, pur-
ing Poland chase Universal Robots?
Enrico Krog Iversen: They were involved in the
production of electronics previously, which is a rela-
tively flat market. They asked themselves where can
you get 50% or more growth in the industrial sector.
Very few companies in the industrial or automation
space could experience that sort of growth... and the
investment has paid off. They are still growing and are
now the leading collaborative robotics company.
CEP: How did you get started with Uni-
M More ANSWERS
versal Robots?
Iversen: Three engineers founded Uni-
versal Robots in 2005, and they were out
KEYWORDS: Collaborative
robots, end-effectors of money. Then the Danish Growth Fund,
Collaborative robots offer which is a government-backed venture
manufacturing flexibility. capital fund in Denmark, invested in the
Easier end-effectors help with company and asked me if I would be inter-
robotic integration. ested in running the company as CEO. I
Programming robotics can be said OK that’s fine, the product is fine, but
easier.
I did not like the strategy. I spent the next
CONSIDER THIS three months revising the business plan,
How could easier to choose and I invested my own money.
and use end effectors help your
next robotic implementation?
CEP: After having consolidated three
ONLINE acquisitions, what is the overall strategy
If reading from the digital edition, for OnRobot?
click on the headline for more Iversen: The overall strategy and goal
answers and resources.
of OnRobot is to facilitate the transition
www.controleng.com/magazine
from collaborative robots to collabora-
See other international coverage
at www.controleng.com/ tive applications. The robots themselves
international will soon become commodities, and we
www.controlengineering.pl are starting to see that with more market
M5 • February 2019 control engineering
competition. We can add value in how you deploy
robots, what you put on the robots, and what you put
around the robots.
The strategy of one robot is to be your hand, your
eyes, your ears, your sensing capability, whatever
makes your arm do anything. Your arm itself does
not do much. We are looking at not just hardware
in the form of collaborative robots, but also the soft-
ware that manages these machines.
CEP: Do you see the application development via
software, or the robots (hardware) being more
important as an R&D investment?
Iversen: Software is the largest R&D division at
OnRobot, and I think that it will continue. Not only
for the physical grippers and sensors and so on, but
also for developing a uniform user interface. OnRo-
bot is developing products for UR and for other robot
brands. I would like that when a robot picks up a grip-
per, that the user will have the same experience with
one robot as with all other robots that use our soft-
ware and hardware. It is similar to the PC model: you
care much less about the hardware brand than you do
about whether not its running [Microsoft] Windows.
As long as it’s running Windows you are happy with it.
And this is the direction that I would like to go.
CEP: How simple must an operating system be?
Iversen: If you want robots to be ubiquitous, the
programming of the robots needs to be simple. You
really have to make sure that the programming can
be done by people that have no engineering back-
ground. In some countries the level of technology is
quite high, and in other countries it is quite low. Our
job is to make it easy to use the robots, particularly in
programming the robots.
CEP: Is the industrial sector the most important
sector for OnRobot?
Iversen: Yes, the industrial sector is by far the most
important sector for us. Of course, there are many
applications for our products, however, if you want to
stay successful you need to stay focused. ce
Enrico Krog Iversen is CEO of OnRobot and Michael
Majchrzak is the publisher of Control Engineering Pol-
ska. Edited by Mark T. Hoske, content manager, Con-
trol Engineering, CFE Media, mhoske@cfemedia.com.
www.controleng.com
MEASURE.
EVALUATE.
VISUALIZE & CONFIGURE.

3-Phase Power Measurement

Made Easy with the WAGO-I/O-SYSTEM
r Integrate with a variety of networks and I/O modules
r Advanced features like Harmonic Analysis
r Supports compliance to ISO 50001 Energy Management

www.wago.us/power-measurement

input #18 at www.controleng.com/information

 ANSWERS
INSIDE MACHINES
By Susie Cumberland, IHS Markit

The human factor of IoT in safety

Technology can be part of the safety culture in plants.

T
he Internet of Things (IoT) is not just
about improving the production on the
factory floor; it can aid in creating a safer
working environment.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
reported in 2016 that within the private manufac-
turing sector there were more than 300 fatalities and
more than 410,000 non-fatal occupation injuries.
Similar statistics published by the UK-based Health
and Safety Executive (HSE), there were 19 fatal inju-
While companies may put safety measures in
place for machinery to deter or prevent unsafe or
unauthorised access, they can be ignored or mis-
used due to the culture surrounding safety or the
industry a worker is in. Poor practice can render a
safety measure useless. This has been illustrated in
some cases of zero-hour contract workers.
Some contracts are paid dependent on output
rather than by hour, which can result in a sense
of urgency. Safety measures can increase the time

‘
ries and 60,000 non-fatal injuries reported in 2016 to
2017. Contact with machinery accounted for 18% of
Improper use fatal injuries and 12% of non-fatal injuries, at a cost of
more than $700 million.
of a safety With such significant costs associated to such inci-
dents (both personal and financial), a consideration
interlock of how new technologies can mitigate risk for workers
is a crucial consideration.
switch is a Within manufacturing, applications for how IoT
can improve processes have been well covered. How-
dangerous ever, for IoT and safety, the benefits to personnel is
taken to do a task and it has been known for work-
ers to disable, or work around safety procedures to
save time.
Machine safety and IoT
Industrial IoT (IIoT) is increasingly influencing
safety products and solutions, through improved
connectivity of more intelligent devices, with ven-
dors able to support customers with data that can
provide insight on production, in addition to core
safety features.

’
less discussed. One application showing how IoT
practice. solutions could support preventive safety is by pre-
dicting patterns in workers on the factory floor, that
would reduce the risk of injury.
Human factors, output contracts
The benefits of safety solutions, especially
connected safety solutions, have certainly been
emphasised in the recent years as IoT drives
industrial automation into the digital age. One
benefit that is regularly mentioned is increasing
profit, based on improved efficiency
An example of smarter safety technology is laser
scanners intended for outdoor and warehouse use.
These products can be used to support vehicle nav-
igation, cranes and robots; prevent collisions; and
provide protrusion monitoring for storage, which
checks for prohibited protruding objects that may
result in improper storage, for example in ware-
houses. This means that laser scanners not only
provide safety, but also aid in navigation, logistics,
and storage management, therefore increasing effi-
ciency and productivity.
IoT is aiding product development, which

M More
ANSWERS
KeyWORDs:
Machine safety, safety culture
Pattern predictions could
improve safety.
Safety standards had more that
50 changes in 2015 and 2016.
Thwarting safety technologies
and procedures can increase risk.
COnsiDeR this
What technologies and
procedures are lowering your risk?
Online
At www.controleng.com look
under topics and discrete
manufacturing to find the
machine safety page.
and productivity. However, improved
safety can also reduce costs resulting
from non-fatal and fatal injuries to
personnel.
The HSE stated that in 2016/2017,
within the manufacturing sector there
were 159 court cases related to inju-
ry. The average fine per case was about
$213,271, not including other legal fees.
Lack of proper safety measures can
result in fines, compensation, pay for
sick leave and recovery, as well as addi-
tional costs. Globally in in 2015 and
2016, there were more than 50 changes
to safety directives and standards. These
changes can be initially costly to imple-
ment; however, they can save lives and
money in the long term.
could help tackle unsafe situations. For exam-
ple, RFID technology is used with safety interlock
switches to allow for single monitoring of doors
and provide important insight on usage.
Improper use of a safety interlock switch could
allow a guard or gate to be opened or unlocked,
rendering the product useless. This is a dangerous
(but not uncommon) practice pushed by workers
chasing productivity gains rather than following
safety processes.
By better understanding these behaviors, it
may be that further training is given, the interlock
switch design and gate is adapted, or even the work-
er contract itself is reviewed. ce
Susie Cumberland is an analyst in manufacturing
technology for IHS Markit. Edited by Bob Vavra,
CFE Media, bvavra@cfemedia.com.

M7 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

ANSWERS
INSIDE MACHINES
Robert Bonczar, Yaskawa America Inc.

Selecting a scope
for a variable frequency drive
Select the right oscilloscope to fit a variable frequency drive (VFD) application.
Consider scope types, probe, voltage, software, and harmonics.

T
here are many brands and styles of oscil-
loscopes to consider and it’s critical to
understand how to select one based on
certain criteria. Many of them look very
similar leaving it difficult to select one
that will suit the user’s needs. There are precautions
to take to avoid pitfalls during the selection process.
An oscilloscope, sometimes referred to as a
“o-scope,” is an electronic piece of test equipment used
to measure and monitor and provide a visual repre-
sentation of signals on a screen.
First, the user measures the vertical height of
the signal (amplitude) in voltage and the horizontal
cycle (period). This is done by connecting probes to
the scope and connecting them to the test point of a
circuit.
A probe is a cable with a banana connection on
one end that affixes it to the oscilloscope and the other
is the end connect to the point of a circuit to measure
so the signal appears on the screen. The probe also
will have a connection for the common or ground.
Examples of these signals can be voltage, current,
or frequency, to name a few. The displayed signal can
show any anomalies or problems that might not other-
wise be seen with other test equipment such as a digi-
tal multi-meter (DMM).
Selecting an oscilloscope
Different types of oscilloscope models are desk-
top, USB, and portable (handheld). A desktop
model is typically used in a facility or lab envi-
ronment. A handheld model would be suitable for
travel because of its portability and built-in fea-
tures such as ground isolation and rugged design.
A USB model would be used in lab or the field
for its small portable size, as well as being able to
interface with a laptop or PC thus removing the
need for a separate screen. This would require
also purchasing software to use it on a computer
interface. All these scopes do the same thing. So
why buy one over the other? What are the differ-
ences? See table on M10.
Probe to connect to signal
Figure 1: Example of a low-voltage passive probe that comes stan-
dard with an oscilloscope. This shows how using the ground clip of
the probe is internally tide to ground of the scope. All graphics cour-
tesy: Yaskawa America Inc.
Other line or phase
Although many of the desktops look similar and Figure 2: A coil
pricing of the oscilloscope is comparable, they can- probe is shown
not check high voltage by themselves. Oscilloscopes around the wire
come with a lower voltage passive probe. These it’s measuring.
probes connect to the oscilloscope to measure the
point of a circuit to see the signal.
The voltage measured on the probe is the intend-
ed signal and the other is the ground or common,
which is referenced with 0 V. This common can also
be tied to ground internally in the oscilloscope and
the plug. The voltages are smaller also for example 5
V, or 24 V dc with low current (see Figure 1).
An optional probe is required when checking
the higher line voltage like 230 V ac or a variable
frequency drive’s (VFD’s) pulse width modulation
(PWM) output for the higher power checks. It’s
critical to read the side of the probe for the intend-
ed voltage levels. They can be damaged if they’re
undersized.
The ground may also be tied to other probe
connections. It is necessary to isolate these con-

www.controleng.com control engineeering February 2019 • M8

 ANSWERS
CUSTOM INSIDE MACHINES

MOTORS nections so the scope is not damaged, shorting the power to

DESIGNED
the ground, or interfering with the other signal connections.
The ground clip is now a voltage potential and the signal is

FOR YOU
Our custom motors allow you to match your
ideal specifications, minimize your machine
size, and control your supply chain risk.
Aerotech can design, test, and manufacture
your custom motor in one facility and
compared to the voltage the probe is connected to.
When used with a scope that doesn’t have a ground tied to
the earth of the scope, a high-voltage differential probe should
be used so it isolates the grounds. If someone cuts the ground
off the plug and lets it float, this is dangerous because now if
someone comes into contact with the scope and touches any
metal the person may get shocked or killed.
This high-voltage differential probe is not a standard fea-
ture, but an option. Depending on the manufacturer then

‘
provide you with a single point of contact
throughout the process. When used with a scope that doesn’t have
Typical Motor Customizations
• Size and geometry
a ground tied to the earth of the scope,
• Any feedback sensor a high-voltage differential probe should be
• Windings customized for

’
bus voltage, current, resistance, used so it isolates the grounds.
inductance, BEMF constant
• Stack motors to
increase force this adds an additional $600 to $1,300 on average per probe.
This is another reason why it’s important to review all options
• Vacuum or
before making a decision.
cleanroom
A handheld model is an exception to this because it is
compatible
designed to be able to use the probes that come standard to
check high and low voltages. The ground is isolated and the
unit is designed against shocks unlike desktops.

Eight factors to consider for an oscilloscope

The key is to understand what is needed for each applica-
tion. The following eight factors need to be considered when
selecting an oscilloscope:

1. Signal displays: Oscilloscopes typically come with two

or four and some with more connections or channels to
connect the probes to. This allows the user to have more
signals on the screen to compare.

2. Current probes: These are used to measure current

by the field around a wire that would go to a motor or
line on the side of the voltage supply. This can show the
current strength and any imbalance when comparing to
another line or phase (see Figure 2). Some of the high-
er-end scopes will include one in the kit while others
require this as a separate add-on option.

3. Harmonics measurement: Some of the more economi-

cal scopes will have this as an add-on option or not at all.
Looking at the circuit’s harmonics could be important
because they might play a part in the performance of a
Visit aerotech.com or Call 412-963-7470 device such as a VFD.

4. Manufacturer: Users might go with a manufacturer they

are familiar with rather than a new one. Do some research.
AH0119B-CSG

input #19 at www.controleng.com/information

M9 • February 2019 control engineering
Table: Types of oscilloscopes
High-voltage
Scope type Low voltage probes Software Current probes
differential probes
Handheld Standard * * Option
Desktop Standard Option * Option
Not option,
USB Standard Option Option
but extra charge
* -not a necessary option

A new manufacturer might be a better fit and

more cost-effective for a particular application.
5. Service: Talk to someone in the tech sup-
port group. See how much they know about
their product. Ask about the product and its
specific features.
6. Testing: Request a demo of the product.
Typically, companies will be open to a trial
period before purchase. They also are often
willing to meet to answer questions. This also
a good opportunity to get a sense of supplier
representation and support.
7. Check the warranty: On average, the typi-
cal warranty is from 1 to 3 years.
8. Flexibility: Is this product
upgradeable or is this an older
model that will be phased out? This
might explain why it is such a good
price if it’s the latter.
An easy setup and economical solution
that fits the user’s needs leads to selecting
the right type of oscilloscope. ce
Robert Bonczar, is a product training
engineer at Yaskawa America Inc. Edit-
ed by Emily Guenther, associate content
manager, Control Engineering, CFE
Media, eguenther@cfemedia.com.
M More
ANSWERS
KEYWORDS: Oscillosopes, variable
frequency drives, VFDs
Factors to consider when selecting
oscilloscopes
Different types of scopes are
desktop, USB, and portable.
Choose an oscilloscope that is easy
to set up and fits your application.
COnSiDER thiS
What criteria do you need to
consider to select the right scope for
your needs?
OnLinE
Read more about scopes online at
www.controleng.com.

Simplify Machine IP Integration

Maintain your factory-set IP
addresses when integrating
with the customer’s IP network
by using a Skorpion IP Router.
• Reduce installation time
• Eliminate IP conflicts
• Easily comply with your
customer’s IP requirements
• Eliminate site visits with
RemoteVPN secure remote access
IP Routers

Learn more at www.ccontrols.com/machine

input #20 at www.controleng.com/information
2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE AWARDS
Spotlight on Innovation
Best automation, control, and instrumentation
products in 26 categories.
T
he 32nd annual Control Engineering Engi-
neers’ Choice Awards shines a light on 26
categories of control, instrumentation, and
automation products, revealing the best of
those introduced in 2018 as chosen by the Con-
trol Engineering print and digital audience. Review
the winners and honorable mentions here to see if
their innovative solutions can help resolve one of
your most pressing problems.
Also, join us in congratulating these technologi-
cal innovators. Let them know you learned about
their solutions in Control Engineering, and tell them
what problems you need solutions for next. Their
continuous improvement ensures that manufac-
turers, machine builders, and automation system
integrators can achieve the levels of agility, efficien-
cy, and effectiveness necessary to compete—and win—in
today’s global economy.
A total of 102 finalists from 44 companies were listed
on the ballot for evaluation. Automation professionals from
Engineers’ Choice Awards Index: 1 Grand, 26 Winners, 26 Honorable Mentions
39 Sinamics G120 Smart Access Wireless Module, Siemens
39 Simatic Industrial Thin Client V3 Pro, Siemens
39 Simatic IFP INOX ETH, Siemens
40 AIM-68 10-in. Industrial Tablet, Advantech
40 UniStream 7-in. PLC+HMI+I/O, Unitronics
40 SilentDefense OT Network Monitoring and Intelligence
Platform, Forescout Technologies
40 groov EPIC, Opto 22
42 Allen-Bradley Micro870 PLC, Rockwell Automation
42 3561 FC Vibration Sensor, Fluke
42 DataMan 470 Fixed-mount Barcode Reader, Cognex
42 e-Series Collaborative Robot, Universal Robots
44 Digitax HD Servo Drive, Control Techniques
44 RAM-6021M12 Industrial Router, Red Lion Controls
44 FL Switch 2000 Managed Industrial Ethernet Switch,
Phoenix Contact
44 Simatic ET 200SP Fail-safe Module, Siemens
READ MORE ONLINE, including how to enter, at www.controleng.com/EngineersChoice.
38 • February 2019 control engineering
Control Engineering’s subscriber lists—all of whom
are responsible for or influence technology purchas-
es, or have hands-on day-to-day interaction with
the technologies in each category—then voted to
identify the products they felt were the most excep-
tional based on technological advancement, service
to the industry, and market impact. The result a list
of Engineers’ Choice Awards winners and honor-
able mentions in 26 categories. A total of 1 grand
winner, 26 winners, and 26 honorable mentions
were named for 2019.
Control Engineering staff extends appreciation to
all who nominated products and voted. Find more
product innovations in the New Products for Engi-
neers Database at www.controleng.com/NP4E. The
2019 Engineers’ Choice Awards will be presented to
the winners on April 8, 2019, in Chicago.
Amanda Pelliccione is the project manager of events
and awards programs for Control Engineering, CFE Media,
apelliccione@cfemedia.com.
46 Wireless 775 Thum Adapter, Emerson
46 Sitop PSU8600 Power Supply System, Siemens Industry
46 iTherm TrustSens Hygienic RTD Sensor, Endress+Hauser
46 DeltaV V14 Distributed Control System,
Emerson Automation Solutions
48 Allen-Bradley Guardmaster GuardLink Technology,
Rockwell Automation
48 Simatic SIS Compact Safety System, Siemens Industry
48 TwinCAT 3 Building Automation Software,
Beckhoff Automation
48 Dream Report V4.82 Data Analysis Software,
Ocean Data Systems
49 Simatic Automation Tool, Siemens
49 AnalytiX-BI, Iconics
49 InduSoft Web Studio, Aveva
49 KEPServerEX V6.5 Industrial Connectivity Platform,
Kepware
50 Honorable Mentions
www.controleng.com

2019 Engineers’ Choice
Grand award
Hardware – HMI, operator
interface, thin-client
Simatic Industrial
Thin-Client V3 Pro
Siemens
T he Simatic industrial
thin-client (ITC) V3 Pro
features high-resolution,
capacitive widescreen dis-
plays ranging from 15 to 22
inches. Due to diverse com-
Sinamics G120 Smart munications protocols, the
Access Module industrial thin-client can be
Siemens used for complex machine-
level operator control and
T
monitoring as well as con-
he Grand Award—first introduced with the nection to control systems
2017 program—is bestowed upon the prod- (such as SCADA). The ITC
uct that received the most overall votes in V3 Pro allows for direct
the 2019 program. This year’s Grand Award mounting on support arms
recipient is the Sinamics G120 Smart Access Module and pedestals rather than
from Siemens. as built-in devices, and can
The Sinamics G120 Smart Access module be configured locally or
enables wireless connection of mobile devices— remotely via a web brows-
such as tablets, smartphones, or laptops—over
er. The industrial thin-cli-
Wi-Fi to the Sinamics G120, G120C, and G120P
converter series. The module is easily set up using ent offers four USB 2.0 ports
a conventional web browser and standard operat- and two Gigabit Ethernet
ing system. The web server functionality eliminates ports (switched). The ITC
the need to download additional software. Warn- V3 Pro supports the RDP,
ing signals and error messages are quickly detect- VNC, Smart Access, Citrix,
ed over the wireless link, which also can be used to
and WinCC OA protocols.
save or reset drive settings. The module includes a
function that enables the settings from one drive to www.usa.siemens.com
be copied, sent to other mobile devices, and used to Input 201 at www.controleng.com/information
commission additional drives.
www.usa.siemens.com
Input 200 at www.controleng.com/information
www.controleng.com control engineeering
®
Hardware –
Industrial PCs
Simatic IFP2200 INOX ETH
Siemens
T he Simatic industrial flat
panel (IFP) 2200 INOX
ETH features a projective-
capacitive touch screen for
multi-finger operation and
stainless-steel front designed
for use in the food and bev-
erage, pharmaceutical, and
fine chemicals industries, as
well as other hygienic areas
for machine level opera-
tor control and monitor-
ing. For this reason, the
IFP2200 has been devel-
oped in compliance with
EN 1672-2: Food process-
ing machinery – Safety and
hygiene requirements. The
optimized frame profile and
near-flush mounting of the
device to the control cabinet
allow liquids to run off. The
front glass is highly resistant
to chemicals, with a mini-
mum of gaps and grooves.
It is also shatter-proof and
scratch-resistant.
www.usa.siemens.com
Input 202 at www.controleng.com/information
February 2019 • 39
2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE AWARDS
Hardware –
Industrial tablet
AIM-68 10-in.
Industrial Tablet
Advantech
T he AIM-68 10-in. indus-
trial-grade tablet with
application-oriented periph-
erals provides portabil-
ity and flexibility to satisfy
various demands in a wide
range of applications—such
as warehousing, manufac-
turing, fleet management,
field service, transportation,
and public safety. Powered
by an Intel Atom x7-Z8750
processor with support
for dual OS, AIM-68 fea-
tures a 2-MP front camera
and 5-MP rear camera with
auto-focus, 4 GB of mem-
ory, 64 GB of storage, and
a 10-in. WUXGA IPS full
HD LCD with scratch-resis-
tant Corning Gorilla Glass 3
and multi-touch PCAP con-
trol. The inclusion of Wi-Fi,
Bluetooth, WWAN, and
NFC wireless communica-
tion technologies supports
real-time data transmissions
and GPS tracking.
www.advantech.com
Input 203 at www.controleng.com/information
40 • February 2019
Hardware – Integrated HMI
controllers
UniStream 7-in.
PLC+HMI+I/O
Unitronics
T he UniStream 7-in. com-
bines a programmable
logic controller (PLC), a
7-in. touchscreen human-
machine interface (HMI),
and I/Os into one unit. The
UniStream 7-in. is avail-
able with six I/O configu-
rations, including options
for high-speed inputs and
outputs and temperature
measurement; all units are
fully expandable up to 2048
I/O points. Other features
include EtherNet/IP, VNC,
FTP, Web Server, Video +
RTSP, and SQL Client. The
UniStream 7-in. is backed by
UniLogic programming soft-
ware. Built-in COM ports
include Ethernet, 1 USB host
and 1 Mini-B USB device
ports; additional add-on
ports for serial and CANbus
are available.
www.unitronicsplc.com
Input 204 at www.controleng.com/information
control engineering
Industrial
cybersecurity
SilentDefense OT
Network Monitoring and
Intelligence Platform
ForeScout Technologies
T he SilentDefense opera-
tional technology (OT)
network monitoring and
intelligence platform pas-
sively analyzes industrial
network communications,
provides rich information
about network assets and
alerts in real-time for any
threat to operational conti-
nuity. SilentDefense empow-
ers industrial operators with
visibility, threat detection
capability, and control of a
network. A user-friendly
interface and out-of-the-box
detection engines will help
to quickly deliver results.
The forensic time machine
feature lets users perform
automatic, back-in-time
threat searches and individ-
uation of past compromises,
while the enhanced indus-
trial threat library includes
vulnerability database and
protocol support for more
than 1,600 threat indicators
and vulnerabilities.
www.forescout.com
Input 205 at www.controleng.com/information
®
Industrial Internet of Things
connectivity
groov EPIC
Opto 22
T
he groov edge program-
mable industrial con-
troller (EPIC) combines
I/O, control, data process-
ing, and visualization into
one secure, maintainable,
edge-of-network industri-
al system. Combining rei-
magined intelligent I/O
with an embedded Linux
real-time controller, gate-
way functions, and an inte-
grated display, groov EPIC
offers industrial hardware
design with a modern soft-
ware ensemble. Connecting
legacy systems, control-
ling processes and automat-
ing machines, subscribing
to web services and creat-
ing mashups, acquiring and
publishing data, visualizing
that data wherever it is need-
ed, and mobilizing opera-
tors—all of these are within
reach with this system.
groov EPIC simplifies com-
missioning and wiring and
helps engineers develop rap-
idly and deploy quickly.
www.opto22.com
Input 206 at www.controleng.com/information
www.controleng.com
 We understand
We understand how
how leading-edge
leading-edgeproducts
productsand
and

INNOVATE
process improvements are critical in your business.
process improvements are critical in your business.

+ ACCELERATE You are

You are enabled
enabledto
improve plant
toachieve
achieveaafaster
plantproductivity
productivityand
fastertime
andreduce
timetotomarket,
reducerisk.
risk.
market,
improve

iTHERMTrustSens
iTHERM TrustSens TM37x:
TM37x:
iTHERM TrustSens TM37x:
The
The world’s
world’s first self-calibrating
first compact
self-calibrating thermometer
compact thermometer
The world’s first self-calibrating compact thermometer
• Increases process safety with fully automated, fully traceable
••Increases
Increases process
process safetysafety with
with fully fully automated,
automated, fully traceable
inline self-calibration
inline self-calibration
fully traceable inline self-calibration
• Offers 100% compliance with automated audit-proof documentation
• OffOffers
ers 100% compliance with automated audit-proof documentation
••Eliminates 100%
the riskcompliance
of undetectedwith automated
non-conformities with
• Eliminates the risk of undetected non-conformities with
Heartbeat Technology
audit-proof documentation
Heartbeat Technology
• Eliminates the risk of undetected non-
conformities with Heartbeat Technology

Do you want to learn more?

www.us.endress.com/tm371
Do
Doyou
you want to learn
want to learn more?
more?
www.us.endress.com/tm371
www.us.endress.com/trustsens

input #21 at www.controleng.com/information

2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE AWARDS
Machine and embedded
control – PLCs
Allen-Bradley Micro870 PLC
Rockwell Automation
T he Allen-Bradley
Micro870 PLC supports
smart micro applications
that require up to 304 I/O
points, 280 KB of memory,
and 20,000 program instruc-
tions. The Micro870 PLC
uses a flexible design con-
cept that provides design-
ers up to three plug-ins and
eight expansion I/O mod-
ules. This capability allows
easy customization or
expansion of the controller
to meet each machine type’s
unique requirements. The
controller’s 280 KB memo-
ry capacity supports modu-
lar programming and the
use of user-defined func-
tion blocks to help reduce
design time. Additionally,
machine builders can use
this memory capacity to
maintain one program for all
machine models that use the
Micro870 PLC.
www.rockwellautomation.com
Input 207 at www.controleng.com/information
42 • February 2019
Machine
sensors
3561 FC Vibration Sensor
Fluke Corp.
T he 3561 FC vibration
sensor allows mainte-
nance teams to improve
uptime by adding remote,
continuous vibration mon-
itoring to rotating equip-
ment. With a frequency
range of 10 to 1,000 Hz, the
3561 FC detects and noti-
fies users of conditional
changes caused by critical
faults—such as imbalance,
misalignment, looseness.
and bearing wear—provid-
ing warning of impending
equipment failure. The 3561
FC sensor is small enough
to fit in hard-to-reach loca-
tions on equipment, provid-
ing a more comprehensive
picture of facility health. The
triaxial sensors deliver con-
tinuous measurements while
the asset is in use, permitting
maintenance technicians to
remain at a safe distance,
away from dangerous rotat-
ing equipment.
www.fluke.com
Input 208 at www.controleng.com/information
control engineering
Machine vision,
code readers
DataMan 470 Fixed-mount
Barcode Reader
Cognex
T he DataMan 470 fixed-
mount barcode reader
uses patent-pending imag-
ing technology to solve
challenging applications—
such as automotive com-
ponent traceability, tire
identification, airport bag-
gage handling, and auto-
mated sorting. DataMan
470’s High Dynamic Range
Plus (HDR+) technology
enhances the image qual-
ity of 1D and 2D codes. It
also reads low contrast and
ultra-small codes not visible
to other readers, and cov-
ers larger inspection areas
with fewer cameras, allowing
greater process variation and
lower facility design costs.
DataMan 470’s expand-
able technology platform
includes multi-core process-
ing power, advanced decod-
ing algorithms, and modular
configuration options to sig-
nificantly improve speed and
flexibility.
www.cognex.com
Input 209 at www.controleng.com/information
®
Motion
control
e-Series Collaborative Robot
Universal Robots
T he e-Series collaborative
robot (cobot) is a light-
weight, flexible automation
tool that works right along-
side users on ever chang-
ing tasks. The cobot features
fast set-up, easy program-
ming, flexible deployment,
safe operation, and a short
return on investment. The
user interface reduces pro-
gramming to a few clicks on
a lightweight, wide-screen
teach pendant and adds
four digital inputs with an
associated interface for use
with conveyor tracking.
The interface also includes
the ability to program stop-
ping time and stopping dis-
tance for protective stops,
reducing the complexity and
uncertainty involved in per-
forming pre-deployment
risk assessments.
www.universal-robots.com
Input 210 at www.controleng.com/information
www.controleng.com
input #22 at www.controleng.com/information
2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE AWARDS
Motion control –
Drives
Digitax HD Servo Drive
Control Techniques
T he Digitax HD servo
drive delivers motor con-
trol performance and flex-
ibility from a package. The
Digitax HD is focused on
high overload, pulse duty
applications, provides con-
tinuous servo control and
induction motor control,
and is initially available with
two functionality levels. The
servo motor is designed as
an optimized amplifier for
high performance central-
ized control with Ether-
CAT integrated on-board
and simple rotary switch-
es for fast network address
assignment. The base option
allows design engineers
to add up to two option
modules from the existing
Unidrive M range such as
Profinet, EtherNet/IP, or an
IEC 61131 high performance
motion controller for decen-
tralized machine control.
www.controltechniques.us
Input 211 at www.controleng.com/information
44 • February 2019
Network integration –
Ethernet hardware
RAM-6021M12
Industrial Router
Red Lion Controls
T he RAM-6021M12 IP67
industrial router pro-
vides secure network com-
munication between local
and wide-area networks.
Housed in a rugged IP67,
dust-proof and water-resis-
tant metal enclosure, the
RAM-6021M12 is designed
to withstand harsh indus-
trial environments, includ-
ing temporary immersion
in water, exposure to water
jets, and extreme shock
and vibration levels, mak-
ing it ideal for industries
where hardened products
are required. The RAM-
6021M12 provides the abil-
ity to remotely connect,
monitor, and control assets
across a variety of industrial
applications. The unit’s event
engine can be customized
to trigger I/O or email alerts
to quickly notify personnel
of critical events based on
operational data.
www.redlion.net
Input 212 at www.controleng.com/information
control engineering
Network integration –
Ethernet switches
FL Switch 2000 Managed
Industrial Ethernet Switch
Phoenix Contact
W ith easy startup and
a variety of available
application-specific func-
tions, the 2000 Series man-
aged switch enables the
cost-effective management
of Ethernet network. The FL
Switch 2000 gives machine
builders a switch with mul-
ticast filter functions and
redundancy mechanisms to
reduce the data load in the
network and maintain com-
munications even in the
event of a Layer 1 failure.
The device can be config-
ured via an SD card, a Com-
mand Line Interface (CLI),
or the smart mode but-
ton located on the device.
The 2000 switch features
key functions for Profi-
net and EtherNet/IP appli-
cations, and is available in
Gigabit variants for applica-
tions that demand high data
throughput.
www.phoenixcontact.com/us
Input 213 at www.controleng.com/information
®
Network integration –
I/O systems
Simatic ET 200SP
Fail-safe Module
Siemens
T he Simatic ET 200SP
F-AI 4xI(0)4..20mA fail-
safe module makes it pos-
sible to detect analog signals
in the 0(4)..20 mA range.
The 15-mm-wide module
supports the “NoDIL” con-
cept; PROFIsafe address
assignment via DIL switch
is not required. Slots for
the module can be freely
selected. and both central
and distributed use is pos-
sible. Characteristics include
four analog inputs with con-
figurable measuring range,
supply voltage L+, external
sensor power supply possi-
ble, resolution 16-bits, short-
circuit proof power supply
for 2- or 4-wire transducers,
firmware update support,
and RIOforFA-Safety profile
support.
www.usa.siemens.com
Input 214 at www.controleng.com/information
www.controleng.com
 PLC
HMI

NEW!
ALL IN ONE

7 ”

All-in-One compact PLC + HMI with built-in I/Os

7" color touch HMI
Built-in I/O options: digital, analog, high-speed, PWM, temperature
Expand up to 2,048 I/Os
Built-in ports: Ethernet, USB, Audio*
Add-on ports: Ethernet, serial, CANbus
COM support: EtherNet/IP, CANopen, MODBUS & more
Advanced COM support: Webserver*, SMS & email, GPRS modem, SNMP, FTP, SQL MQTT
Remote Access via VNC
Media support: .pdf, Video*, RTSP*
Program in All-in-One UniLogic - Award-winning software slashes development time in half!

* For Pro version only.

input #23 at www.controleng.com/information

w w w. u n i t r o n i c s P L C . c o m
Unitronics, Inc. 1 Batterymarch Park Quincy, MA 02169 USA, Tel: 617-657-6596, Toll Free: 866-666-6033
usa.sales@unitronics.com, www.unitronicsPLC.com
2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE AWARDS
Network integration –
Wireless
Wireless 775 Thum Adapter
Emerson
M ake any HART device
wireless with the Wire-
less 775 Thum Adapter, an
adapter that retrofits onto
existing 2-, 3- or 4-wire
HART devices, in almost
every area, from intrin-
sically safe to explosion-
proof. The Thum adapter
wirelessly transmits HART
measurement and diagnos-
tic information from new
or previously inaccessible
measurement points. With
the self-organizing Wire-
lessHART network, users
can remotely manage mul-
tivariable devices, monitor
device health, and gather
data with more than 99%
data reliability. The explo-
sion-proof certification is
especially useful for refin-
eries, chemical plants, and
other heavy industry facili-
ties, as well as in SIS applica-
tions, where it can be used
to access stranded variables
and diagnostics from safety
systems.
http://emerson.com
Input 215 at www.controleng.com/information
46 • February 2019
Power – Energy, power
protection, UPS
Sitop PSU8600 Power
Supply System
Siemens Industry
T he Sitop PSU8600 power
supply system features
supplementary modules to
transform it into an uninter-
ruptible direct current (dc)
power supply. To achieve
this, the DC UPS module
PSU8600 uses the energy
stored in BAT8600 battery
modules to keep the sys-
tem up and running in the
event of a power failure,
and it extends the previ-
ous bridging times enabled
by the buffer modules from
just minutes to hours. The
PSU8600 has up to 36 out-
puts capable of being adjust-
ed between 4 and 28 volts,
and all of these can be buff-
ered in the event of a power
failure.
www.usa.siemens.com
Input 216 at www.controleng.com/information
control engineering
Process control –
Process sensors
iTherm TrustSens
Hygienic RTD Sensor
Endress+Hauser
T he iTherm TrustSens
hygienic RTD sensor cal-
ibrates itself after every ster-
ilize in place (SIP) operation
to provide accurate and reli-
able temperature measure-
ment. TrustSens eliminates
the risk of an undetected
calibration drift and the
risk of bad batches. It also
reduces the need for fre-
quent calibrations by verify-
ing the sensor is working as
designed in between manual
calibration cycles. The Trust-
Sens calibration procedure
can store up to 350 calibra-
tions that can be submitted
to various regulatory agen-
cies for verification of com-
pliance issues. TrustSens
has built-in heartbeat tech-
nology to monitor the sen-
sor and send warnings when
it detects a sensor failure,
drift, or other measurement
errors.
http://us.endress.com
Input 217 at www.controleng.com/information
®
Process control
systems
DeltaV V14 Distributed
Control System
Emerson Automation Solutions
D eltaV, a cybersecurity-
certified control sys-
tem, is designed to deliver
new value in capital projects
and make plant operations
more connected and pro-
ductive. Version 14 includes
several enhancements to
eliminate costs and reduce
complexity in capital proj-
ects, plus improve produc-
tivity during operations
through enhanced access to
production and equipment
data, improved usability and
greater security. DeltaV is
the pathway for most plant
data and using the OPC UA
protocol from OPC Foun-
dation, its applications and
servers can securely share
data to cloud analytics appli-
cations, remote monitoring
solutions, and third-party
technologies.
www.emerson.com
Input 218 at www.controleng.com/information
www.controleng.com
Remote Assets. Local Control.
Simpler control from smarter cellular RTUs

Remote monitoring and control with RAM® industrial cellular RTUs.

Managing remote assets and ensuring smooth operations when you are at a distance has never been easier.
Red Lion’s Sixnet® series RAM industrial cellular RTUs provide users an intuitive, web-based interface to
easily configure event parameters and define alarm states that trigger I/O or send SMS text messages based
on real-time operational data.

With connectivity options such as I/O, serial, Ethernet and optional Wi-Fi, our rugged RAM RTUs provide a
secure all-in-one platform that seamlessly integrates with existing equipment to enable data visibility, control and
real-time notifications for field-deployed assets. Visit www.redlion.net/control to learn more.

+1 (717) 767-6511 | info@redlion.net | www.redlion.net

© 2019 Red Lion Controls, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
input #24 at www.controleng.com/information
2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE AWARDS
Safety –
Machine safety
Allen-Bradley Guardmaster
GuardLink Technology
Rockwell Automation
T he Allen-Bradley Guard-
master GuardLink tech-
nology is a safety-based
communications protocol
that helps operators reduce
and improve machine diag-
nostics and downtime
while increasing productiv-
ity. With GuardLink, safety
devices are easily connect-
ed in series while providing
access to individual device
diagnostics. This system
provides safety, diagnostics,
remote reset, and lock com-
mand over one four-con-
ductor cable with up to 32
devices per link. In addition,
users can reduce installation
cost, with up to 38% reduc-
tion in wiring, when using
GuardLink. The GuardLink
technology seamlessly inte-
grates with Allen-Bradley
Guardmaster safety relays
and components, allowing
users to access status infor-
mation throughout a safety
system.
www.rockwellautomation.com
Input 219 at www.controleng.com/information
48 • February 2019
Safety – Process safety,
intrinsic safety
Simatic SIS Compact
Safety System
Siemens Industry
T he Simatic SIS Com-
pact safety system was
designed as a dedicated safe-
ty control system for a safety
instrumented system (SIS)
based on selected system
components of the Simatic
PCS 7 and the Simatic Safety
product portfolio. The func-
tionality and price struc-
ture of Simatic SIS Compact
has been customized as a
stand-alone system to the
requirements of a highly
price-sensitive market for
small to medium-sized safe-
ty applications. The Simatic
SIS Compact is comprised of
hardware and software com-
ponents and permits easy
setup of dedicated SIS. SIS
monitors critical process-
es, and performs immediate
and automatic responses to
the process when a problem
occurs.
http://usa.siemens.com
Input 220 at www.controleng.com/information
control engineering
Software –
Applications
TwinCAT 3 Building
Automation Software
Beckhoff Automation
T winCAT 3 Building
Automation meshes with
existing TwinCAT 3 mod-
ules for HMI and the Indus-
trial Internet of Things
(IIoT), along with analyt-
ics and scope, and bundles
functions for building auto-
mation into one tool. Han-
dling the engineering and
control of all building sys-
tems on one software plat-
form uncovers significant
benefits, such as simple IIoT
communication, cloud-
based analysis of building
data, and the rapid creation
of individualized operator
interfaces. The meshing of
TwinCAT 3 Building Auto-
mation with the numerous
software modules available
in TwinCAT 3 provides sys-
tem integrators with a com-
prehensive toolbox that
covers all functions and
systems found in building
automation.
www.beckhoffautomation.com
Input 221 at www.controleng.com/information
Software – Asset
management, reporting
Dream Report V4.82
Data Analysis Software
Ocean Data Systems
D ream Report is a pro-
gramming-free, user-
friendly, automated
reporting and data analysis
software designed specifical-
ly for industrial automation
applications. It is designed
to be the simplest solution
for extracting data from
any data source and Dream
Report will provide automat-
ed reports to anybody, any-
where, and anytime. Dream
Report accommodate vari-
ous types of reporting, from
compliance reporting to per-
formance, efficiency, and
maintenance reporting in
discrete, hybrid and process
automation markets. Dream
Report makes information
gathering and formatting a
simple process, encouraging
users to create the reports
they want in addition to
reports needed.
http://dreamreport.net
Input 222 at www.controleng.com/information
www.controleng.com

Software –
Control design
Simatic Automation Tool
Siemens
T T
he Simatic Automa-
tion Tool enables users
to manage TIA automation
components during commis-
sioning, maintenance tasks
and in case of service. The
Simatic Automation Tool
is based on the TIA Portal
projects but the individual
tasks can be executed inde-
pendently of the engineer-
ing framework. If updates
and optimizations have to be
performed during operation
due to changed mechanical
configurations or program
changes, the Simatic Auto-
mation Tool lets mainte-
nance personnel make these
adjustments without the TIA
Portal. If loss of produc-
tion and downtimes play a
crucial role, the last execut-
able version of a plant can
be exported with the Simat-
ic Automation Tool before
changes are made to the
plant; it can then be accessed
again in case of error.
www.usa.siemens.com
Input 223 at www.controleng.com/information
www.controleng.com
Software –
Data analytics
AnalytiX-BI
Iconics
he AnalytiX-BI software
analyzes business intelli-
gence (BI) information with-
in an operational context to
reduce costs and maximize
efficiency. It improves data
accessibility, enables ana-
lytical processing, and pro-
vides data modeling/context
with improved performance
and intuitive visualization.
AnalytiX-BI, combined with
KPIWorX, a self-service
dashboard technology that
turns big data into action-
able intelligence. It offers
point-and-click data mod-
els and query technologies
that bridge IT, management,
and business systems. KPI-
WorX is a self-service client
tool that allows for the cre-
ation, saving, and loading of
AnalytiX-BI dashboards via
a user-friendly interface to
deliver contextualized asset-
based information to any
smartphone, tablet, or web-
enabled device.
www.iconics.com
Input 224 at www.controleng.com/information
Software –
HMI software
InduSoft Web Studio
Aveva
T
he InduSoft Web Stu-
dio is a platform agnostic
SCADA/HMI development
and runtime software that
incorporates all the tools
users need to create SCADA
and HMI applications, busi-
ness intelligence dashboards,
and OEE solutions. With
runtimes available for Micro-
soft Windows, Linux, and
VxWorks by Wind River
Systems, InduSoft Web Stu-
dio can create powerful
IIoT applications that can
be deployed on small-foot-
print embedded devices
and accessed remotely from
mobile devices, such as tab-
lets, smartphones, and wear-
able gadgets. More than 250
communication drivers, in
addition to support to stan-
dards such as OPC UA/DA/
XML/.NET/HDA, MQTT,
and patented solution for
database connectivity, make
it easy to integrate sensors,
controllers, ERP systems,
and cloud analytics into a
smart solution that can be
accessed anywhere.
www.indusoft.com
Input 225 at www.controleng.com/information
control engineeering
®
Software – Industrial Internet
of Things connectivity
KEPServerEX V6.5
Industrial Connectivity
Platform
Kepware
T he KEPServerEX version
6.5 industrial connectiv-
ity platform provides users
with the tools and resources
needed to address evolving
cybersecurity threats to their
industrial control system.
Version 6.5 includes compre-
hensive secure deployment
guidelines, greater project file
protection, enhanced pass-
word configuration, and
other updated security com-
ponents. To encourage adop-
tion of security best practices,
version 6.5 features a com-
prehensive secure deploy-
ment guide intended to help
users implement production
instances of KEPServerEX in
a way that can help to reduce
security risks. The guide
provides strategic recom-
mendations on using secure
interfaces and the configu-
ration API, on-going server
maintenance, KEPServerEX
installation, and post-installa-
tion actions.
www.kepware.com
Input 226 at www.controleng.com/information
February 2019 • 49
2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE AWARDS

Honorable Mentions
Hardware - HMI, operator interface, thin-client Industrial cybersecurity

EZTouch EZ12 HMI mbNetfix Industrial

EZAutomation Firewall
The EZTouch EZ12 human-machine MB connect line
interface is designed for indoor and mbNetfix is an industrial fire-
outdoor industrial environments with wall for automation users that
temperatures up to 131°F. provides protection against
www.ezautomation.net attacks by using the industrial
Input 227 at www.controleng.com/information
firewall to segment the production network into manageable
Hardware - Industrial PCs and logically separated units.
www.mbconnectline.com/en
C6030 Industrial PC Input 231 at www.controleng.com/information

Beckhoff Automation Industrial Internet of Things connectivity

Benefits of the ultra-com-
EIS-D210 Edge
pact C6030 industrial PC
Intelligence Server
include small space require-
ments, universal usage for Advantech
almost any automation and The wireless connectivity Edge
visualization application Intelligence Server EIS-D210 is
and exceptionally flexible installation, and usage in complex built on the Intel Apollo Lake series
applications with highest performance requirements. ATOM/Celeron processors’ efficient performance
www.beckhoffautomation.com for embedded applications.
Input 228 at www.controleng.com/information www.advantech.com/ea
Input 232 at www.controleng.com/information
Hardware - Industrial tablet
Machine and embedded control - PLCs
Field Xpert SMT70
Tablet PC Productivity1000
Endress+Hauser Programmable Controller
The slim, lightweight, and AutomationDirect
strong Field Xpert SMT70 The Productivity1000 stack-
tablet PC provides an able micro programmable
easy and touch-optimized logic controller has the to reli-
“tool” to manage field ably execute the many logic operations and communication
devices. requests that modern day industries require.
http://us.endress.com www.automationdirect.com
Input 229 at www.controleng.com/information Input 233 at www.controleng.com/information

Hardware - Integrated HMI controllers Machine sensors

Simatic IPC377E MR430 Size 11 Fiber Optic

Basic Panel PC Rotary Position Sensor
Siemens Micronor
The Simatic IPC377E Basic The MR430 Fiber Optic Rotary Position
Panel PC is based on the Intel Sensor’s small size, non-metallic con-
Celeron processor technol- struction, and 25-bit resolution provide
ogy and represents an IPC ideal EMI-immune position feedback
platform developed for cost-optimized, PC-based applications solution for operating environments stressed by RFI, micro-
in the industrial and industry-related environments. waves radiation, magnetic fields, high voltage, or explosive
www.usa.siemens.com atmospheres. www.micronor.com
Input 230 at www.controleng.com/information Input 234 at www.controleng.com/information

50 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

 ®

Machine vision, code readers Network integration - Ethernet switches

VisionPro ViDi Deep EKI-2525LI Small Ethernet Switch

Learning-based Image Advantech
Analysis Software
The EKI-2525LI runs on 12 to 48 V dc with
Cognex redundant input design plus one dc power
The VisionPro ViDi deep jack secured with power polarity reverse
learning-based image anal- protection.
ysis software is a field-tested, optimized, and reliable soft-
ware based on a state-of-the-art set of algorithms in machine www.advantech.com/ea
Input 239 at www.controleng.com/information
learning.
www.cognex.com
Input 235 at www.controleng.com/information
Network integration - I/O systems
Motion control
FLEX 5000 I/O Module
Flexible Transport Rockwell Automation
System FTS
The FLEX 5000 I/O includes
Bosch Rexroth 2 copper or 2 fiber ports and
The Flexible Transport System support for DLR, Star, Linear,
(FTS) is a linear motor-based and PRP topologies to pro-
transport system that provides vide flexibility in users’ network
a contactless and particle-free solution for the positioning of architecture.
materials and work pieces inside or between machines.
www.boschrexroth-us.com www.rockwellautomation.com
Input 236 at www.controleng.com/information Input 240 at www.controleng.com/information

Motion control - Drives Network integration - Wireless

Altivar Machine ATV340 Outdoor Radioline
Variable-Speed Drive Phoenix Contact
Schneider Electric
The RAD-900-DAIO6 (Outdoor
The Altivar Machine ATV340 is a Radioline) combines the 900
variable-speed drive designed to MHz Radioline wireless mod-
address the challenges of the smart ule and six I/O points in one,
machine era by combining easy robust, NEMA 4X housing.
installation with cutting-edge appli- www.phoenixcontact.com/us
cation control and advanced, easy- Input 241 at www.controleng.com/information

to-integrate automation capabilities.

www.schneider-electric.com
Input 237 at www.controleng.com/information Power - Energy, power protection, UPS

Network integration - Ethernet hardware Quint DC UPS

Patch Panel Interface Module Phoenix Contact
Phoenix Contact The Quint DC UPS is an intelligent
modular solution that provides
The Patch Panel serves as an inter-
critical system-backup voltage to
face module between field and con-
supply loads in the event of mains
trol cabinet cabling, with DIN rail
failure and indicates the operating
devices featuring push-in, IDC or
and battery state.
screw connection, in addition to the
www.phoenixcontact.com/us
traditional RJ45 connection. Input 242 at www.controleng.com/information
www.phoenixcontact.com/us
Input 238 at www.controleng.com/information
www.controleng.com control engineeering February 2019 • 51
2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE AWARDS

Honorable Mentions
Process control - Process sensors Software - Applications

Thermalert 4.0 Spot Syncade Quality

Pyrometer for Review Manager
Automatic Noncontact Emerson Automation
Temperature Monitoring Solutions
Fluke Process The Syncade Quality Review
Instruments Manager reduces the time
Thermalert 4.0 is a spot and effort required to iden-
pyrometer for automatic noncontact temperature monitoring tify, review, and resolve pro-
between -40ºF to 4,082°F, which allows more measuring points cess exceptions.
to be set up without cooling accessories and without installing www.emerson.com
Input 247 at www.controleng.com/information
cooling media supplies.
www.fluke.com Software - Asset management, reporting
Input 243 at www.controleng.com/information
FactoryTalk Network
Process control systems
Manager
Experion Batch Software Rockwell Automation
Honeywell Process Solutions FactoryTalk Network Manager
Experion Batch uses HMI technol- software provides increased vis-
ogy that automatically constructs ibility and insight into the perfor-
timeline views using visual ana- mance of users’ network in context
lytics, presenting the current and of their automation assets.
future state of operations in a nat- www.rockwellautomation.com
Input 248 at www.controleng.com/information
urally intuitive manner.
www.honeywellprocess.com Software - Control design
Input 244 at www.controleng.com/information
iQ Monozukuri
Safety - Machine safety Packaging Software
Jokab Safety Mitsubishi Electric Automation
StatusBus Monitor iQ Monozukuri Packaging software
Function concentrates on improving the produc-
ABB tivity, quality, and concepts for achiev-
The Jokab Safety Status- ing process improvements associated
Bus is an add-on function with the construction and configura-
to the DYNlink solution that offers a simple and cost-effective tion of applications and devices.
way to monitor the status of each door or emergency stop. https://us.mitsubishielectric.com/fa/en
Input 249 at www.controleng.com/information
www.abb.com
Input 245 at www.controleng.com/information
Software - Data analytics
Safety - Process safety, intrinsic safety
Movicon Pro.Lean Functional
EcoStruxure Triconex Software to Measure Overall
Tricon CX Safety System Efficiency Values
Schneider Electric Progea North America
The EcoStruxure Triconex safe- Pro.Lean is a Movicon functional
ty system delivers safety for module that allows users to mea-
life; the measurable operational profitability improvements can sure the overall efficiency values
cover the cost of the system investment in fewer than 6 months in real time by collecting and aggregating production process
while continually protecting people, production, and profits. data from different sources at production level.
www.schneider-electric.com www.progea.us
Input 246 at www.controleng.com/information Input 250 at www.controleng.com/information

52 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

 ®

Software - HMI software

FactoryTalk View
Site Edition
New Products
Rockwell Automation for Engineers
G
The FactoryTalk View Site
et coverage in CFE Media websites, newslet-
Edition version 10.0 visualiza-
tion allows operators added ters, and magazines through New Products for
functionality and expanded Engineers (NP4E), a CFE Technology database for
integration across the Rock-
new products appropriate for subscribers of Control
well Automation product
offerings. Engineering and other CFE Media supplements and
www.rockwellautomation.com
Input 251 at www.controleng.com/information publications, such as Applied Automation, IIoT for

Software - Industrial Internet of Things connectivity Engineers, Oil & Gas Engineering, Pure Power, Plant

FactoryTalk Linx Control Products Engineering, and Consulting-Specifying Engineer. The

and System Data Server NP4E database uses a detailed taxonomy to automati-
Rockwell Automation cally feed new products to appropriate areas of our
FactoryTalk Linx interfaces with PLC-5, SLC
websites and newsletters, and it serves products for
500 and Micro800 controllers and is spe-
cifically optimized to communicate with print and digital editions and awards programs.
Logix5000 controllers using EtherNet/IP.
See more New Products for Engineers.
www.rockwellautomation.com
www.controleng.com/NP4E PE
Input 252 at www.controleng.com/information

How to enter the competition

G
et a head start on the 2020 Engineers’ Choice Awards program by listing your products
in the New Products for Engineers database (www.controleng.com/NP4E) and completing
the entry form on the Awards Programs tab of your company’s vendor/manufacturer profile. All
product nominations, including supporting materials and payment, are conveniently submitted
through the database. Submit a new or significantly modified hardware, software, or combination
of the two introduced and available in North America from November 2018 through October 2019
for the 2020 awards. The product details provided should be factually convincing and clearly dif-
ferentiate benefits in the voting criteria: technological advancement, service to the industry, and
market impact. (Hint: We observe that engineers often appreciate quantified benefits more than
adjectives.) Typically, 85 to 120 products are nominated, with 3 to 10 products in each category.
One winner from each subcategory is selected based on subscriber votes. For the 2019 awards,
102 products from 44 companies (or major divisions) were nominated in 26 categories, resulting
in one Grand Award to one company (with the highest number of votes among all categories),
26 Engineers’ Choice Awards to 19 companies (highest number of votes in that category) and 26
Honorable Mentions to 19 companies (second highest number of votes in that category).

www.controleng.com control engineeering February 2019 • 53

MEDIA ShOwCASE fOr EnginEErS

The Unlimited Platform for

SCADA and So Much More

• Unlimited licensing
• SCADA, IIoT & MES together
• Instant web deployment
• Totally cross-platform
• Built on open IT standards
• Installs in minutes

Discover more at:

inductiveautomation.com/ignition

Input #100 at controlengineering.hotims.com Input #101 at controlengineering.hotims.com Input #102 at controlengineering.hotims.com

PRODUCT & LITERATURE SHOWCASE

Input #106 at www.controleng.com/information

eNewsletters
Subscribe today by visiting: www.controleng.com/newsletters
Input #103 at controlengineering.hotims.com

54 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

O&GEng-CE 2017-06_TRGuide_MediaShowcase2x4_MII.indd5/17/2017
1 2:23:54 PM
Advertising Sales Offices
ContentStream
Patrick Lynch,
Director of Content Marketing Solutions
630-571-4070 x2210
PLynch@CFEMedia.com

AL, FL, GA, MI, TN

Aaron Maassen, ®
Classified, Product Mart,
Media Showcase
630-571-4070 x2216
ad index
AMaassen@CFEMedia.com Company Page# RSN Web

AR, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, MN, MO, ABB Motors & Mechanical . . . . . . .19 . . . . . . . . 12 . . . . . . .https://events .abb/acw
MS, NE, ND, OK, OH, SD, TX, WI,
Central Canada Allied Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 . . . . . . . . . . 6 . . . . . . . .www .alliedelec .com
Bailey Rice
(630) 571-4070 x2206 Automation24 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 . . . . . . . . 14 . . . . . . .www .automation24 .com
BRice@CFEMedia.com
AutomationDirect . . . . . . . . . . . C2, 1 . . . . . . . . 1, 2 . . . . . . .www .automationdirect .com
AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, ID, MT,
NV, NM, OR, UT, WA, WY, Digi-Key ELECTRONICS . . . . . . . . .17 . . . . . . . . .11 . . . . . . .WWW .DIGIKEY .COM
Western Canada
Iris Seibert Eaton’s Bussmann
(858) 270-3753 Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11, 12, 13 . . . . . . 8, 9 . . . . . . .www .CUBEFuse .com
ISeibert@CFEMedia.com
Endress + Hauser . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 . . . . . . . . 21 . . . . . . .www .us .endress .com/trustsens
CT, DE, MD, ME, MA, NC,
NH, NY, NJ, PA, RI, SC, VA, EU AUTOMATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 . . . . . . . . . . 5 . . . . . . . .www .euautomation .com
VT, WV, DC, Eastern Canada
Julie Timbol hargrove . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 . . . . . . . . 15 . . . . . . .www .hargrove-epc .com
(978) 929-9495
JTimbol@CFEMedia.com Inductive Automation . . . . . . Bellyband . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www .inductiveautomation .com/ignition

International (outside U.S., Canada) Lapp Usa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 . . . . . . . . 16 . . . . . . .www .lappusa .com
Stuart Smith
+44 208 464 5577 Moore Industries - Intl . Inc . . . . . . .4 . . . . . . . . . . 4 . . . . . . . .www .miinet .com
stuart.smith@globalmediasales.co.uk
Ocean Data Systems . . . . . . . . . . .43 . . . . . . . . 22 . . . . . . .www .DreamReport .com
Publication Services
Jim Langhenry, Co-Founder/Publisher, CFE Media OPTO 22 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 . . . . . . . . . . 3 . . . . . . . .www .opto22 .com
JLanghenry@CFEMedia.com
Steve Rourke, Co-Founder, CFE Media RADWELL
SRourke@CFEMedia.com INTERNATIONAL, INC . . . . . . . . . .15 . . . . . . . . 10 . . . . . . .www .Radwell .com
Elena Moeller-Younger, Marketing Manager
773-815-3795, EMYounger@CFEMedia.com
Red Lion Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 . . . . . . . . 24 . . . . . . .www .redlion .net
Kristen Nimmo, Marketing Manager
KNimmo@CFEMedia.com
SEW-EURODRIVE, Inc . . . . . . . . . . .9, C4 . . . . . .7, 26 . . . . . .www .seweurodrive .com
Brian Gross, Marketing Consultant, Global SI Database
630-571-4070, x2217, BGross@CFEMedia.com
Michael Smith, Creative Director Siemens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 . . . . . . . . 13 . . . . . . .www .usa .siemens .com/tia-portal
630-779-8910, MSmith@CFEMedia.com
Paul Brouch, Director of Operations Unitronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 . . . . . . . . 23 . . . . . . .www .unitronics .com
PBrouch@CFEMedia.com
Michael Rotz, Print Production Manager Yaskawa America, Inc . . . . . . . . . . .C3 . . . . . . . . 25 . . . . . . .www .yaskawa .com
717-766-0211 x4207, Fax: 717-506-7238
mike.rotz@frycomm.com
Maria Bartell, Account Director, Infogroup Targeting Solutions
847-378-2275, maria.bartell@infogroup.com Inside Machines
Rick Ellis, Audience Management Director
303-246-1250, REllis@CFEMedia.com Aerotech Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .M9 . . . . . . . 19 . . . . . . .www .aerotech .com
Letters to the editor: Please e-mail us your opinions to
MHoske@CFEMedia.com or fax 630-214-4504. Letters should
Beckhoff Automation LLC . . . . . . . .M4 . . . . . . . 17 . . . . . . .www .beckhoff .com
include name, company, and address, and may be edited.
Information: For a Media Kit or Editorial Calendar,
go to www.controleng.com/mediainfo. CONTEMPORARY CONTROLS . . . .M10 . . . . . . 20 . . . . . . .www .ccontrols .com/machine
Marketing consultants: See ad index.
Custom reprints, electronic: Marcia Brewer, WAGO Corp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .M6 . . . . . . . 18 . . . . . . .www .wago .us
Wright’s Media, 281-419-5725, mbrewer@wrightsmedia.com

Request moRe infoRmation about products and advertisers in this issue by using
the http://controleng.com/information link and reader service number located near each.
If you’re reading the digital edition, the link will be live. When you contact a company
directly, please let them know you read about them in Control Engineering.

www.controleng.com control engineering February 2019 • 55

2019
ENGINEERS’ CHOICE PRODUCT ADVICE ®

Help for automation, designs

Back to Basics: Automation product design, system integration, and
application advice follows from some of the 2019 Engineers’ Choice winners.

E
ngineers’ Choice winners were invited to provide advice for production, to provide a more flexible, reliable and transparent
Control Engineering subscribers on product design, system environment. As machine builders and end users move to a digi-
integration, or application advice for the product. Experts talized manufacturing approach, industrial PCs are well suited to
from Emerson Automation, Endress+Hauser, Nidec Con- ensure increasing production capacity and flexibility to meet vari-
trol Techniques, Siemens, and Universal Robotics offer insights. able demand, improving quality while reducing production costs,
and improving efficiency in secure settings.
Make it easy, extend value Raj Rajendra, consultant/manager, Siemens Industry Inc.:
Bob Halgren, DeltaV platform management director, Emer- Input/output systems (I/O or IO systems) are designed to be sim-
son Automation: Easier is not always easy enough as engineers pler, smaller, and more powerful. Installation and wiring should
spend hours integrating control systems on projects to con- be simple, done faster, and with fewer or no tools. Compact size,
nect systems. This work is harder if an engineer has to re-engi- faster response times, diagnostics, and greater functionality are
neer a product to do something it should do out of the box. Easy expected. Such designs help companies with automation systems
software should be intuitive with out-of-the-box functionality to maximize performance, improve efficiency, increase flexibility,
that reduces initial work. Other advice includes building on an and reduce downtime and footprint.
existing innovation to extend value, reimagining preconceived Jana Kocianova, product manager, Siemens: Knowing cus-
notions, and applying product innovation today and in the future. tomer’s current and future needs is the most important part of
designing a successful automation product. Machine manufac-
Calibrate sensors in place turers need tools to stay connected with many automation devic-
Keith Riley, national product manager for pressure/tempera- es, cut costs, and stay independent of an engineering framework.
ture, Endress+Hauser Inc.: The biggest risk for a thermometer in Machine manufacturers and plant operators need machines and
a hygienic system is the calibration process. Opening the device, plants to keep them informed. Reduce downtime and increase
removing the insert, connecting and disconnecting power cables, efficiency with one tool to manage automation components.
introducing the thermometer into the oil bath or block calibrator, Craig Nelson, product manager, Siemens Industry Inc.: In the
or transporting the thermometer to the lab increases the likeli- digital factory — motion control business: Automation advice:
hood of mechanical damage. Removing the sensor from the pro- Devices and systems should provide a positive customer experi-
cess or thermowell is the biggest reason for RTD failure. Risks are ence and be easily connect, monitor, commission, and operate.
reduced if the temperature sensor can be calibrated in situ. The customer experience is a driving force behind any successful
product development. Ease-of-use often can be the hardest part
Open architectures of product development to justify in the budgeting phase. It also
Mike Wolfe, product manager motion control, and Alex Har- can have the biggest return on the bottom line. Feedback from
vey, director of marketing, Americas, for Control Techniques, a the field helps. Use the smartphone as an ease-of-use benchmark.
Nidec brand: Manufacturers should consider open architectures
when designing new automation products for greater flexibil- Easier robot use
ity, innovation, and competitiveness. From mobile connectivity Jürgen Von Hollen, president, Universal Robots: Fast set-up,
to Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) integration, the automo- easy programming, flexible deployment, and safe operation are
tive industry is at the forefront of automation innovation. Car the four core principles that define collaborative robots. Many
manufacturing is about improving productivity through automa- people mistake collaborative robot design as only being about
tion because, as an industry, profitability is safety. Safety is the cost of entry. Upgrading
directly linked to the speed of manufacture
and machine availability. Designing open
automation systems gives the flexibility to
M More
INNOVAtIONs
INNOVAt
the collaborative robot’s internal features has
strengthened the four core principles. Built-
in force torque sensing, safety features, and
KEYWORDS: Product design
use more protocols and components. Automation should be easy to use.
improved precision enable faster integration
Reliability and quality are important.
in a wider range of future-proofed applica-
Digitalize, I/O, updates, easier Easy integration and safety help.
tions. Increased repeatability makes collab-
Alessandra Da Silva, product market- orative robots suitable for precise finishing,
ing manager, Siemens Industry Inc.: The CONSIDER THIS assembly, and electronics tasks.
factory floor is undergoing a transfor- Are your automation products easy to
implement, use, adapt, and update?
mation through increased digitalization. Mark T. Hoske is content manager,
More intelligent automation and con- ONLINE Control Engineering, CFE Media,
nected devices are changing traditional www.controleng.com/events-and-awards mhoske@cfemedia.com.

56 • February 2019 control engineering www.controleng.com

POWER HAS
COME FULL
CIRCLE
NEW!
Introducing the
GA800 AC Drive
Your time is valuable. The new, easy-to-use GA800 AC
Drive from Yaskawa gives you the power to make all of your
operations better.

• Rest easy with legendary Yaskawa quality and embedded

functional safety.
• Experience ultimate ease-of-use with DriveWizard ® Mobile
and optional Bluetooth ® connectivity.
• Enjoy incredible torque production and network connectivity.

Your days are complicated enough. Let us help

simplify them. To learn more, visit or call Yaskawa
today at 800-YASKAWA.

Yaskawa America, Inc. Drives & Motion Division 1-800-YASKAWA yaskawa.com For more info: http://go.yaskawa-america.com/yai1248

input #25 at www.controleng.com/information

 Working late again?
Tired of working nights and weekends
on motion control projects? It’s time to
contact an automation specialist at
SEW-EURODRIVE for help.

Using the latest innovation, we provide a

complete package from start to finish,
including expertise, project planning,
software, components, commissioning,
and worldwide support.

Go home and relax... we got this!

seweurodrive.com / 864-439-7537

input #26 at www.controleng.com/information