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The Read-Out Instrumentation Signpost
Measurement, Control and Automation Resources throughout the World
Instrumentation and Control News
Press releases from your company may be sent to any of the addresses shown on our Contacts Page.
See Archive Page for earlier news.
Nollaig - 2000 - December
23/12/00
- Latest fieldbus newsletter - The latest newsletter to reach this office if that of WorldFIP, "the key to Open Control Systems." It discusses WorldFIP advances and the applications of WorldFIP in the power, transportation, metals, automotive and process arenas.
22/12/00
- Television stardom! - The BBC will feature National Instruments software and hardware in a series of programmes at the end of December. 'Are You Superhuman' is a series of science programmes for a general family audience hosted by popular sports presenter and former English soccer star Gary Lineker. The three-part series explains interesting aspects of the behaviour of the human mind, how the human body performs during sports, and also how humans deal with extreme environments. Scientists use NI LabVIEW software and data acquisition (DAQ) hardware to monitor temperature in an experiment to explore how humans cope in extreme environments. Using thermocouple sensors, the NI products measure the temperature of the skin and display the results on a laptop computer.
21/12/00
Supplier of low cost test system acquired - Mindready Solutions Inc., a subsidiary of nurun Inc recently acquired Yelo, the supplier of the TestPoint low cost test system based in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland. The acquisition of Yelo will allow Mindready to pursue its international growth strategy through a well-established local operations center in Northern Ireland.
20/12/00
- Web sales of Automation products will near $42.00b by 2005 - "Web sales and the implementation of e-business strategies are causing a revolution in the automation business," according to ARC Senior Analyst David Clayton, the author of just published, Web Sales Outlook for Automation Products and Systems - Market Analysis and Forecast through 2004. "Not too long ago, just having a home page meant an automation supplier was Internet-savvy. However, the rise of commercial Web sites, intranets, extranets, trade exchanges, and auctions as critical business tools is dramatically changing the face of the automation business."
19/12/00
- Condition Monitoring Over the Internet - Windmill Software have announced their new Windmill Remote software. This lets users monitor conditions at a distance, and view live data over the Internet. It is especially useful for hazardous environments. Designed to incorporate GPS co-ordinates, it is also ideal for mobile systems where location needs to be logged.
- Revolutionary Aqua Search Technology On New Web Site - Cyco Software, a leading provider of document management software for the design environment, unveils today a brand new design and format of its www.cyco.com web site. The company that invented 'EDM in WebTime' is now using the strength of the web to enhance the supply of information to its customers, partners, prospects and the press. Traffic to the Cyco web site has more than doubled in the last 10 months due to the succussful launch of its AutoManager Meridian EDM software.
- New miniature triaxial accelerometer - Sound and vibration specialist, Bruel & Kjaer has launched a new miniature triaxial Isotron accelerometer, the Endevco model 65. High sensitivity and high resolution distinguish the model 65 triaxial accelerometer from comparable products. Packaged in a small welded titanium cube measuring 10 x 10 x 10mm, model 65 weighs just 5 grams and is ideal for structural analysis applications.
18/12/00
- "Even greater impact on them than preparing for Y2K." - is a quotation from Steve Rubin of Intellution in talking about customer reaction to the US' FDA 21 CFR Part 11 regulations for electronic records and electronic signatures. the Signpost has now set up a page of resource links calledElectronic Doucument Management
15/12/00
14/12/00
- Ethernet book - the winter issue of The Industrial Ethernet Book has just appeared. As well as the usual technical insights this issue is worth having for the directory of 330 products and world sources alone. Among the provocative article is one entitled "Enter Ethernet, exit fieldbus?" and "Industrial Ethernet: the new wild west!".
See our Fieldbus News.
- Optimal PID Settings for Varying Loops - ExperTune's full suite of optimization tools make it easy to increase the efficiency of your process. This software may be used to analyze and tune PID loops in any industrial controller and includes powerful simulation, modeling, robustness, linearization, valve wear analysis, pH linearizer, time series analysis, multivariable analysis, statistical and frequency response tools. It creates a full report of the analysis in Microsoft Word.
- Early Warning and Fast Troubleshooting System for DeviceNet Reduces Downtime - Woodhead Connectivity/SST, has introduced the NetAlert suite of DeviceNet diagnostic products to help electricians, automation engineers and system integrators to certify new DeviceNet industrial network installations, to speed DeviceNet maintenance and repairs, and to prevent plant automation downtime by predicting faults. NetAlert combines the DeviceNet specifications plus years of troubleshooting experience into a network health signaling and troubleshooting system. The NetAlert product family consists of the patent-pending DeviceNet PowerMonitor, TrafficMonitor and NetMeter tools. The PowerMonitor and TrafficMonitor uniquely integrate power quality and data analysis instruments with status indicators into the DeviceNet cabling for early fault detection by plant floor personnel. The NetMeter integrates expert troubleshooting experience into an easy-to-use, intelligent, handheld meter for fast DeviceNet repairs by a novice.
13/12/00
- New Ethernet CPU offers users increased speed, more memory - GE Fanuc Automation has introduced the new VersaMaxm CPUEO5, with embedded Ethernet. This new low end, high performance programmable logic controller CPU expands the VersaMax family's features with the addition of built-in Ethernet capability, faster instruction execution times, and more user memory.
12/12/00
- Safe acquisition - MTL has acquired Standard Automation for about $ 20m. MTL is a British company, with a respectable market-cap of about $100m and is a leader (along with Pepperl+Fuchs, Stahl and Elcon) in intrinsically safe products. "The Intrinsic Safety market is declining as industrial networking reduces the need for multiple barriers in hazardous environments. Looking for growth, MTL has acquired what is essentially a sales company that represents Wonderware and others in the Southwestern US."
Quoted comments from Jim Pinto's incomparable eNews.
11/12/00
- Radar level gauge performs under severe process conditions - Aventis CropScience in Widnes (GB) manufactures active ingredients for agriculture. Instrumentation for such liquids brings significant challenges - and the FisherRosemount APEX Radar Level Gauge has achieved remarkable success on one particularly difficult process reaction vessel. The agitated liquid to be monitored is a mixture of hydrochloric acid, toluene and other ingredients, in a 3.5 metre high tank manufactured from Titanium. The liquid creates a coating of foam, which forms a scum, and sticks to everything. Previously a non-contact ultrasonic gauge had failed because of this foam, and the hydrochloric acid vapour, plus the presence of the rotating agitator blade in the beam.
- Motion control Developer's Kit simplifies evaluation and upgrade to PCIbus - Baldor has released a bundled Developer's Kit version of its PCTbus-based motion controller, NextMove PCI. Provided complete with Mint programming software, manuals, cables, and motion control and 110 interfacing hardware - the kit provides everything required to evaluate and prototype machine control solutions for Windows platforms.
9/12/00
- Best Product Award at CIM 2000 Conference - eMation, the
leading provider of Internet infrastructure products connecting embedded devices, machines, buildings, and factories to e-Business systems and the people that use them, announces its Web@aGlance, enterprise information portal, was awarded Best New Product at CIM 2000, Britain's premier manufacturing conference and exposition. The Best New Product award recognizes the most effective demonstration of real business advantages that a product can offer end users in manufacturing.
8/12/00
- Replacing a process pressure transmitter without emptying the vessel - Up to now, replacing a process pressure transmitter mounted on a vessel required an emptying of the vessel. With VEGA's ball valve fitting, this extra work has become unnecessary. The fitting is provided with a mounting flange on one side which is screwed to the vessel, and with a socket on the other side for holding a process pressure transmitter type D84 with process connection FG4. If the ball valve fitting is closed, the transmitter can be safely and easily installed or removed. The pressure acting on the ball valve can be up to 200 kPa.
- Acquisition expands instrumentation turnkey capability in oil and gas markets - Parker Instrumentation has t acquired Ives Valves, a leading international manufacturer of industrial flow control technology. The move adds a broad line of manifolds and valves for flow and pressure instrumentation applications to Parker's range, enhancing the company's ability to deliver turnkey packages and solutions to industrial instrumentation OEMs, and oil and gas exploration and production projects.
- Arbitrary waveform generators have up to four channels - The TGAl24O Series, new from TTi (Thurlby Thandar Instruments), is a range of arbitrary waveform generators comprising one-, two-and four-channel instruments.The multi-channel versions are capable of generating two or four waveforms, which can be either fully independent or linked using simple or complex relationships. They can provide full inter-channel triggering, summing and phase control.
- High-end Fibre Channel PMC module with full protocol suite is industry leader in the Real-Time SAN market - VMETRO announced today the VMFC-2250 which is the high-end adapter of a series of third-generation Fibre Channel PMC modules. Capable of transferring full duplex payload data in excess of 100 MBytes/sec in each direction with a full set of new protocols, the modules represent state-of-the-art technology within Real-Time System Area Network (RT-SAN) applications such as disk storage, sensor networks and inter-processor communications.
7/11/00
- Show preview -
OSPMA FieldComms has just closed its doors and we have put up a review on our site.
- General assembly for Vancouver - The Fieldbus Foundation General Assembly for 2001 is scheduled for 6/7 March in Vancouver, Canada.
- Increasingly high quality at Italian Show - The 29th Bias 2000 event (International Automation, Instrumentation and Microelectronics Conference and Exhibition), which took place at the Milan Trade Fair halls between 7th and 11th November, confirmed the international importance of the exhibition. Bias was undoubtedly the most important fair held in Europe this year, as well as the main event of even years for those who operate on the fields of automation, industrial componentry, laboratory instrumentation, microelectronics and LTC for the industry. 2,512 exhibitors (of whom 878 were Italian and 1,634 were foreigners) from 32 countries attended the event, which was held on a 90,000 square meters area. Here they met 56,731 visitors, 7% of whom were foreigners coming from about seventy different countries.
4/12/00
- New software improves digital level performance -
The Masoneilan 12300 Digital Level Transmitter, from Dresser Valve Division, is now available with new LevelVue software which allows this smart, displacer-type 4-20 mA instrument to communicate remotely to a laptop computer. The unit's Device Description is also registered with the HART Foundation so it can be programmed, at any authorised centre worldwide, with the handheld HART communicator.
- New modular data acquisition unit for industrial shop floor environments - Field Electronics has announced the Series 4000 modular intelligent, programmable data acquisition and control unit that provides fully isolated, high accuracy measurement and control for use in harsh industrial shop floor locations. The family comprises a modular, DIN rail mounting data acquisition and control unit; Field ST, a powerful IEC6I 131-3 configuration software tool; a palm top programming tool and a touch screen operator station. The 4000 Series units are also compatible with most popular PC SCADA packages.
- Free filter design software
delivers digital signal conditioning solutions fast -
Systolix has released version 4.0 of its free digital filter design software, FilterExpress, and has added a companion simulator called FilterSim. The Windows-based tools provide electronic and communications systems designers with an extremely rapid means of developing and evaluating DSP-based filters of almost any kind - including processor efficient multi-rate designs.
2/12/00
- Dual-well fixture eliminates critical handling time - A new Dual-Well Fixture developed by Schaffner for use in high-volume testing of
power supplies, offers significant increases in test productivity. By allowing one unit to
be tested while the other is replaced, the new fixture succeeds in eliminating handling
from total test time.
1/12/00
- CompactPCl processor board for embedded applications - SBS Technologies, Computer Group has announced a new ultra compact single-slot 3U CPCI board that features Motorola PowerPC 7400/75x technology with processing speeds up to 500 Mhz. This CompactPCl CPU board, with a flexible 110 and memory configuration, is ideal for embedded industrial automation, medical, scientific, imaging, telecommunications, military and aerospace applications.
- Framework for Programmable CANopen Devices -
 The CAN in Automation (CiA) international users and manufacturers group has released Verion 3.0 of the Framework for Programmable CANopen Devices (DSP-302 V3.0). The reviewed document is compliant with the CANopen Specification Version 4.01. An important enchancement of DSP-302 is the de-scription of the Boot-up procedure. This Boot-up procedures allows the realisation of so-called PIug'n'Play systems. This allows to design systems, that are able to recognize that devices are removed or added during runtime. This is very usefull for the service of the system, due the service personal do not need any deep knowledge of the system.
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MDC Technology, a leading worldwide provider of process optimisation and performance monitoring solutions for the oil & gas, hydrocarbon processing, petrochemical, chemical and utility industries. MDC has development and project support Headquarters in England, and an office in Houston, Texas.