See Archive Page for earlier news.

31/7/03

Unique solution for eliminating load measurement errors - Instron, a leading provider of testing equipment designed to evaluate mechanical properties of materials and components, introduces its patented Dynacell. This load measurement system is designed to eliminate load measurement errors caused by acceleration of load string components during fatigue and high-speed tests. It is the only load measurement system available with the accelerometer located at the heart of the Ioad ceil, removing the possibility of errors due to off-center loading. The accelerometer rectifies both amplitude and phase errors caused by inertia mass such as the specimen grip.
Omnipolar Hall-effect devices for reed-switch replacement - A new family of Hall-effect switch ICs from Allegro MicroSystems can act as high-reliability replacements for reed switches in automotive and other demanding applications. The new A3245/6 devices are omnipolar, ultra-sensitive Hall-effect switches with digital outputs. The omnipolar feature allows operation with either a north or a south magnetic pole of sufficient strength to turn the output 'on'. In the absence of a magnetic field, the output is 'off'.
Award announced - ExperTune's John Gerry to Receive ISA's Douglas H. Annin Award at the 2003 ISA conference in Houston. The Douglas H. Annin Award, established in 1985, recognizes outstanding achievement in the design or development of components of an automatic control system from the input measurement through the final control element. The award is in honor of Douglas H. Annin, a pioneer in modern-day control valve actuation and control valve body design.
ExperTune's full suite of optimization tools are designed to increase the efficiency of processes. Its PlantTriage monitors and assesses the entire plant, ensuring optimal operation. The company's analysis includes simulation, modeling, robustness, linearization, valve wear analysis, pH linearizer, time series analysis, multivariable, statistical, frequency response and PID tuning tools.

Alarms on your mobile - The Messenger Plus and Alert models from Comdaq, each have integrated GSM modems that feature call out alarms via SMS text messages, up to 8 programmable inputs and 4 relay outputs for control function (Alert only).The text message data and channel set up data are fully programmable. The units monitor input data at one minute averages offering detailed graphical and numerical data with Commdaq's PC based Streamlink software.
New user-friendly thermal imager provides high performance for an unprecedented low price - Raytek, the leading provider of infrared thermometry, has introduced ThermoView Ti30, a new thermal imager that allows maintenance professionals to conduct cost effective and highly accurate professional maintenance inspections. This instrument is different from competitive products because of its unique combination of low price, high functionality, and ease of use. It may be used with very minimal training by maintenance professionals regardless of their level of experience and knowledge.

New temperature & pressure multimeter probes - .Eurolec Instrumentation has introduced the a new range of attractively styled, multimeter probes. They use jack plugs to permit connection to standard multimeters, which can then display measured values (0.1 resolution) of temperature in degC or pressure in mbar. The MMPR series are suitable for use with non-corrosive, non-ionic liquids & gases. The ability to carry a temperature probe & a pressure probe in a 'Kit Carrying-Case' rather than additional bulky instruments, will be an advantage both in cost savings and convenience.
HART master driver now available - A new HART Master Driver option called "SXIPM-HART" enables Sixnet's IPm line of embedded Linux based Controllers and Remote Terminal Units (RTUs) to gather variables and other data directly from HART compatible smart transmitters and devices.
New laser evaluation programme - Universal Laser Systems, Inc., manufacturer of air-cooled CO2 lasers for OEM integration, announces an industry innovation: The OEM Laser Evaluation Program. The Laser Evaluation Program allows customers to test Universal's CO2 lasers in their particular applications prior to committing to a purchase. According to Gary Higman, OEM Sales Manager at Universal Laser Systems, "We developed this unique program to make evaluating a CO2 laser an easy and no risk process for qualified OEMs."

Tension measurement without touching - Applied Measurements Ltd have Iaunched Digiforce, a brand new instrument which measures tension in wires, strands, cables or rods using a completely different measuring technique, making direct contact unnecessary. Being portable and battery operated, Digiforce suits many applications where quick and easy tension measurement s needed particularly in pre-stressed concrete production, elevators, cranes, aerial and power unes, mining, drilling, plus yachting, mooring and winching.
New vision development module doubles measurement performance - National Instruments' new Vision 7 Development Module for LabVIEW 7 Express, provides the tools machine vision engineers need to prototype, benchmark, and create, more quickly, highly advanced applications. The Vision 7 Development Module delivers performance gains over previous software versions. For particle analysis applications, for instance, engineers can choose from more than 80 different particle measurements that are now two to 10 limes faster than previous software module versions.
Redundant Ethernet ring switch recovers fast after trauma - The OnTime R-208 Ethernet swîtch is now available from communications specialists Westermo, enabling the Company to service high reliability, fast recovery, redundant ring Industrial Ethernet installations, particularly in critical applications.

The end of an era! - Livingston has just announced the launch of it's new website, containing it's brand new web based catalogue. One of the worlds largest rental inventors for Test and measurement equipment, can now be accessed via this catalogue at www.livingston.com. Available in six languages, the new website is user friendly and covers Livingston's service offerings, history, news and allows users to locate equipment quickly and easily. This transition marks the end of Livingston's hard copy catalogue which had been produced for the last thirty years.
Sell off or buy up possible - The latest news, reported on Jim Pinto's Invensys weblogs, is that Schneider is sniffing around Foxboro and Wonderware. In fact, senior VPs at Wonderware were invited to a dinner-for-9 in Newport Beach, this week (Monday, 21 July 03). Stay tuned to the weblog for the latest news and developments.
If you don't get Jim Pinto's enews every week then you are missing a lot!
Micro-contact probes for testing fine-pitch components - Peak Test Services has expanded its range of double-ended spring test probes with two new series designed for probing at 0.75 mm (0.03 inch) centres. The new P700 and P705 Series are ideally suited to use in test heads and test sockets for use with fine-pitch components including BGA (ball grid array) and MCM (multi-chip module) packages.

Eliminate large controller stocks - A new range of discrete temperature controllers from manufacturer West Instruments wiIl take ease of use and flexibility to a new level, according to the company. Developed from the highly successful 6100, the new 6100+ retains ail the popular characteristies of its predecessor but they have added a number of features to make it even more attractive to users. One of the biggest advantages of the new range is that ail the output cards - both relays and SSRs - are now plug-in. This will undoubtedly appeal to companies who, until now, have had to stock a wide range of controllers. Using the 6100+ they need to keep only one type of controller in stock and adapt it for each application as required.
Chemical manufacturer commits to two-year service and management contract - Honeywell Industry Solutions has announced that Sasol Germany GmbH Moers has signed a contract to standardize all of its plant operations on Honeywell's Experion PKS Process Knowledge System. Sasol has purchased Value Plus, Honeywell's software enhancement and support program for Experion systems, as well as parts management and site services. Experion PKS will preserve Sasol Moers' investment in automation and boost operational efficiency.

Analysers recognised among the most technically significant products of 2003 - The Niton XLt and Xli Infiniton x-ray fluorescence (XRF) Analysers have been awarded the prestigious R&D 100 Award for technological innovation by Reed Elsevier's R&D magazine. The R&D 100 Awards Committee announced that Niton's new XLt and XLi infiniton analysers would be sharing an award as one of the 100 most technologically significant products of 2003. The award wilI be officially presented at the Gala Awards Ceremony in October.

Non-contact temperature sensor with miniature sensing head - The MLE Series from Calex, is a range of miniature infrared temperature sensors with separate etectronics. These sensors are capable of measunng temperatures in the range 0degC to +500degC and provide a 4 to 2OmA output which is linear with temperature. The miniature sensing head measures just 18mm x 44mm. It is made of stainless steel, sealed to IP65, and wiII operate in ambient temperatures up to +70degC without additional cooling. This makes the series ideal for applications where there is only a small amount of room available ta mount the sensor or the ambient temperature around the sensing head is higher than normal.

Money-saving power quality analyser products - Fluke is now offering its very successful handheld 43B Power Quality Analyser with a 30% cost saving. At the same time it is offering two other alternatives - free test tools with the full 43B package, and a kit which includes a voltage event monitoring system with the 43B. The 600V Category II safety-compliant Fluke 43B is targeted at electrical engineers, utility technicians, electrical contractors, facility engineers, industrial equipment technicians and many others who have to deal with power supplies and networks in their everyday work.
Two-year product guarantee - Oriental Motor, has announced an extended product guarantee - from twelve months to two years. Confident in the reliability of its products, the company still anticipates no returns. One of the largest manufacturers of AC motors, Oriental Motor has designed its AC motors with an extended life span often reaching eight years. The new two-year guarantee extends to all Oriental Motor products including its stepper motors (VEXTA) and cooling fans (ORIX). All products must surpass stringent in-house continuous testing. They can then be supplied to the market with the two-year product guarantee.

Conference programme now available - The program of CAN in Automation's (CiA) 9th international CAN Conference is published now. The international CAN Conference (iCC), held in the city of Munich from October 14 to 16, 2003, is CiA's most important annual event.
Communication seminar offers user-friendly approach to technology training - In an effort to increase opportunities for industry professionals to learn more about HART technology, the HART Communication Foundation (HCF) is offering a special 4-hour "Basics of HART" seminar presented by HCF Chief Engineer Wally Pratt. During a recent tour of Canada, Pratt received enthusiastic response from the nearly 200 representatives of major process industry companies who attended.
More on our Fieldbus News page

New brand website - Gresham Power Electronics, the European base of the worldwide power conversion group, which includes Telkoor in Israel and Digital Power in the USA, have launched a web site dedicated to their European customers. Visitors to the site will find full information on their products and services, news and help and advice on all aspects of power conversion and protection. The new website complements the re-branding of Gresham to reflect their position as part of a major, global power conversion group with design and manufacturing on three continents and strategic partnerships with major specialist distributors. The website gives clear information about their major business areas; OEM power supplies, UPS and Military power conversion and distribution and offers a rapid response mechanism for "off the shelf" custom power supplies and bespoke power protection systems for large IT Networks and complete building services solutions.
Pressure transmitter market continues to grow - The device's excellent reliability is one of the most important factors that will influence the continued growth of the pressure transmitter market. Worldwide, this market is expected to grow at a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 2.9 percent over the next five years. The market was us$1,274 million in 2002 and is forecasted to be over us$1,471 million in 2007, according to a new ARC Advisory Group study titled Pressure Transmitter Worldwide Outlook.
New vibration sensors meet new ATEX directive for hazardous areas - Monitran's new family of intrinsically safe vibration sensors meet with the Iatest ATEX European Directive 94/91EC100a for hazardous areas which became mandatory this month. The new range allows engineers to monitor vibration levels of pumps, fans, motors, drilling rigs and ail types of rotating machinery which are in potentially explosive operation conditions found in industries such as mining, offshore drilling, petrochemical, quarrying, etc.

Industry's first complete chlorine measurement system - Emerson Process Management has announced the Rosemount Analytical Model FCL Free Chlorine Measurement System, designed to eliminate cost and complexity in the chlorine analysis of fresh water. This is the industry's first complete chlorine measurement package, including a sensor, connecting cable, analyser and panel-mounted flow controller - ready for immediate installation. In addition, the Model FCL does not require sampling systems and messy reagents for the control of pH, since the analyser automatically compensates for changes in the pH of the sample, a significant time and money-saving capability.

Three-phase analyser enhanced for power quality troubleshooting - LEM has enhanced the capabilities of its ANALYST 3Q hand-held, three-phase analyser to simplify even further the identification and quantification of the power quality problems that affect the performance, safety and efficiency of electrical plant and equipment. New features offered by the ANALYST 3Q include a logging capability that allows a complete set of parameters to be recorded for ten days at ten-minute intervals - an invaluable aid to identifying trends and intermittent faults. Other new advanced features include: energy measurement - kWhr and kVAhr; a fourth current channel for simultaneous measurement of neutral currents; current measurement from 0.5 to 3000A; recording of current and voltage harmonics for troubleshooting; and a clear graphical display of voltage and current unbalance. Customers can update their existing units by downloading an upgrade from the website.

Keynote to focus on industrial security - The Instrumentation, Systems, and Automation Society announced today that David E. Kepler, corporate vice president and chief information officer for The Dow Chemical Company, will deliver the opening ISA EXPO 2003 keynote address on Tuesday, 21 October, at 8:30 a.m. This is North America's leading automation and control event, taking place 21-23 October 2003 in Houston, Texas. Titled "Plug, Play and Protect," Keplerís address focuses on the growing complexity of information technology and, in turn, industry's dependence on it.
A perfect round! - Lascar Electronics has Iaunched a family of round waterproof, 1P67 rated voltmeters in LED and LCD formats. They have been designed primarily for panel mount instrumentation, process & control and automotive applications. These voltmeters have a 3 1/2 digit display with 8mm digit height. They both feature a 200mV fuil scale reading, auto-polarity, auto-zero and 3 selectable decimal points. The modules have screw terminal connections for ease of use and varlous operating modes can be selected via jumper Iinks - NO soldering is requïred.
Key technology donated to Fieldbus Foundation - Emerson Process Management, in its commitment to open, interoperable standards, has donated "sample code" to the Fieldbus Foundation. The HSE sample code will help suppliers to speed their development of HSE Linking Devices and HSE devices. This sample code is available to the members of the FF as part of the HSE Packet Analyser Toolkit Professional (AT-442).
More on our Fieldbus News Page

Distributed control systems market to grow to around €10 Billion in 2007 - The worldwide market for DCS systems including hardware, software, and services is expected to grow from $US9.1 billion in 2002 and is forecasted to be over $US10.3 billion in 2007, according to a new ARC Advisory Group study titled "DCS Worldwide Market Outlook and Forecast: 2002-2007". ARC has scaled down its projections for growth in the DCS market since its previous study. ARC Research Director and study author Larry O'Brien stated, "Our analysis shows that the market declined between 2001 and 2002 by over 2 percent. Persistent and global economic weakness with limited capital spending in the process industries will result in the market growing less than one percent between 2002 and 2003. Growth through 2007 will improve so that the average annual rate for the study forecast period is 2.5 percent.
See also this months edition of Industrail Automation Insider who had this item published and distributed a week before the release arrived on the Read-out mailbox! Well done Andrew!.
New Spectroradiometry Software - Glen Spectra, the exclusive representatives in Britain for Photo Research Inc have introduced SpectraWin 2, a completely revised software package for Photo Research SpectraScan spectroradiometers
New North American representative appointed - Lumera Laser has appointed RPMC of St. Charles, MO as their North American (USA, Canada, Mexico) representative responsible for all of their picosecond industrial and scientific laser products.

Intrinsic safety with calibrated standards-grade accuracy - The Hart Scientific 5577 is a handheld, intrinsically safe RTD thermometer system capable of operating in specified hazardous environments. Despite its light weight and portability, it's a two-channel, high-performance instrument that provides high-accuracy measurements across an important temperature range. It is rated for intrinsic safety by CENELEC in Europe under the following European-based rating: EX II 2G EEx ib IIB T4. Its safety rating makes it a critical instrument for petrochemical refineries that have mainly relied on expensive and delicate liquid-in-glass thermometers for temperature reading. It's also a valuable device for natural gas firms, which, in custody transfer applications, must make precise temperature measurements to ensure volume accuracy.
Innovator of the Year - On July 4 2003, Endress+Hauser Conducta GmbH & Co.KG was elected "Innovator of the Year" in the Dresdner Bank, Berlin. Patron Lothar Späth awarded the prize to the highly innovative measuring technology specialist from Gerlingen. Above all, the degree of consistency with which innovation is pursued within the medium-sized enterprise (MSE) was the factor which convinced the jury of high-ranking professionals. As part of the world-wide Endress+Hauser Group, Conducta is the leader in technology and innovation with regard to analysis technology for liquid analysis in water management and conservation as well as in the chemical, food and pharmaceutical industry. More details of the competition.
New I/O Module Reduces Panel Space Requirements and Cost - The new SixTRAK 32 Channel Discreet Input Module (Model ST-DI-024-32D) is the latest edition to SixNet's family of "process quality" I/O, which includes EtherTRAK¨ direct Ethernet I/O and RemoteTRAK¨ remote RS485 I/O. The ST-DI-024-32D is designed to reduce panel space requirements and costs for I/O installations.
The ISA Network launches new page - The ISANetwork brings visitors a new look and enhanced navigation and convenient content features. Drop-down menus supplement the left navigation bar to help navigate the site faster. Enhanced home-page content rotates among 23 ISA Technical Communities several times per month to connect visitors to information they need. Membership of ISA is required to access some of the pages.
Hottest Company of the Year! - Honeywell Industry Solutions has been named to START Magazine's "Hottest Companies of the Year," an award recognizing companies that strive to improve the manufacturing landscape with the highest level of technology, products and services. The honour is the latest industry acknowledgement of Honeywell's recent technological advancements, most notably its Experion PKS(tm) Process Knowledge System(tm). Experion PKS, a solution that controls, monitors and integrates complex processes in a variety of settings, was launched in April 2002, and instantly gained industry-wide attention.

Powerful new functions for user interface building, data exchange, test sequencing, and documentation - Keithley Instruments has just announced the availability of TestPoint version 5.0 test and measurement development software. TestPoint is a tool for creating custom test, measurement, and data acquisition applications. It includes features for controlling external hardware, creating user interfaces, processing and displaying data, creating report files, and exchanging information with other Windows programs. TestPoint 5.0 adds a variety of useful functions to the package's already extensive list of application development tools.

Improved instrumentation design and documentation - I&E Systems announce the release of DAD (Design and Documentation) Version 4. A result of on-going development of the database application used by blue chip clients worldwide. DAD treats instrumentation components and connectors as data objects connected and behaving like their real world equivalents. It creates all standard drawings and reports in a WYSIWYG fashion with increased efficiency and accuracy. DAD v4 has improved performance with a simpler interface. Spreadsheet views are used for data and graphical representations for wiring. Component history now logs all changes from creation to deletion. There is a full audit path for the database. Users can record milestone events, such as "Delivered to Site", for components to measure project progress.

Dad support The Instrumentation Signpost with a banner advert on our home page

Flow measurement on Shell North Sea unmanned gas production platforms - The smart multivariable nature of the Rosemount 3095MV transmitter from Emerson Process Management, coupled with the new MTL Instruments 8000 Series field-mounted Process I/O� system, is enabling Shell UK Exploration and Production to reduce the cabling and complexity of flow data retrieval from well-heads on North Sea gas platforms. The multivariable approach reduces the number of instruments required; this plus efficient wiring of smart instruments delivers space-saving advantages for offshore production automation.
The Shell gas production platforms recently installed offshore have been "Normally Unattended Installations" - where the platform size and dimensions have been reduced, for example, by not having a heli-deck. This means the platforms can be placed in position using a drilling rig, reducing total installed cost by 30-50%. The Brigantine BG and BR platforms, and the Skiff platform 72kms off the Norfolk coast, have been built to this design.
Low-cost I/O cards - Available from Audon Electronics isa new low-cost range of PCI digital I/O cards compatible with the LabVIEW and Wonderware InTouch SCADA software packages. The range has been designed with the industrial user in mind, and feature real-world interfaces such asrelays, Darlington drivers and optically isolated inputs.

Linear stage delivers rapid motion required for vision inspection of high-density microprocessor connectors - A Baldor linear motor positioning stage has helped AmFax to deliver a compact and high-throughput vision system for the production testing of Cinch's unique CIN::APSE range of connectors for state-of-the-art microprocessors. Designed for mounting high-end server and workstation processors onto PCBs, a CIN::APSE socket contains as many as 1296 wire filament contacts on a 1 mm pitch, with a profile as short as 0.8 mm. AmFax's customised automatic test equipment (ATE) - Precision Vision - verifies the manufacturing integrity of each of these contacts using a number of vision testing techniques. Each test sequence is performed on a fixture containing 20 connectors - and up to 26,000 individual test points - demanding a camera positioning system capable of making rapid and precise moves.
Automatic logging of PID changes, plant-wide - When operators, engineers or technicians make many adjustments in one area, this indicates a problem in that area. Without an effective documentation system, changes are not communicated. This further exacerbates problems in the area. ExperTune's new version of PlantTriage automatically logs changes to PID tuning values across the plant. PlantTriage records these PID change events for every controller. Users can correlate the events and add notes.
Another record for the Signpost - The Read-out Instrumentation Signpost has chalked up another record last week when it recorded a visitor figure of 3162 in the week ending 28th June 2003. The previous record was 2496 in February 2003. Part of the reason is, without doubt, that we are now using much improved (and detailed) stats from our service provider. We keep a record of these stats on our Stats Pages. During the month of June a total of 12,008 visitors visited 17,878 pages.
IT in manufacturing, wireless, and sensors lead Autumn show topics - More than any other ISA conference and exhibition in recent history, SA EXPO 2003 offers something for everyone who manages, engineers, or researches automation, control, and plant communications. In October this major show brings together a wide array of technology, a formidable slate of automation, control, and IT experts, and as true a picture of the industrial automation future as can be found anywhere. The expanded format of the fall event includes an Industrial Network Security Symposium, a Sensors for Measurement & Control Symposium and the following Product & Technology Pavilions: Automation IT, Industrial Communications, Bluetooth, and Sensors.

Low-cost pulse generator has variable delay - The TGP110, new from TTi (Thurlby Thandar Instruments), is a general-purpose pulse generator operating from 0.1 Hz up to 10 MHz. As well as providing independent control of pulse width and pulse repetition rate, it offers independently variable pulse delay. The generation of pulses for the stimulus and control of electronic systems is beyond the capability of all but the most sophisticated of function generators. The architecture of the TGP110 enables it to generate pulses of a fixed width regardless of the repetition rate, offering duty cycles which can extend down to 1 in 100 million. It can generate pulse widths in the range 50 ns to 5 sec.