Dick Caro led the charge for adopting Ethernet as a fieldbus and a means of achieving interoperability between hundreds of products. He held positions at Foxboro and ARC Advisory Group,…

BY JEREMY POLLARDIn a world where hardware vendors are also your software vendors, it was surprising to find an independent software company that has survived with its HMI/SCADA software in…

By Dick CaroIn 1999, the question was: "Can  Ethernet be used in an industrial automation application?" Today, the question is: "Which version of Ethernet should I use for my industrial…

BY JEREMY POLLARDDevice servers are typically used with a PC, not a PLC. And a "virtualized" serial port is used to interface the PC to the end device. However, Rockwell…

THE COMPANY Fujitsu Transaction Solutions Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Fujitsu Limited, is a provider of self-checkout systems and services to retailers in North America. Its U-Scan self-checkout systems…

Not unlike many good ideas, Patheon's idea for an apprenticeship program came from a plant floor employee. "Quite a way back, an employee came to me and asked to do…

BY JEREMY POLLARDIn every industrial application, there is a need to provide alarming for your processes. In most cases, the alarming is taken care of by the HMI application. And…

BY JEREMY POLLARDIn my last column, I reviewed a product called Engineering Base (EB) ó an electrical diagramming tool that uses Microsoft Visio as the drawing and reporting tool, rather…

BY JEREMY POLLARDEngineering Base (EB) diagramming software allows users to create single- and three-phase electrical drawings, as well as PLC I/O drawings, panel layouts and bill of materials (BOM). There…

By Jeremy PollardColumnist Jeremy Pollard reviews VB Watch.PRODUCT SPECS:Name: VB WatchVersion: 2.04Vendor: Aivosto Oy, Helsinki FinlandApplication: VB development/runtime debuggingPrice: $299-$900 US Microsoft Visual Basic Version 6 (VB6) is an application…