As engineers, we often need to design a customized control system or interface to address a need which can”t be met with an off-the-shelf interface device. In the used-to-be days, we”d get a Bud box, ...

When electronics release the Magic Smoke, more often than not it’s a fairly sedate event. Something overheats, the packaging gets hot enough to emit that characteristic and unmistakable odor, and ...

There are many vendors and sources of PLCs: Automation Direct, FactoryMation, B&B Electronics, and yes, even eBay, among others. I will use the Click PLC available from Automation Direct as an example ...

Microchip has changed the name of its UK subsidiary that is working on nano-relay-based logic and memory for an EU ultra-low-power computing and memory project. Caldicot-based Microsemi Semiconductor ...

Regardless of the industry you are in, the universal workhorses for automating a piece of equipment or process are simple hardwired controls like cube relays, timers and counters. You can find these ...

Relays usually are driven using optocouplers, which offer isolation between analog and digital grounds to ensure that switching currents in the relay coils do not affect the noise margin of the ...

Safety is a major concern in a good many motor-driven applications. This is true in industrial applications where motion starts when power is applied and especially true when power is restored after ...