We’ve had many requests over the years to put time bombs into the PLC programs that run machine controls and control system design. These time bombs are usually requested by our OEM customers who want recourse when a bill goes unpaid.
We have resisted most of these requests because there are laws against such practices but… this article sheds a little more light on what is and is not legal. Interesting read for anyone who manufactures and sells equipment that’s run by software, which is to say, almost everyone.
Protective Lexan Covers are Now Available for All Unitronics Vision Controllers
Even though the Unitronics Vision controllers are very economical, there’s no sense damaging them when you can now easily apply a durable protective cover.
We now offer a self-adhesive Lexan protective film custom cut for each Vision controller from Unitronics. This includes the V130, V350, V280, V290, V530, V560, V570, V1040 and V1210.
These protective covers are resistant to the following chemicals:
Congratulations! You have been chosen as ‘Unitronics Distributor of the Year’ for 2011. You were chosen because of your dedication and hard work towards promoting Unitronics. Enclosed you will find a small token of our appreciation. Please know that your efforts have not gone unnoticed. You are a pleasure to work with and we look forward to a very successful 2011.
Best regards,
Holly Dillon
Regional Marketing Manager
We also appreciate everyone at Unitronics and their dedication to customer service and providing a high quality product at a competitive price. They’re also continuously working to provide new, cutting-edge products. We’ll continue working to promote the product because we believe it is usually the best solution for our customers and their PLC/HMI control needs.
AMPS has been standing behind the Unitronics Vision PLCs for about ten years and we have designed many control systems around them. Our engineers prefer to program using the VisiLogic platform above any other. We, too, are looking forward to many years working with Unitronics.
Interfacing Unitronics Vision Controllers with Tectron Metal Detectors
For the first time, we were out at the Custar Stone Quarry under pleasant weather conditions. Until now, it’s always either been below freezing or raining. Today, however, was quite nice…
The customer has been very pleased with our work but wanted to add a metal detection feature to prevent scrap metal from being dumped into one of their crushers. Crushing equipment can easily pulverize large rocks but, strangely, has a very difficult time with metal. The equipment is very expensive so it makes sense to invest in metal detection equipment and reduce wear on the crusher. Metal detectors from Tectron Engineering Company were chosen for the job.
These metal detectors were very nice and easy to use. They were programmable for sensitivity and time delays and various other features which made the PLC programming changes very simple. In the end, our customer had a nice new feature with minimal down time.
This time of integration is a specialty of AMPS Industrial Controls. Contact us any time to discuss your application.
The new V1210 OPLC from Unitronics has been featured at Automation.com
This is the same controller we mentioned yesterday. Hopefully the latest member of the Vision family from Unitronics will be making a splash all over the place…
This controller is a perfect fit for the food industry- with its IP66 rating, the V1210 is ideal wherever spray/wipe down applications apply. A wide variety of on board I/O options can be added by simply snapping a module onto the back of the PLC. Expandable up to 1024 I/O, these configurations include digital and analog inputs and outputs, high-speed I/O, PT100/Thermocouple capabilities, and weight measurement. They can be mounted locally or remotely, up to 1000m from the controller. This power-PLC is equipped with a built-in USB programming port, recipe capabilities, Micro SD card memory storage for data logging and back up, complete PLC cloning and more.
AMPS is offering the latest Vision controller from Unitronics
The V570-57-T20B-J is the same controller as the standard V570-57-T20B with these additional advantages:
IP66 Rating
It has a fully flat fase plate
These features are especially important in the food industry where customers need to have the ability to spray and wipe down the panel without concerns of bacteria becoming trapped in grooves and crevices.
This is especially beneficial to industries such as Food, where customers need to be able to spray & wipe down the panel without concerns of food being stuck in the grooves.
The V570-57-T20B-J is the same price as the V570-57-T20B and is currently in stock and ready to ship.
As noted today on controldesign.com, Carlo Gavazzi has recently introduced a new line of inductive proximity sensors.
AMPS Industrial Controls has been providing inductive proximity sensors from Carlo Gavazzi for years and we’re happy to see this series has been added.
The ICB Series features a high performance potting material that is made from recycled corn by-product, which features a higher resistance to mechanical stress, thus providing increased reliability, improved stability and a longer sensor lifetime. Another innovation for the new ICB Series is the air-core sensing coil, which replaces traditional ferrites and coils. This new coil has a higher immunity to magnetic fields than traditional coils. The sensor can withstand higher vibration levels and impacts than older inductive proximity sensors because it has no ferrite coil, which is susceptible to cracking. The new ICB Series is available in standard and double distance sensing ranges. The nickel-brass housings are available in long and short barrel lengths. The three-wire sensors are available in your choice of normally opened or closed NPN or PNP outputs. Connection options include a two meter PVC cable or a convenient M12 disconnect plug.
AMPS can get you the best pricing possible on these new inductive prox sensors and help you work them into your machine control design.
Energy Management | Lovato Electric | Billing & Control of Power Consumption
DME and DMG Meters
The DME Series from Lovato Electric includes energy meters for measuring power consumption
The DMG Series from Lovato Electric includes multimeters and power analyzers for measuring power consumption and controlling harmonic distortion.
MID Directive for CE Applications
The MID directive states two things:
Energy meters have the purpose of active energy measurement for invoicing consumption.
In Europe, each energy measuring instrument in which data is used for a monetary transaction (billing) MUST BE COMPULSORILY CERTIFIED.
AMPS Can Supply these Meters or Integrate them into your Facility
AMPS Industrial Controls is knowledgeable on these products and can help you select the right one for your facility or application. We can also help integrate them for you.
“Vision1040 PLC with a built-in HMI Operator Panel has a 10.4 in. display and nine programmable function keys. Onboard I/O can be added with a module onto the back of the PLC. The 16-bit 65,000-color touchscreen HMI displays graphs to reflect trends of recorded data. Display options include more than 1,000 user-designed screens, and up to 500 images per application.”
The V1040 PLC is the latest Vision controller and it’s available for purchase from AMPS Industrial Controls. We have several on our shelf as I type. The feedback we’ve received on it so far is very good and we are just about to start our first control system design with it. The project we’re beginning could turn into a high profile system so we’re eager to do a great job on the PLC & HMI programming. There are sure to be posts on it here in the near future…
