Sensors & Switches

How do you do process control? Should control loops be handled centrally, or distributed? Writing in Control Global, a contributing editor quotes a couple of industry experts as saying that up to 80% of control loops should be solved in field devices. And he goes on to make the statement that, "If you're using Foundation fieldbus (FF)-capable field devices, exploiting control in field devices is, at minimum, a 'no increased risk' choice, and even a lower-risk choice than control in the host." What's your experience — and opinion?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Sensors & Switches, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Sensors & Switches today.

Do you need to convert degrees to radians, or ounces to dynes? Sensor-maker Futek Advanced Sensor Technology offers a handy collection of online calculators on its Web site that you just might want to bookmark. Aside from unit conversion utilities, you'll also find calculators for bolt torquing, sensor span adjustment, and zero balance. What are your favorites?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Sensors & Switches, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Sensors & Switches today.

Wireless communications can be enormously useful in acquiring data from across a factory, but there are also a wide variety of wireless technologies to consider. In some cases, engineers are opting to use a mixture of technologies to fulfill the range of their requirements. Have you been able to successfully mix technologies? What tips do you have for your colleagues?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Sensors & Switches, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Sensors & Switches today.

Protection of electrical circuits from shorts and over-current situations is crucial, but not always easy. Engineers constantly wrestle with the need to protect the circuit but also avoid nuisance circuit-breaker tripping from short-term surges, start-up currents, or vibration.

Here's one article that addresses how to properly match a breaker type to a given application, and how to minimize nuisance-tripping. A key point from the article: over-sizing is not the answer! What are your experiences with this circuit protection problem, and how did you solve it?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Sensors & Switches, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Sensors & Switches today.

An OpEd piece in the New York Times cites proposed New York City draft legislation that would require anyone possessing or using a detector that measures chemical, biological, or radioactive agents to get a license from the Police Department. The measure is intended to minimize anxiety and damage from possible false alarms of terrorist attacks. Writers of the opinion piece, however, say that the legislation targets all "environmental sensors," and that an extreme interpretation of the term could preclude even laboratory analyses used by students, teachers, and researchers.

Prudent law, or something that needs to be thought through a little more?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Sensors & Switches, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Sensors & Switches today.