Archive for the ‘Industrial’ Category

So what is NET metering ? It is the ability to measure power/energy Generated (for solar/wind) Used ie how much the home consumes (That used to be easy!) Exported back to the grid (basically = Generated – Used) NET metering is really of value where there is some generation on site such as a wind [...]


Talking about a handy utility that Power One provide for their Aurora inverters.  In my case one for domestic Solar PV duty (nice piece of hardware).  The version used is v2.9.6 which is produced, I believe by some nice people in Italy.  So what’s my thoughts on it so far…. Cost – Well it is [...]


I love the idea of power efficient wireless devices or even better some power harvesting battery less design for remote sensors.  Of course all this good techno standard stuff needs to get cheap, aka volume/white-goods style. But unfortunately as is the case sometimes very good ideas and standards rumble along without moving into mainstream. The [...]


Stop rubbing your eyes, the ‘standard’ pricing of Scada/HMI systems hasn’t changed much, but there are some very interesting entry level licenses that offer exceptional value and open an exciting range of new possibilities. In order to compete with the lower-end hardware based HMI systems Ge-IP has for a long time offered a cut-down version [...]


Hopeless, but predictable…….. Apple’s new iPad looks very very desirable for every gadget-man out there, but fortunately Apple’s tactical stubbornness means my wallets stays closed.  No sale for me.  Don’t worry I have already ranted before about how rubbish the iPod Touch browser is, because by deliberate design it does provide support for Abobe Flash. [...]


The quiet lad in the corner, doesn’t say much, just gets the job done, minimum fuss, invisible, shuns the spotlight and does not receive the credit that is deserved. Kinda sums up the GE Intelligent Platforms Proficy Historian product and strangely enough, this is taken as a compliment. So what is it ? It is [...]


As a student back in the 80′s a fierce debate raged when selecting hi-fi’s.  Whether, to buy a stack of separates or forgo some audio quality for convience, features and darn I say style/looks. A similar choice now exists for industrial PCs and in particular industrial client screens used in hostile plant locations.  Perhaps the [...]


Here goes for some well earned free advertising for a small Canadian company called Brultech.  These guys have a brilliant little Electicity Moniter that goes way beyond the supermarket clip-on things. The model I like is the Brultech ECM-1240 Electicity Moniter with 7 channels So what extra does it offer that makes me all excited [...]


Pigging or pipe cleaning using an ice slurry to be precise. It just makes so make sense ! Like most of the best ideas it is the simplicity and effectiveness that makes you think…… how come I never though of it ! Promises better cleaning with less water/air/chemicals and if something goes wrong it just [...]


I like XP embedded, there are many strong cases for using it, especially to get XP running on minimal resources to get volume device costs down whilst still having the benefits and flexibility of a mainstream OS. But, for low volumes and in particular one-off system builds XP embedded is a hassle.  So is this [...]


After being impressed with the NISE 3110 I blogged about earlier, Nexcom have realised a cut-down atom based unit which looks ideal for industrial client stations. The unit is smaller at 185mm (W) x 132mm (D) x 50mm (H).  Even though there is less connectivity there is still gigabit ethernet and 3 serial ports and [...]


Okay, at the time of writing the long touted Goggle powermeter is only available to the select few.  It seems they want the large utilities to bring it through to the masses. It is not open as far as I can see to the nosey techies. Not too worry, I have been a long admirer [...]


Some years ago I dabbled with fanless PC’s for industrial HMI/Scada client duties. I would guess this would be way back in 2005 or before and in those days on going fanless you paid a performance penalty with the lower power CPUs. However, for industrial use the benefits were longer life in hostile locations and [...]


The chaps and helpers over at the opc foundation have been beavering away for the last few years and the result is about to hit the streets with the first UA “universal architecture” 1.00 release. I’ll leave others to explain what opc is and how the new opc-ua is even better. I’ll summarise a few [...]


Another longstanding favourite of mine has had a little make over and I’m impressed. Logmein is a remote access solution that happens to offer a decent free version, is really simple to use and has a great management console to help control multiple PCs and transient external invitees.  Performance is also exceedingly good. It seems [...]



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