What is Industrial Automation & How it Evolved

What is industrial Automation

Industrial Automation is really a technique where we make pay human control to machines. In industrial automation machines are designed to accomplish the tasks which people accustomed to achieve. Why it is done? Because of its advantages:

Through Industrial automation we will do mass production with less manpower
Quality from the technique is increased
Safety of individual & tools are increased
More accurate process control
Since human intervention is less so reliability with the system is higher
Systems operate is low power supply, more electronic control so equipment our life is higher
Changes in process logic becomes easier since logics are changed mostly through software

Principal Industrial Automation MNCs

L & T ALSTOM

Schneider FESTO

Siemens Fuji Electric

Allen Bradley Toshiba

Messung TATA Honeywell

Modicon Omron

Mitsubishi Fanuc

Asia Automation Delta

How industrial automation control system Evolved?

Initially automation was achieved through manual control, operators accustomed to control the task at each and every step. Human intervention was there at each step. Drawbacks were inferior output, errors associated with human involvement affected compromised safety, wastage of raw material, and accuracy of human action.

Then came Pneumatic Control: Industrial automation in this era was achieved through invention of pneumatic controllers in early 1920s. Automation was achieved by controlling air to pneumatic valves, which experts claim were actually switched on/off by relays and switches.click this link here nowwere very bulky and changing from the logic was very complex procedure since plenty of rework was necessary to accomplish difference in logic. So time delivered to complete task changes was very high

Hard wired logic control: contactors, relays (for switching), timers and counters (for timing and counting) were utilised for achieving desired industrial automation. But these systems also resulted into bulky panels. A lot of wiring was involved so time come to complete task was higher. Defect investigation & troubleshooting was complex.

Electronic Control using Logic Gates: In early 60s electronics dominated the method, electronic logic gates were utilised for achieving logical operations. they replaced switching devices like relays and contactors within the control circuits. Electronic times & counters replaced mechanical timers & counters. Due to usage of electronics space as well as requirements reduced, maintenance requirement reduced & systems were more reliable.