THE DUTCH INDUSTRIAL computing specialist OnLogic has announced an edge computer designed to link existing equipment with the cloud, sensors and legacy devices. The solid-state Helix 511 computer offers a choice of connection options to help bridge the gap between modern systems and older technologies. Many legacy devices cannot connect to modern networks. The new computer can be installed alongside existing equipment, avoiding the need to replace existing IT/OT infrastructures. “The embedded computing space has traditionally lagged behind when it comes to adopting new technologies,” explains OnLogic product manager, Hunter Golden. “We want to shift that paradigm, while still allowing innovators to access and exchange data with their existing equipment. In many cases, you don't need to rip and replace everything – you just need a Helix 511.” A pair of Thunderbolt 4 ports provide high-bandwidth connections to devices or displays, while four serial ports can communicate simultaneously with legacy devices. The fanless PCs can be configured with onboard digital I/O to provide programmable signalling and control. They can also be used with builtin cellular modems. www.onlogic.com/hx511 n TECHNOLOGY KEB AUTOMATION HAS developed and patented a sensorless method for controlling motors that, it claims, is “in no way inferior to operation with an encoder”. The field-oriented vector method can control permanent magnet synchronous, IPM (internal permanent magnet) and synchronous reluctance motors over their entire speed range, with less susceptibility to faults, reduced wiring effort and lower costs than encoder-based systems. KEB suggests that the technique – which it calls Complex Vector Sensorless Control (CVSCL) – could be used in servodrive positioning applications where, for example, where high concentricity is required even at the lowest speeds. It could also be applied to flywheel energy storage systems that operate at the torque limit over their entire speed range. “The new motor control method enables the determination of position, speed and electrical motor parameters,” explains Achim Schöke, KEB’s deputy head of electronics development. “Thanks to CVSCL, a speed-dependent selection of different encoderless control methods is not necessary. This would eliminate problematic switching processes, which can lead to instabilities due to transient processes.” KEB plans to implement the encoderless control concept in firmware for its drives. “For application areas where the drive must be operated safely in the lower speed range up to and including zero speed, or where high speeds must be reached quickly and safely from the start, CVSCL is a true enrichment,” Schöke declares. www.keb-automation.com https://youtu.be/3WNzj86euVI Sensorless motor control is ‘as good as using an encoder’ Enclosure Climate Control Whatever the scale...... ......we have the solution KEB claims that its sensorless motor control technology will cut costs and reduce wiring Edge computer links legacy systems to new ones
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