CLICK PLCs and Pneumatics Team Up for Success at Ridgeline Machine
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookeBookIndustryIssue 34 - 2016Learning ResourcesManufacturingMaterial HandlingNotebook IssueOnline OnlyPackagingPLCPneumaticsProductProgrammable ControlSimple PLCUser Solutions

CLICK PLCs and Pneumatics Team Up for Success at Ridgeline Machine

Ridgeline Machine made extensive use of pneumatics when building a low-cost, small-footprint, portable traymaker to replace a manual process for one of their customers. Ridgeline Machine Design, LLC (RMD), founded in 2012, is primarily a packaging machinery producer, and the company’s owners have over 40 years experience designing and building custom machinery. RMD builds packaging…
Boy Scout Programming Merit Badge
Company TopicsNewsOnline OnlyProductProgrammable Control

Boy Scout Programming Merit Badge

During the summer of 2015, while many Scouts were going to traditional summer camps, a group of Scouts from the Twin Rivers Council in New York spent a week at STEM Camp where they participated in Electronics, Engineering, Surveying, and Programming Merit Badges. The Scouts were thrilled to learn how to program the same PLCs that…
AutomationDirect Offers Free PLC eBook Download
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AutomationDirect Offers Free PLC eBook Download

AutomationDirect’s new eBook, “PLC Handbook: A Practical Guide to Programmable Logic Controllers” is now available as a free download. Designed as an easy-to-read guide for users new to PLCs, this eBook explains what a PLC is and its history. It also provides detailed information about what to look for when choosing a controller, with both…
The Bulgarian Bat Detector - Simulating Bat Echolocation
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookAutomationDirect SpotlightEducation/DIYIndustryIssue 32 - 2015Learning ResourcesMachine ControlNotebook IssuePLCProductProgrammable ControlSimple PLCSystem IntegratorsUser Solutions

The Bulgarian Bat Detector - Simulating Bat Echolocation

Over my years working as an Automation Systems Integrator, I occasionally get projects that are different from the normal industrial, process and manufacturing systems. I was recently asked to develop the controls for a museum exhibit to simulate a bat’s echolocation. The museum, Children’s Center of Sofia, in Sofia, Bulgaria, and I promptly named the…
Out of the Box - Contest Winners!
ApplicationApplication StoriesDrivesEntertainmentHMIMachine ControlNewsOnline OnlyOperator InterfacePLCPress ReleasesProductProgrammable ControlVariable Speed Drives

Out of the Box - Contest Winners!

What happens to AutomationDirect.com products when they are taken out of the box? We asked you guys to show us what happens when our products leave the box and you get your hands on them. Honestly, the applications that our customers shared with us were amazingly awesome. We had several great videos submitted over the last…
How to Choose a Controller
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How to Choose a Controller

Choosing the most effective controller for your application depends on a number of factors. The worksheet below serves as a checklist of things to consider when determining programmable controller requirements. It lists the most important areas to consider when choosing a system, as well as, provides space for recording determinations of your system needs. To…
Sinking and Sourcing Concepts
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Sinking and Sourcing Concepts

When choosing the type of input or output module for your PLC system, it is very important to have a solid understanding of sinking and sourcing concepts. Use of these terms occurs frequently in discussion of input or output circuits. It is the goal of this post to make these concepts easy to understand, so you can make the right choice the first time…