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- Industrial Sensing Fundamentals – Back to the Basics: NPN vs PNP
- Basic Operating Principle of an Inductive Proximity Sensor
- Back to the Basics – How do I wire my 3-wire sensors?
- Analog Signals: 0 to 10V Vs. 4-20 mA
- Back to the Basics: How Do I Wire a DC 2-wire Sensor?
- Flush or Non-Flush - What's the Difference?
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- Inductive Proximity Sensor Targets - Material does matter
- Flexibility: A Key to success in manufacturing
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Tag Archives: measurement
IO-Link Measurement Sensors Solve Application Challenges
In industrial distance and position measurement applications, one size definitely does not fit all. Depending on the application, the position or distance to be measured can range from just a few millimeters up to dozens of meters. No single industrial … Continue reading
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Posted in All posts, Analog Position Sensors, Linear Position and Distance Measurement
Tagged inductive distance sensors, inductive linear position sensors, IO-Link, linear position sensors, magnetic linear encoders, magnetostrictive, measurement, position measurement, sensor, Short Range
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Magnetic Linear Encoders – Tape Magnetization Technology
Precision Tape Magnetization Leads to Precision Position Measurement The key to ultimate accuracy for any magnetic linear encoder system is the precision of the magnetic encoding on the tape (sometimes called a scale). Sensors inside the encoder read head respond … Continue reading
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Open- vs. Closed-loop Control
Several previous articles here on SENSORTECH have mentioned closed-loop control (Servo-Hydraulic Showcase, Linear Feedback Sensor Applications: The Three M’s). But exactly what does “closed-loop control” mean? How does it compare to open-loop control? I recently ran across an article in … Continue reading
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Intelligent Interfaces and IO-Link Innovation
I recently had the opportunity to attend Hannover Fair in Germany and was blown away by the experience… buildings upon buildings of automation companies doing amazing things and helping us build our products faster, smarter and cheaper. One shining topic for … Continue reading
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Posted in Analog Position Sensors, Devicenet, EtherNet, Inductive Proximity Sensors, Industrial Identification, Industrial RFID Systems, IO-Link, Linear Position and Distance Measurement, Magnetic Field Sensors, Photoelectric Sensors, ProfiBus, ProfiNet, Sensor Accessories, Ultrasonic Sensors
Tagged analog, balluff, carl henning, ethernet, EtherNet/IP, i/o, Industrial Network, IO-Link, linear position, measurement, network, Networking, photoelectric, photoeye, position sensor, profiblog, ProfiBus, ProfiNet, prox, proximity sensor, remote I/O, rfid, sensor, Sensors, transducer
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3 Production Problems Solved by Intelligent Sensors
In typical sensors all you get is ON or OFF… we just hope and assume that the prox is working, until something doesn’t work properly. The part is seated but the sensor doesn’t fire or the operator can’t get their machine … Continue reading
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Posted in Analog Position Sensors, Inductive Proximity Sensors, IO-Link, Photoelectric Sensors
Tagged adaptive feedback, analog, balluff, EtherNet/IP, i/o, intelligent sensor, IO-Link, measurement, network sensor, photoelectric, photoeye, prox, prox sensor, sensor basics, Sensors, smart sensor, Unplanned Downtime
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You can be doing MORE with Your Sensors!
Recently Hank Hogan published an article in Control Design titled “Sensor, Diagnose Thyself.” (To be honest, I really wanted to steal his title for my blog entry.) I think Hank did a great job dissecting the key benefits of smart sensors … Continue reading
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Posted in Capacitive Sensors, Inductive Proximity Sensors, IO-Link, Photoelectric Sensors
Tagged balluff, bus sensor, Inductive Proximity Sensor, inductive sensor, Industrial Network, IO-Link, measurement, network, network sensor, Networking, photoeye, position sensor, prox, sensor, sensor configuration, sensor diagnostics, Sensors, smart sensor, smart sensor applications, Unplanned Downtime
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The Best Way to Communicate with Smart Sensors
When I am discussing with customers the use smart sensors and smart devices in industrial automation, I always get posed with these questions:
How do the smart sensors interface with the controller?
How do you configure the device?
How do you get diagnostics out of it?
What other information can it provide? Continue reading
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Visit Automation Tradeshows for Free!
I am experiencing the future of tradeshows; a networking & educational conference without the travel, the expense, and the suit! I can sit at my desk and make contact with future vendors and customers. Continue reading
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Do Photoelectric Sensors Really Measure Up?
I recently spent the week at the IMTS show in Chicago. If you have never been to this show I highly recommend you go in 2012. The show occupied over 1.1 million square feet and there were over 1700 manufacturers … Continue reading
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Posted in All posts, Photoelectric Sensors
Tagged balluff, imts, measurement, photoelectric, photoeye, sensor, sensor accuracy, time of flight, triangulation
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Analog Signals: 0 to 10V Vs. 4-20 mA
In the world of linear position sensors, analog reigns supreme. Sure there are all kinds of other sensor interface types available; digital start/stop, synchronous serial interface, various flavors of fieldbus, and so on. But linear position sensors with analog outputs still account for probably two-thirds of all linear position sensors sold.
When choosing an analog-output position sensor, your choice generally comes down to analog voltage (e.g., 0 to 10 V), or analog current (e.g., 4 to 20 mA). So which should you choose?
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