Welcome to Automation’s Evolution

An automation evolution exploration from industry veteran Carl Henning. I’ve been around PROFIBUS and then PROFINET for a couple decades now and I have to admit that I’m still excited by these technologies. It’s been fun to watch them mature and grow. I’ve been doing automation for decades before that so I’ve seen the long arc of automation’s evolutionary growth. Our evolutionary position is currently the Industrial Internet of Things. And it is an evolution I believe.

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  • Post category:PI NEWS
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Training (Cities, Classes Added)

In North America, additional cities have been confirmed for no-charge PROFINET one-day training classes and additional Certified Network Engineer classes are announced. Free PROFIBUS and PROFINET training is coming to the UK. PI Australia formalizes its Automation Innovation Summit. In Germany IO-Link, PROFIBUS, and PROFIsafe training is scheduled.

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The Data-Driven Factory

Being in the business of moving data with PROFINET, references to the data-driven factory appeal to PI. Appealing as that is, it’s an incomplete story. Like a word-driven blog post. Random words collected do not a blog post make. Random data collected does not a factory drive. Data is the raw material.

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PROFINET Quiz

In the very first issue of PROFINEWS North American Edition way back in March 2005, there was a PROFINET quiz. Taking a few questions from there and adding some more allows us to present the 2016 PROFINET Quiz. Test your knowledge.

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  • Post category:TECH TIPS
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Tech Tip: Suite and Simple Network Management with PROFINET

In the automation environment of today and tomorrow, end users need a system which is built with effective diagnostic capabilities and is easy to manage at both the network and application levels for minimum downtime and increased productivity. PROFINET should be your network of choice because it has best in class diagnostic mechanisms which are in short: ‘suite and simple’.

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PROFIsafe is First National Safety Standard in China

Following successful standardization of PROFIBUS and PROFINET in China, PROFIsafe – the first and only communication-based safety standard in China – has now been elevated to the status of a Chinese national standard. This is further evidence that the world leading PI technologies are highly regarded in China – not just because of their high quality but also based on their large installed base and reliable organization.

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The Social Engineer

How can you tell an engineer has social skills? When he’s talking to you, he’s looking at your shoes. Actually, he’s probably messaging you on his smartphone, even if he’s sitting beside you. The electronically-social engineer has many non-face-to-face options for communications. Here are some suggested sites for the electronically-social engineer.

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PI to Start Encoder Certification

To ensure that everything runs smoothly in drive technology, clean interfaces between all components involved are required. To further ensure the interoperability of drive and motion control applications, certification of products with the Encoder profile will be available starting immediately.

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