I looked at the web site listed and it didn't have a detailed explanation. It showed one yheater and bi-metal strip and w2ouldn't work as I expect. I'm fairly sure the lamps are on as soon as power is supplied, not after the strip heats up.
My observation is that the blinker on AND off times...
I have good luck using Automation Direct PLCs - they have a large selection and many of their PLCs (Koyo) have been sold under other names: GE, TI, etc. Their prices are very good and they have a number of inexpensive options for remote I/O. In one job we used a number of 405 PLC racks with...
At this point some encoders are almost as cheap as a prox. The cost can be in the mounting. If you can find a good location for flag you can save bunches over the machining to attach to a shaft, align and mount an encoder.
One thing to consider is what to do if things get out of sequence. I...
Atmel and a few other chip manufacturers make ICs for capacitive touch sensors that will operate through a half inch of glass (glass works better than plastic). The touch panel has to be bonded to the glass. I'm in the middle of designing an 8 key touch panel using an AT42QT1110. Atmel has proto...
I'm curious about how a (not so) simple electro-mechanical turn signal auto blinker works.
The simple and incorrect answer, given by the how does it work sites, is a heater on a bi-metallic strip. This doesn't explain the blinker properties.
The blinker is in series with the load. A simple...
I been thinking about my previous post and have some other things to rant about:
Independent and dependent variables. Say you have a number of different operations in a process, such as energizing a solenoid, starting a motor and lighting an indicator. If you turn these on in each place where...
Don't get me started. I was trained as a computer programmer, assembler, C, PL1, PLM, Pascal, Cobol (the worst) ... and I believe in structured programming even with ladder where you create any structure on your own. I have been writing ladder for decades but consider my previous training...
I have tried some and in my experience all the PLC manufacturers are very stingy with their backplane information. If you're not a BIG user and you aren't willing to spend LOTS of time at it you probably won't get anywhere.
You might have better luck trying to work with a standard interface...
My experience has been mostly in the West but I've heard that there are application and regional differences. I heard that the Auto industry does not favor AB so in the midwest AB is not that common. I also heard that NC sheet metal machines and the like have different PLCs and software, so AB...
your analog device and power supply operates with a specific range of input loads. If you connect two inputs in series you may exceed this range. As previously noted each input has a resistance and the input module measures the voltage across the resistance to get the input value. With two...
One issue I see is the difference between what they can do and what they can legally do. If you would have to pay a lawyer more to fight them than you could ever get back there's no point in fighting it. Even if you get a lawyer and think you have a solid case you could still lose. And if you do...
PLCs programs are basically the same at a simple level, but even then they can have significant differences, such as how one-shots or state machines are implemented. As you get more complex, some allow you to mix other programming languages and other things that are very machine specific...
Isn't that the way of it. I am a lowly consultant, designing boards for myself and my curstomer. If I or they ever became large customers, it would be too late to matter.
The response time of a diodes can be critical. I once accidently (it was in the wrong drawer) used a 1N4004 in a switching power supply and it's response was so slow that it might as well have been a wire. The data sheet I have on a 1N400* says nothing about response time but it's slow, OK for...
Thanks for your help. In some order:
The ambient temperature is an issue. Here in Oregon the inside of my car gets quite hot on that rare sunny day. I can just imagine what it's like in El Paso, inside the lens housing.
The problem with making my own test it that I have to test different...
I have talked to ETL and they said they really didn't concern themselves with voltages lower than 50v, unless there was a battery, apparently due to those burning laptops. If your device is going in an electrical cabinet that has to be tested and so you may not need individual testing. I made a...
I would imagine you could just use standard brushes and holders on round rods, but I'm not sure it would work if the current were low and you might have issues with exposed conductors.
I have been designing LED taillights. I limit myself to the recommended current but have to compete with people who overdrive the LEDs significantly, from 2 to 5 times.
I can find no good information on how much over current or higher ambient temperature affects LEDs lifetime or light output. I...
I made a simple controller a few years ago to move a rack and pinion driven by an inexpensive 12VDC wiper motor (about $25 then) made by AM equipment. The positioner controlled doors and moved until it stalled. The motor had much more torque than necessary so a current limit was advisable to...
