Industrial Automation: What it is and how it works

Industrial Automation: What it is and how it works

Industrial Automation: What it is

Industrial automation works When we talk about industrial automation we refer to the use of control systems, such as computers, programmable robots, robots, and information technologies to manage different production processes and machinery in the industry, eliminating the intervention of the workforce as much as possible and replacing the dangerous assembly operations by automated operations.

Automation is an evolution of mechanization in industry, which uses devices with high control capacity to achieve efficient manufacturing or production processes.

Due to rapid technological advances, industrial processing systems with the so-called industry 4.0 or fourth industrial revolution are changing the way companies produce. The computerized control of production to increase the precision, quality, and performance of industrial processes has become the main actor of manufacturing and production companies.

In this article we will analyze in detail the components involved in the automation of production processes, we will detail the most used types of industrial automation systems, as well as we will know their importance in service and manufacturing companies.

What is meant by Industrial Automation?

Automation is a broad term that applies to any mechanism that is self-moving or self-determined. The word `automation' derives from the ancient Greek words Auto (meaning: by itself) and Matos (meaning: movement).

Compared to manual systems, automation systems offer superior performance in terms of accuracy, power, and speed of operation.

• In industrial automation control, a wide number of process variables such as temperature, flow rate, pressure, distance, and liquid levels can be detected simultaneously. All these variables are acquired, processed, and controlled by microprocessor systems or data processing controllers.
• An automated system uses special hardware and software elements and components dedicated to implementing control and monitoring systems. In recent years, the number of these products has been developed from various vendors offering their specialized products.
• Some of these providers are Siemens, ABB, AB, National Instruments, Omron, etc.

How Industrial Automation works

The structure of an industrial automation system serves to explain the different levels of its operation. There are several ways to describe the levels of an industrial automation process, but the simplest of all and the most common to understand is the following hierarchical triangle representing the three levels of a typical industrial automation system.

• levels-of-industrial-automation

• Industrial automation process levels

• Below I will describe the hierarchical triangle representing the three levels of a typical industrial automation application.

supervisor level

The supervisor level consists of a computer or industrial computer, desktop PC type, Control Panel, or rack format, depending on the needs of the company. This central computer uses a standard operating system with special software, usually provided by the supplier for the control of industrial processes.

The main objective of the software is the visualization and parameterization of the process. For communication, the Industrial Ethernet protocol is used, which can be Gigabit LAN or any wireless topology (WLAN).

control level

The Control Level is the middle level of the hierarchy and is the level where all automation-related programs are executed. For this purpose, programmable logic controllers, or PLCs, are generally used, which provide real-time computing capability.

PLCs are typically implemented using 16-bit or 32-bit microcontrollers and run on a proprietary operating system to meet real-time requirements. PLCs can also be interfaced with various I/O devices and can communicate through various industrial communication protocols.

field level

Data terminal equipment such as sensors and actuators are what form the field level. Sensors such as temperature, optics, pressure, etc., and actuators such as motors, valves, switches, etc. are connected to a PLC via a Fieldbus, and the communication between a field-level device and its corresponding PLC is normally based on a point-to-point connection.

Both wired and wireless networks are used for communication, and by using this communication, the PLC can also diagnose and parameterize various components.

In addition to these three hierarchical levels, and industrial process automation system also requires two main systems such as the industrial power supply and the security and protection protocols.

The power requirements of different systems at different levels of the hierarchy can be extremely different. For example, PLCs typically run on 24V DC, while heavy-duty motors run on single-phase or three-phase alternating current.

Therefore, a wide range of suitable input power supplies is required for trouble-free operation. In addition, there must be security for the software used to control PLCs, as it can be easily modified or hacked.

Considering all the levels mentioned and their corresponding components, a Basic Industrial Automation System will have the following structure:

scheme-diagram-basic-industrial-automation-system

Industrial automation equipment or tools

Industrial automation is an integrated systems platform consisting of various equipment and elements that perform a wide variety of functions such as detection, control, supervision, and monitoring related to industrial processes.

 

Sensors and actuators

Sensors convert physical process variables, such as flow rate, pressure, temperature, etc., into electrical or pneumatic variables. The signals from these sensors are used to process, analyze and make decisions to produce the control output.

The various control techniques are implemented to produce the required output by comparing the process variable sensed by the current with the setting values.

Finally, the controllers produce the calculated outputs and apply them as electrical or pneumatic signal inputs to the actuators. Actuators convert electrical or pneumatic signals into physical process variables. Examples of actuators are control valves, relays, motors, etc.

A special category is that of intelligent instruments, which are integrated detection or actuation systems with the ability to communicate with field buses. These smart devices have internal signal conditioning circuitry and facilitate direct connection to the communication link in the industrial bus system.

Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA)

Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) is a type of application that obtains operational data from the system to control and optimize the system. Applications may include actions of a petrochemical distillation process, a water filtration system, a pipeline compressor, etc.

All businesses depend on the need to improve asset performance through operational excellence. Staying ahead of the competition means you can find ways to work faster and with less effort.

Programmable Logic Controller (PLC)

The programmable logic controller (PLC) is one of the most important automation devices. As its name suggests, it is a programmable logic controller. We can control the devices and easily switch from one process to another through it.

It is primarily designed for multiple input and output configurations and can withstand extreme temperatures with vibration and impact resistance.

Human Machine Interface (HMI)

The Human-Machine Interface (HMI) includes the electronics necessary to signal and control the status of industrial automation equipment. In turn, it helps control industrial automation equipment. However, these interface products can range from a basic LED status indicator to a 2-inch TFT panel with a touch screen interface.

Artificial Neural Network 

It is a mathematical model and is responsible for processing information from communication networks and information processing. ANN structures can be modified based on external and internal data that is entered in the system configuration phase.

Distributed Control System (DCS)

The Distributed Control System (DCS) is one of the most widely used industrial automation systems for various processes in the manufacturing industry. Contains one or more driver elements distributed in the system.

DCS applications include electrical power grids and generation plants, traffic signals, water management systems, environmental control systems, oil refineries, and chemical plants, pharmaceutical manufacturing, oil transport vessels, and grids. of sensors.

robotics

Robotics as technology evolves has begun to be used in various fields. From surgical robots to entertainment robots, they help people perform complex tasks. They can be used to perform various application tasks, such as mapping, painting, welding, repairing, etc.

The role of industrial robotic systems in the production process ranges from assembly and internal treatments to testing.

Types of industrial automation

Now that we have seen a little about the design and elements of a typical industrial automation system, it is worth highlighting the different types of industrial automation systems most used today by companies in their manufacturing and production processes. Industrial automation systems are usually classified into four types:

• Fixed automation system

• Programmable automation system

• Flexible automation system

• Integrated Automation System

• Fixed Automation System

Fixed automation systems are special equipment used to streamline specific processes. In fixed automation, it is nearly impossible to facilitate product design changes. Industries that have to produce stable and sustainable product designs over a long period opt for stationary automated systems.

Programmable Automation System

This type of technology is used to manufacture batch products. A production system has to be programmed several times to obtain a new batch of products with different specifications.

Programmable automated devices are designed to make product changeover easy. However, the process of rescheduling a production machine is time-consuming.

Flexible automation system

It is a more sophisticated and refined form of programmable automation. Its difference is that flexible automation allows the equipment to be changed automatically and quickly. A mixture of different products can be produced consistently without wasting time.

Integrated Automation System

An Integrated Automation System is a set of independent machines, processes, and data, which work synchronously under the command of a single control system to implement an automation system for a production process: CAD (Computer-Aided Design), CAM (Computer-Aided Manufacturing), computer-controlled tools and machines, robots, cranes and conveyors can be integrated using programming and production control.

Why is Industrial Automation important? Advantages and disadvantages

Manufacturers today face many challenges in a highly competitive business landscape. Some of these challenges include sustainable manufacturing environments (in an increasingly security-focused world) and increasingly complex supply chains, meeting the latest energy efficiency standards and competing with lower-cost companies.

Many of these reasons lead manufacturers towards industrial automation and the digital transformation of their production processes. Due largely to technological advances in analog and digital control systems, microprocessors, PLCs, and various sensors, synchronizing multiple independent machines and processes to achieve true industrial automation have become more agile.

• With the rise of the industrial economy, business strategies for industrial automation have also changed over time.

• The advantages of Industrial Automation include:

• Increased labor productivity

Automation increases the speed of production by generating more and better products. New technologies work for long hours without losing accuracy. Hence the increase in productivity and efficiency per hour of work.

Improved product quality

One of the main advantages of automation is the reduction of the fraction rate of defective units. Automation systems perform operations with greater conformance and consistency to quality specifications. Therefore, industrial processes are controlled and monitored at all stages to produce a quality final product.

Lower labor or production cost

Automated systems help industries save big in the long run by replacing labor with automated machinery to reduce unit production costs. Automation equipment that runs smoothly or consistently (24 hours × 7 days) not only increases productivity, but also results in an excellent return on investment by saving wages, labor costs, and employee absenteeism. the employees.

The automated system also reduces labor shortages by substituting automated operations for this labor.

Reduction of routine manual tasks

In many industrial applications, process variables such as temperature, liquid level, pressure, etc. must be monitored periodically as a routine task to maintain the established levels.

Thus, an automation system creates the automatic working condition by employing closed-loop control systems.

Enhanced Security

By implementing an automated system, work is made safer by transferring the worker from a place of active participation in the process to a supervisory role. Automated machines are capable of working in hazardous and other extreme environments.

Furthermore, these systems use industrial robots instead of human workers, especially in life-threatening conditions (high temperature and chemical conditions). In this way, an industrial automation system prevents accidents and injuries to workers.

Help remote monitoring

Most industrial operations have to be remotely controlled for convenient long-distance monitoring and control of process variables. For these cases, automated systems provide a communication link between the process area and the supervision (monitoring and control) area, allowing operators to control and monitor industrial processes from a remote location.

The best example of this remote control is the automatic control of the electrical network.

• But on the other hand, and despite their importance, industrial automation systems entail a series of disadvantages for companies and society.

• Disadvantages of Industrial Automation include:

• job loss

• Since most of the work is done by machines, the need for manpower is much less.

• More pollution

• Different types of machines are powered and operated by engines that may require polluting gases or chemicals to run.

• less versatility

• Having a machine that can perform a certain task limits the flexibility and variety of tasks an employee can perform.

Not all desired tasks can be automated with today's technology. For example, products with irregular shapes and sizes are best left for manual assembly. (This trend seems to be changing with advanced computers and algorithms.)

Automation can not be applied in all cases but in certain processes, that is, high volume production, repeatable and consistent products.

high costs
The initial cost of implementing an automation system is very high.

The costs of research and development of the automation of a process, those of preventive maintenance and those of training employees to operate automated machines is one more addition that has to be taken into account and added to the initial cost. As well as for their maintenance and service.

What is the future of industrial automation?

Although industrial automation in manufacturing is not without its detractors (such as the unsubstantiated claim that it will lead to mass unemployment), its future looks very promising. The industrial robots of the future will be multifunctional so that the same machine can be used for several different uses.

They will have many associated capabilities, such as the ability to make decisions and work autonomously.

They will also have self-diagnostic and predictive maintenance capabilities.

Thanks to the industrial automation of production, the factory of the future will be more efficient in the use of energy, raw materials, and human resources. Also, contrary to popular belief, experience so far has shown that automation will not cause mass unemployment.

On the contrary, the massive use of robots will create more jobs. Humans and robots will work together to create a more efficient and productive workplace.