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What Does an Automation Computer Look Like?
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From Advantech Corporation, Industrial Automation Group
Every day, without thinking about it, we use hundreds of computers in every facet of our lives. Nearly every device with a display or a control in our homes, in our offices, and in our factories, has a computer in it. In our factories this is especially true. This is the age of embedded computing. From wristwatches to cell phones to industrial process control devices, computers control everything. But these devices do not look like computers. They look like wristwatches and cell phones, and industrial displays, controls and even robots. So what does an automation computer look like? Well, it could look like a PLC. "They were always computers," says Dick Morley, who developed the first programmable logic controller. "We called them controllers to keep from scaring the operators." PLCs were developed to replace hard wired relays in factory automation. They were simple to program, relatively easy to use for simple tasks, and were extremely durable. Product Announcements
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