EngineerIT e-News, Issue 132, May 2019

Electronics, measurement, instrumentation, automation, control and ICT

Issue 132, May 2019

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Aimee

Editor: EngineerIT

Views and opinion

Lead editorial: Don’t automate, at your own expense

by Rob Wright, RJ Connect

The last rendition of the Africa Automation Fair (AAF 2017) saw a huge emphasis on the internet of things (IoT). Since then, there has been more specific industry focus on the industrial internet of things (IIoT) – the connectivity that can turn your plant processes into a valuable stream of data informing decisions ... ( read more )

A people-first approach to RPA

by Marios Stauropoulus, Softomotive

When you’re a C-level executive, every decision counts. When the business isn’t hitting its performance goals, you can’t just shrug your shoulders and pass the buck to your boss. The company’s future success depends on your ability to find a solution. That’s why robotic process automation (RPA) has become... ( read more)

DCIM-as-a-service: Leveraging IoT and big data

by George Senzere, Schneider Electric

In essence, the data centre consists of two realms. The first is the IT realm, governing the systems that address the information processing aspects, such as servers, storage arrays, and network switches. The second is that of the physical infrastructure and controls that allow IT to perform its function, and... ( read more)

Q&A: Ask an expert – Trends amongst SA’s data centres

With Brendan Dysel, Teraco

Data centre power management is becoming a key differentiator in the data centre market. With the ongoing load shedding, voltage fluctuations are becoming more frequent and can have disastrous effects on legacy data centre builds, specifically on the refrigerant cooling systems in terms of predicted... ( read more)

5G: An enabler of future tech, but challenges remain

by Jacques Visser, Vox

Digital transformation is rapidly changing the way in which we live, work, and play, and upcoming 5G technology will be crucial in providing the level of connectivity that will improve user experiences and expand broadband wireless services beyond mobile internet. 5G will stand on three primary pillars... ( read more)

Technical articles

Implementing artificial intelligence in industrial manufacturing

Information from Omron Industrial Automation

In the manufacturing arena, people and machines tend to have a symbiotic relationship – they depend upon each other for their performance and for future improvements. People are increasingly making better machines – most recently through the use of affordable and innovative automation solutions, based upon more powerful hardware and software. These enhanced machines in turn help people to be more productive, bringing advantages to the wider society by providing more and more... ( read more)

Coriolis mass flowmeters: What’s the next big thing?

Information from Krohne

First introduced in 1977, Coriolis mass flowmeters have grown to become one of the largest markets in terms of worldwide revenue, second only to electromagnetic flowmeters. Their unrivalled ability to directly measure mass flow and density (and, indirectly, volume flow) with high accuracy and... ( read more)

Welcome to industry 5.0: The “human touch” revolution is now under way

by Esben Østergaard, Universal Robots

At industrial trade shows around the world, the predominant theme is Industry 4.0. Although Industry 4.0 still has not scaled up to cover a significant percentage of manufacturing setups, its vision of near-total automation – and the promise of resulting cost savings – has clearly captured the industry's imagination. More importantly, even though the “lights out” factory is still a rare phenomenon, the connected automation... ( read more)

Winning robotic platform relies on lidar sensor

Information from Sick Automation

A light detection and ranging (lidar) sensor was used to build a winning robotic platform in the prestigious Drexel University’s annual College of Engineering (CoE) senior project design competition. For the Swerve, team the process was invaluable for learning how to create something innovative that works. Freddy Wachter (Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics, MEM); Alexander Nhan (Electrical and Computer... ( read more)

Vehicle tracking systems: Anytime, anywhere, anyhow

by Steve Knoth, Analog Devices

A vehicle tracking system is ideal for monitoring either a single car or an entire fleet of vehicles. A tracking system consists of automatic tracking hardware and software for data collection (and data transmission if required). The global fleet management market size was valued at USD $8-billion in 2015 and is anticipated to exceed $22-billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR of over 20% from 2016 to 2023. The rising demand... ( read more)

Coordination needed between electro-technical regulation bodies

by Hans van de Groenendaal, EE Publishers

When the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) recently held a hearing on their proposed conformity assessment framework, the National Regulator for Compulsory Specification (NRCS) presented its views and expressed grave concerns over the... ( read more)

South Africa’s voice on shortwave goes silent

by Hans van de Groenendaal, EE Publishers

Shortwave is where radio communication began. Once a powerful voice to tell the story of South Africa to the world, this voice has gone silent as Sentech closed down its shortwave broadcasting facility at Bloemendal near Meyerton on 30 March 2019. Sentech in... ( read more)

From research to real quantum computing?

by Hans van de Groenendaal, EE Publishers

The word “quantum” appears today in just about every article about computing and electronics. While quantum means significant and considerable, it is not just new age “mumbo-jumbo”. It underlies many of today’s most important technologies, including lasers and semiconductors found in every computer chip. More specifically, quantum... ( read more)

Integrating big data in higher education: Perspectives and challenges

by Lavanya Madamshetty and Krishna Suresh Babu Naidu, Durban University of Technology

The dynamic working atmosphere of today’s competitive world puts all organisations in need of innovative solutions for better understanding of their performance. This is expected not only for companies but also for schools and universities. Big data is one such innovation. This article gives overviews on the concept and challenges related to the analytical processing of big data and how these features...( read more)

Quantum computing. The next big… wait, what is it really?

by Sumit Kumar Sharma, In2IT

Initially, computers were primarily used by academics and for research. Today, one cannot fathom life and work without some sort of computing power aiding in our daily activities. In addition, we have reached the point where a pocket-sized device is vastly more powerful than a computer the size of a city block was just a few decades ago. However, as small as we can make processor chips, there is a limit to this miniaturisation. Beyond these physical size limits, we enter a completely...( read more)

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