by Gary Mintchell | Aug 20, 2021 | Personal Development
The best interview podcast going right now is Guy Kawasaki’s Remarkable People. This week he talked with Mark Schulman. Schulman is a drummer. Currently he tours with Pink. Well, when tours start up again. He’s also an author and speaker.
Guy asked him about the art of being a drummer. My music education began as a drummer eventually playing in the University of Cincinnati marching band with many students from the College Conservatory of Music there. I was interested.
“Don’t grip the drumsticks too tightly,” Schulman said. Holding on too tightly tenses your fingers, wrists, arms, and shoulders such that you can’t provide a smooth, driving beat. It’s a metaphor for life, he added.
My wife had never heard about the famous Malaysian Monkey Trap (probably goes under a lot of names). You place a fruit larger than the hole that the monkey reaches into the container to grab it. The monkey will not let go of the fruit in order to escape. It traps itself. She was reading Where the Red Fern Grows. They trapped raccoons the same way.
Our question for the day–to what or whom are we holding on too tightly that we are tensed, stiff, trapped? Where do we need to let go? Breathe freely? Relax and refocus?
I have a backlog of about 20 items to write for this blog. I am so far behind on my annual assigning of soccer referees that at times I am overwhelmingly discouraged about getting through the season. Our house is in disarray while we’re having the interior painted. We moved during the pandemic. Every wall was painted contractor white. I looked at the size of that project and figured we could afford a professional. Good move, except during the pandemic no one was going into other people’s houses. When my environment is in disarray, so is my focus.
Try that this weekend. I will. I need it. It’s amazing. Relax, tackle a project “Bird by Bird”, and much is accomplished.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 19, 2021 | News, Organizations, Robots, Technology, Wireless
Today is another “wrap up a bunch of products” day. It’s been a hectic couple of days where I was on a panel with the ZEDEDA Transform event live on the Web (I’m sure it will be ondemand shortly) while today Don Pearson of Inductive Automation interviewed me for an Inductive podcast. Below are two robotic announcements looking forward to new applications, a reliability oriented vibration sensor, and a water system.
MASS Robotics Partners with Procter and Gamble
MassRobotics helps create and scale the next generation of successful robotics and connected devices companies by providing entrepreneurs and innovative robotics/automation startups with the workspace and resources they need to develop, prototype, test and commercialize their products and solutions. It has launched a new partnership with Procter & Gamble (P&G) to collaboratively explore technologies around automation and manufacturing-related applications.
The goal of the partnership is to develop ideas to improve productivity, drive increased value for consumers, accelerate agility from more automation, and allow more flexibility in meeting the manufacturing deadlines of customers. In addition to exploring and accessing innovations from resident startups, MassRobotics’ overall community will help P&G remain on the cutting-edge of the robotics and automation industry and more closely collaborate with existing P&G robotics partners in Massachusetts.
MassRobotics is the result of the collective work of a global group of engineers, rocket scientists, and entrepreneurs with a shared vision to create a strong, vibrant robotics and IoT ecosystem.
MiR Introduces Two New Robots
Mobile Industrial Robots (MiR), the global market leader in autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), launched its most powerful robots for transporting pallets and other heavy items around manufacturing facilities, warehouses, and logistics centers. The MiR600 and MiR1350 robots, which can lift up to 600 kg (1322 pounds) and 1350 kg (2976 pounds), respectively, are designed to safely and efficiently perform material handling tasks in challenging industrial environments.
The industrial and protected MiR600 and MiR1350 are the market’s first Ingress Protection52-rated autonomous mobile robots, which mean their components are protected and can tolerate dust and water drops.
New AMRs optimize all logistics—inbound, production and outbound
The larger MiR600 and MiR1350 are ideal for autonomously transporting heavy loads of materials and goods in:
• loading bays
• production and assembly areas
• warehouses
• material delivery areas
Like MiR’s other AMRs (MiR100, MiR200, MiR250, MiR500 and MiR1000), the MIR600 and MIR1350 navigate smoothly and safely among people and other transport equipment in dynamic surroundings. Sensors, 3D cameras and the latest laser scanning technology ensure 360-degree vision for precise and safe navigation and operations. The new AMRs are designed to comply with the industry’s latest safety standards, including ISO 3691-4 and ANSI/RIA R15.08-1-2020.
Fluke Reliability introduces the Fluke 3562 Screening Vibration Sensor system
Fluke Reliability introduces the Fluke 3562 Screening Vibration Sensor system. With its batteryless technology, long-range sensor-to-gateway communication, and ability to connect up to 1,000 sensors to a single gateway, the Fluke 3562 is a “set it and forget it” solution that can operate continuously, even in hard-to-reach places.
When used with the recently released Fluke 3563 Analysis Vibration Sensor for critical machines and LIVE-Asset management software, maintenance teams now have a comprehensive solution for virtually every asset in the plant. The vibration screening system enables maintenance teams to spot machine faults before catastrophic failures happen, avoiding costly downtime.
The Fluke 3562 Screening Vibration Sensor draws power from a machine’s heat or the light in the room using innovative thermoelectric or photovoltaic energy harvesters. The technologically advanced sensor screens overall vibration levels, temperature, and humidity, as well as trends the nine highest FFT peaks by magnitude.
The Fluke 3562’s unique features:
Batteryless technology — With either a thermoelectric or photovoltaic energy harvester, the sensor requires minimum upkeep over a longer period of time, reducing costs and labor.
Flexible wireless network capabilities — The wireless gateway has triple network connection capabilities — Wi-Fi, LTE, and Ethernet — so it’s adaptable for any facility.
Scalable and long-range — With long-wavelength signals and the ability to connect up to 1,000 sensors, the Fluke 3562 can be placed further from the gateway, allowing sensors to be installed in more hard-to-reach areas.
KETOS Unveils Updates to its Smart Water Intelligence Platform
Addressing global water management issues, KETOS, Inc., a water intelligence innovator, announced enhancements to its award-winning, cloud-based KETOS Smart Water Intelligence Platform. Key updates include improved user experience and workflow management, greater flexibility to configure customer-specific instances, scalability to support larger concurrent users numbers, the ability to handle larger data sets, and more sophisticated analytics and reporting capabilities.
Bringing water intelligence to customers across agriculture, industrial and municipal operations, KETOS combines software, hardware, and predictive analytics to automate water monitoring and testing. The holistic solution helps solve water efficiency and quality challenges with real-time data and mission-critical insights.
Measuring over 25 water quality parameters, KETOS offers water operators a fully integrated, EPA-compliant solution with intelligent hardware, stable connectivity infrastructure, an interactive software platform, and actionable data.
KETOS Smart Water Analytics enhancements support operational stability and business continuity efforts across its customers, offering predictive maintenance with zero labor hours required for water operators. Users now have access to improved graphical view enhancements, instant notifications, enhanced calendar-based test scheduling, push mobile notifications, and more.
Additional updates include:
• Vertical-focused analytics including reporting comparisons and correlation between parameters;
• Improved flexibility and overall user experience; and
• 24/7 remote support.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 18, 2021 | Edge, News, Organizations
I have four news items today. A couple are AI related and a couple more along the Edge. All concern developing products with the latest tech. ABB, Micropsi, IOTech, and ThinkIQ.
ABB to deliver artificial intelligence modeling for data center energy optimization in Singapore.
ABB has signed up to a pilot study with ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC) to explore how artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and advanced analytics can optimize energy use and reduce a facility’s carbon footprint.
Singapore-headquartered STT GDC, which is one of the fastest growing global data center operators, is leveraging the digital transformation expertise of technology leader ABB as it bids to become net carbon-neutral by 2030.
ABB is conducting the pilot in two phases, beginning with initial data exploration, modeling, and validation, studying historical data to establish how digital solutions would impact existing operations and energy use. Once proven, it will be followed by AI control logic testing in a live data center environment. STT GDC aims to achieve at least 10 percent in energy savings from its cooling systems, which is the largest consumption of electrical power in a data center after IT equipment.
The ABB team is currently developing AI-based optimization models for the entire data center cooling plant, including the upstream chiller and distribution systems. The AI project is also unlocking new opportunities for efficiency improvement at a granular level within the data center. STT GDC will be able to use AI-generated insights, leveraging cutting-edge ABB Ability™ Genix for industrial analytics and AI, to track and analyze data generated by monitoring systems in the data center, and better facilitate dynamic cooling optimization.
Micropsi Industries’ AI-driven Control System Speeds Complex and Precise Robot Training and Deployment
Industrial and collaborative robots learn to perform camera-guided movements more quickly with the latest version of Micropsi Industries’ MIRAI robot control system. Using artificial intelligence (AI), MIRAI enables robots to flexibly react to variances in their tasks in real time by learning from humans. Variances in position, shape, surface properties or lighting conditions are a common challenge for robotic automation of machine tending, assembly or test applications. With MIRAI’s new “positioning skills” feature, giving examples of quality movements to the robot has become much easier, and the robot will generalize and understand what to do much more quickly.
With the new feature, MIRAI customers will notice quicker set-up times, down from 2-3 days per skill to about three hours. In addition, robot speeds have increased, which also enables shorter cycle times.
Companies wanting to use a robot to perform precise and complex skills—such as gripping and inserting a bendable or soft component, like a cable, into differently arranged sockets—would primarily use the MIRAI controller at the first and last decisive centimeters of a manufacturing step.
With MIRAI, preparing robots to perform tasks that include variances requires a human worker to guide the robot arm several times through typically occurring scenarios to show the robot to its destination, such as sockets in which freely hanging cables need to be inserted. A machine learning process then derives a motion intuition for the robot from the given examples. For a robot that is not required to follow specific paths to perform its task, MIRAI users can deploy the new positioning skills to teach the robot to find the destination even faster because a human worker needs only to show MIRAI the surroundings of the target with the camera. The robot then independently searches for the shortest path to the object.
IOTech launches Edge Builder to manage edge systems at scale
IOTech, the edge software company, announced the launch and availability of Edge Builder, its end-to-end management solution for edge systems. Edge Builder provides a comprehensive, flexible and open solution that simplifies and automates the management of edge systems at scale.
To ensure that Edge Builder addresses the market opportunity, IOTech has been working with a number of key partners and potential customers during the development phase of the product.
Designed to meet the specific needs of edge systems, Edge Builder provides light touch provisioning and complete lifecycle management for both edge nodes and their applications. Currently it supports the deployment and management of containerized applications at the edge and in the future will also support the deployment of native binary applications.
Edge systems are managed from a centralized Edge Builder controller that can be hosted either on-premise or in the cloud. Platform independence for both the managed nodes and the cloud environment on which the controller is deployed ensures flexibility and choice for Edge Builder users.
Edge Management at Scale -Solving the Big Problem in the IoT Room
ThinkIQ Enhances SaaS Platform with Stronger Connectivity, Analytics and Visualization
ThinkIQ, a pioneer of digital manufacturing transformation SaaS, announced major enhancements to its SaaS Manufacturing platform. The new offering strengthens the company’s leading Transformational Intelligence Platform and provides more powerful and simplified modeling technology to allow for faster time to solution, better analytics and visualization, and higher performance data processing.
Many transformational intelligence platforms are either pure developments tools or are restricted to the feature set that is delivered with the platform. ThinkIQ’s latest enhancements deliver the best of both worlds with strong model integration combined with an extensible development platform that bridges the gap between traditional, on-premise OT technologies and strong could-enabled analytics.
These capabilities can be applied to any manufacturing and supply chain application and are particularly well-suited for hybrid, continuous and batch processes.
ThinkIQ’s SaaS Manufacturing cloud-based platform simplifies the creation of web-based applications and leverages the strengths of the Internet of Things, Big Data, Data Science, Semantic Modeling and Machine Learning. The platform collects data across the operation (existing and IIoT sensors) to provide actionable real time insights (e.g., identify correlations and root causes, traceability and yield issues, etc.). It creates a new level of capability beyond what independent disconnected operating environments can provide today.
To learn more about ThinkIQ, visit our website.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 17, 2021 | Internet of Things, Manufacturing IT, News, Organizations
IIC stands for something different today than yesterday. Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC) announced a new direction and a new name – Industry IoT Consortium (IIC). The news release states, New focus on technology innovation that fosters business transformation. I have been downplaying that IoT term for some time. These terms grow old in buzz factor within just a few years. Engineers working in manufacturing and production have been connecting “things” for a long time and using Internet Protocol (Internet of Things) for a decade. The current buzz is all about “digital transformation”, so a revised focus (while probably doing much of the same thing) is in order.
IIC has become the world’s leading organization transforming business and society by accelerating the Industrial IoT. The consortium’s new mission is to bring transformative business value to organizations, industry, and society by accelerating the adoption of trustworthy IoT systems. IIC’s new focus will drive technology innovation that fosters business transformation so that organizations can realize a return on their IoT investments.
“We recognized the need to focus on technology deployments to solve technical problems,” said Dr. Richard Soley, Executive Director, Industry IoT Consortium. “We’re applying technology to address customer pain points and improve business results. Industry organizations and technology providers turn to IIC and its members for IoT support and guidance. Now we’ll guide them on the application of IoT technology and digital transformation enablers to achieve positive business outcomes.”
I like Richard’s comment about addressing customer pain points and improving business results. Technology should solve real world big problems not just another technology problem.
The new direction will strengthen the IIC ecosystem by unifying members around successful IoT deployment outcomes. New programs, which combine several approaches to digital transformation, will identify customer pain points, improve go-to-market abilities, and enhance business outcomes. Existing programs will change to reflect this focus, and new initiatives will emerge to help members reach more of their customers.
IIC will continue its work on best-practice frameworks, innovative testbeds, and providing standards requirements to standards development organizations. It will also target IT, networks, manufacturing, energy & utilities, healthcare markets, and academia & research.
The newly branded IIC will help organizations identify best technology practices, build credible brands, and grow their businesses. Industry IoT Consortium delivers transformative business value to industry, organizations, and society by accelerating the adoption of a trustworthy internet of things. Industry IoT Consortium is a program of Object Management Group (OMG).
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 16, 2021 | Automation, Networking
Remember Time Sensitive Networking (TSN)? A couple of years ago touted as a breakthrough Ethernet technology useful for many things including audio-visual and industrial. Then things went a little quiet. Some people I knew bailed out. Last week the Avnu Alliance announced leading network component companies have joined together to advance TSN interoperability.
Avnu Alliance, the industry consortium driving open, standards-based deterministic networking, announces a new initiative to drive alignment on TSN interoperability in the network ecosystem. In the Silicon Validation Task Group, silicon and IP companies including Analog Devices, Intel, Keysight Technologies, Microchip, NXP Semiconductors, Texas Instruments, and TTTech will work together to ensure that the TSN features of various profiles interoperate.
Avnu has a history of providing a successful framework for industry stakeholders to collaborate to advance TSN. This task group will allow competitors to work together to develop a testing ecosystem for silicon and IP products’ TSN capabilities at the component (and supporting software) level. Group members will collaborate on activities such as developing test plans, creating validation tools, and hosting plugfests.
The members of the Silicon Validation Task Group have come together in recognition of the fact that interoperability is required at the silicon level to enable specialization further up the stack. TSN applications span markets including ProAV, automotive, industrial manufacturing, and aerospace. Base interoperability at the component level facilitates device interoperability across various applications and profiles, including IEEE/IEC 60802 for industrial and IEEE 802.1BA for ProAV as well as future profiles that are in development.
“As an active developer of TSN technology innovation at the silicon and system level for many years, NXP is pleased to work with our counterparts in the Silicon Validation Task Group to help craft a common set of standards for TSN,” said Jeff Steinheider, senior director and general manager, industrial edge, at NXP. “This collaboration and the associated standards will help developers take advantage of TSN’s full potential across the spectrum of related applications.”
“We consider an open, cross-industry standard like TSN as an essential basis for successful industrial automation projects. Interoperability at the silicon level ensures that customers have more choice and flexibility when digitalizing their production. As more companies and industries start using TSN, the huge benefits of interoperability increase – we can already see that in the plastics industry where the EUROMAP 79 standard specifies using TSN as the networking technology for injection molding machines,” says Thomas Berndorfer, member of the executive board, TTTech Industrial.
“Software, applications and profiles can all be tailored to specific use cases, but they need a stable network foundation to build on top of,” says Greg Schlechter, president of the Avnu Alliance. “The Silicon Validation Task Group includes key market players who can identify what TSN interoperability means for basic network components, and how we can get interoperable products to market.”
The Silicon Validation Task Group’s efforts will allow silicon vendors to achieve better economies of scale for TSN products. By providing a roadmap to verify base TSN capabilities in a common way independently from profile or application, the Silicon Validation Task Group will enable silicon providers to develop products for a broad customer base.
“Ethernet’s universal success is centered around standards-based, interoperable silicon,” says Tom Weingartner, product marketing director for the industrial Ethernet technology group at Analog Devices. “As silicon providers, we are coming together to ensure this next generation of Ethernet with TSN is equally successful across the spectrum of silicon solutions.”
Interoperability at the silicon level gives TSN the flexibility for technological advancements from one market to cross-pollinate to others. TSN capabilities developed for industrial applications could eventually be adopted by ProAV, for example, or real time media distribution methods created for ProAV could benefit Industry 4.0. This cycle of innovation has been key to Ethernet’s expansion beyond its original applications. As TSN becomes simply another capability of the standard network ecosystem silicon components should support capabilities coming online across industries.
“Ensuring interoperability at the silicon level makes it possible for product designers to focus on value-added system design,” says Douglas Anderson, product marketing manager for Microchip Technology’s USB and networking business unit.
“We see potential for TSN across several of our markets,” says Dieter Cohrs, real time capability manager, Internet of Things group, Intel. “This effort of the component industry working together to further interoperability, starting at the silicon level will help the overall ecosystem in all of the markets using TSN.”
“Having a reliable network foundation is a real asset to product development,” says Marc Chutczer, vice president of research and development for Meyer Sound. “We can’t predict every future requirement, but access to interoperable silicon will speed up development time and will broaden the reach of Avnu-based interoperable solutions.”
