Yokogawa Meters & Instruments Corporation announces that it will release the WT310 and WT330 series digital power meters on January 10. These meters are useful in reducing the power consumed by electrical and electronic instruments, and are suitable for use in applications ranging from R&D to production. The two product series will have a total of four models.

Product Features:

• High-speed simultaneous measurement
• Automatic range switching during integral power consumption measurement - an industry first
• PC software

Main Applications:  Measurement of product power consumption, standby power consumption, efficiency, and waveform distortion (harmonics) in the above-mentioned markets

Rockwell Automation has extended the ratings of its Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 755 AC drives to 1500 kW/2,000 Hp, completing the power range of the PowerFlex 750-Series portfolio and providing customers with a wide selection of options and features. The high-power drive builds on the application flexibility and common user experience of the PowerFlex 750-Series, giving heavy industries a new option for advanced power control.

The PowerFlex 755 drive is well suited for a wide variety of applications ranging from simple variable speed and variable torque control to the most demanding systems requiring constant torque control. Target applications include fans, pumps, mixers, compressors, conveyors and extruders, as well as applications for the oil and gas, tire and rubber, refining, metals and mining industries.

“We designed the PowerFlex 755 drives with ease-of-use in mind, and expanded its power range to deliver this user experience to a wider range of applications,” said John Cherney, global product manager, Rockwell Automation. “Whether an application demands one or 2,000 horsepower, the way users interface with any PowerFlex 755 frame is nearly identical. This commonality helps to simplify operation, from configuration and integration to maintenance and troubleshooting.”

The latest frame extension delivers the enhanced control capabilities of earlier high-power models, including features, such as 400/480/600/690 volt ratings and N-1 technology. With N-1 technology, users can configure the PowerFlex 755 high-power drive to utilize one, two or all three of its power structures. This gives the redundancy and advanced control needed to effectively manage load changes, protect equipment, and keep the drive up and running in the event of a power failure. The common DC-bus option allows users to connect the PowerFlex 755 AC drive to a DC-bus configuration, which takes advantage of different drive cycles to share energy. Using a common DC-bus system helps increase system performance and reduce loss – ultimately improving the application’s energy efficiency.

Designed specifically for the solar panel manufacturing and traffic management industries, the Industrial Automation Group of Advantech has released the new ECU-1710A automation controller that combines an embedded computer and plug-in DAQ cards into one low profile, small footprint unit.

The fanless ECU-1710A integrates two Advantech DAQ cards (PCI-1710UL & PCI-1720U) onto the motherboard which offer 16-ch Analog Input, 4-ch Analog Output, 16-ch Isolated Digital Input and 16-ch Isolated Digital Output channels whilst making the system more compact whilst enhancing the reliability of the system to make it especially useful in environments with limited available space.

To enable customers develop their own applications and monitoring solutions the ECU-1710A supports DAQNavi. DAQNavi is free software that you can download from the Advantech website. It is a single integrated software package for programmers to develop their application programs and includes all utilities, driver, SDK and documents necessary for hardware configuration, testing, and programming.

To allow this exciting new device to perform complicated processes required for calculating traffic flow and the fine measurements needed for solar cell manufacturing the ECU-1710A is powered by an Intel® Atom™ D510 dual core processor, 1GB DDR2 RAM and provides the following communication interfaces: two 10/100M Ethernet, two RS-232 serial and two USB 2.0 ports.

For further information click ECU-1710A and DAQNavi

Rockwell Automation has introduced the Allen-Bradley Kinetix 5500 servo drive, Kinetix VP low-inertia (VPL) servo motor, and single-cable technology as an integrated motion solution on EtherNet/IP that is more compact, easier to use and simplifies system wiring.

“Machine and equipment builders are challenged with making smaller, more complex equipment in a shorter design cycle and at a lower price point,” said Mike Schweiner, Kinetix product manager, Rockwell Automation. “Our new single-cable Kinetix motion solution gives machine builders a proven solution for both servo and induction motor control on a single development platform that will result in less design time and cabinet space with improved power density and efficiency.”

The Kinetix 5500 servo drive joins the Kinetix 350 and Kinetix 6500 drives to provide users with more options to match motion control needs. Integrated motion control on EtherNet/IP eliminates the need for a dedicated motion network, reducing cabling by up to 60 percent and removing the need to create gateways to get information to or from secluded networks. Additionally, the Kinetix VPL motors new winding technology and DSL encoder, connected with the smart-cable technology, allows power transmission and feedback communication to and from the Kinetix 5500 drive to take place on a single cable. This further simplifies application design and limits points-of-failure for improved reliability and uncomplicated maintenance.

Ideal for packaging, material handling or converting systems with more than six axes, the Kinetix 5500 and Kinetix VP drive-motor system does not require discrete power rail or additional accessories, so machines can be scaled up as needed. Optimally matched motor and drive ratings uses half the energy of comparable solutions, while still providing 125 μsec loop closure for maximum performance.