Manufacturing plants require a lot of data to operate. This includes data from their manufacturing processes, quality control systems, maintenance systems, order management systems and pretty much every functioning department within their operation. The challenge is in finding ways to capture, and present the information in the proper format at the time that the information is needed. The only way to effectively achieve this is to replace manual documentation systems with automated ones. This requires that data much be electronically captured and stored on networked servers so it can accessed by the people who need it. The technical challenges to achieving this include;

  • Finding ways to capture the required data
  • Efficient databases to store the data
  • High speed networks to transmit the data
  • Access to the data when it is needed including access over the internet.

REAL Controls and our technical partners provide services to our clients to address all of these needs including the following:

  • Custom software development for capturing, analyzing, storing and presenting data
  • Communication driver development for communicating with third party equipment over serial or Ethernet connections.
  • Networking of equipment to allow real time communication and collection of data from shop floor equipment and processes.
  • Database development services using various commercially available databases.
  • Custom programming services to get the information to the people who need it in printed format or electronically through an internet connection.

Centorr

Process control and data acquisition systems often require communication between a PC and various instruments for exchanging data. This may include communications with a Programmable Logic Controller, with laboratory instruments and with smart sensing technologies. Finding one PC application that can communicate to all of these various devices is often not possible with of-the-shelf software. REAL Controls develops customized communication protocol drivers to allow specific laboratory instruments, process control equipment and smart sensors to exchange data with a PC. We developed this LabVIEW program to communicate with two Yokogawa temperature controllers, a vacuum controller and a Modbus PLC.

Coil Gauge

A manufacturer of aluminum sheet products wanted to continuously monitor and record a profile of the sheet thickness for each roll of aluminum that was produced. The system needed to acquire data in real time and it had to be integrated with the existing manufacturing process equipment. In addition, the customer wanted a generic design so that the system could be easily installed on any manufacturing line in the plant.

Database 1

The Monks at the Franciscan Monastery in Loretto have acquired a large quantity of photographs and other documents, which are of historical significance. The collection has gotten too large and has become difficult for the Monks to manage and to easily locate documents. REAL Controls, working with our partners at Interactive Media Systems, developed a computer database for managing the documents.

Database 2

Owens Corning Safety personnel conduct routine safety inspections for each of the departments within the corporation. As a result of downsizing and reduced operating budgets, the company needed to streamline the work required to conduct the audits, issue Work Orders to correct any problems found, follow up to insure that the issues were corrected and produce reports summarizing the audit activities within the company. REAL Controls engineers developed an Environmental, Health and Safety Audit and Inspections Database using Microsoft Access 97

Machining Lathe

REAL Controls developed a custom data acquisition system consisting of an electrical wattmeter and a National Instruments Fieldpoint system. The Fieldpoint system communicates with the Power Measurements model 6200 wattmeter using an RS-485 communication interface and Modbus protocol. The acquired data includes voltage, current and power measurements. The data provides the consumed power information that the customer required and the operating efficiency is automatically calculated by measuring the amount of time that current is flowing to the lathe compared to the total elapsed time since the shift started.

Model Verification

Our client operates a manufacturing plant for fabricating aerospace components.  A forging press produces short run, specialized products. To reduce the set-up time and cost for fine-tuning the press for each new product, the client uses computer models to predict the optimal press operating parameters. The client needed a method to optimize the prediction capabilities of these computer models. REAL Controls developed a real time data acquisition system to collect process data while parts are being produced. Press ram position, velocity and load data are collected at rates of up to 10,000 samples per second. The data is displayed on the PC and is stored in a data file that can be opened using Microsoft Excel for further analysis of the data.

Web DAQ

REAL Controls developed an internet based data acquisition system, which works with our client’s standard control panels, to collect and store energy consumption data. Energy data is constantly monitored and recorded. This data is periodically acquired by a computer located at our clients manufacturing plant, using a modem connection to each of the control panels. The computer then processes the data and inserts it into a database which is located at the clients Internet Service Provider. Once the data is entered into the database, it can be accessed using any web browser.