Electricity + Control March 2015

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New line of electronic controls and software - mobile, off-road
Power management company Eaton has
launched a new line of Pro-FX electronic
controls and software, including the HFX
controllers and VFX displays families, and
the Pro-FX Control software suite to pre-
cisely control machine functions for mobile
off-highway applications, such as within
agricultural, construction, material handling
and surface mining vehicles.
“The new Pro-FX family offers customers
best-in-class hardware and software to solve
control challenges without digging into the
bottom line,” said Christophe Natter, product
marketing manager, Eaton. “Simplifying
electric control integration without sacrific-
ing customisation options helps end users in
a wide range of markets improve productiv-
ity, operator safety and energy efficiency.”
New HFX controllers are IP67 and IP69K
rated. Their die-cast aluminium housing
is rugged enough to withstand wide tem-
perature ranges and water depths. Multiple
inputs and outputs, including three CAN
ports, provide flexible configurations to
meet individual customer’s needs.With one
of the fastest processors on the market, the
controllers allow for precise equipment con-
trol. Additionally, memory can be allocated
to perform data logging functions that can
reduce cost by taking the guesswork out of
maintenance by predicting problems before
they happen.The new line also includes two
displays – 4,3 and 7 inches. Like the control-
lers, the best-in-class display screens are ex-
tremely rugged, built to withstand high and
low temperatures, and are readable in direct
sunlight. With a powerful backlight and an
optically-bonded liquid crystal display (LCD)
screen, the displays not only provide sun-
light optimised viewing capabilities at every
angle, but also protect against fog and dust
contamination – a must-have in the mobile
off-road market.
In addition to the new controllers and
displays, Eaton has released the new Pro-FX
configuration software, which is based on
CoDeSys V3.5, a non-proprietary common
programming tool, and is International
Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61131-3
compliant.With full customisation and auto-
mation options, Pro-FX software helps max-
imise machine productivity by simplifying
operations andminimising operator impact.
ROUND UP CONTROL SYSTEMS + AUTOMATION
Dialogue module for mobile machines
Powerful process and dialogue modules for
operation and visualisation in mobile ma-
chines are providing users with a safer and
more reliable performance. With its high-
resolution andmodern 303 mmgraphic dis-
play, the PDM360 NG-12 dialogue module
from ifm electronic has a powerful 32-bit
controller and provides optimum readability
and flexible operation.
Advanced ‘optical bonding technology’
eliminates the clearance between the front
glass and display and prevents interfering
condensation. In addition, it improves read-
ability of the display under different viewing
angles. Protected by a scratch-resistant
glass pane, the 300 mm TFT display with
a resolution of 1 024 x 768 pixels ensures
good visual detection even with unfavour-
able sunlight conditions.The new develop-
ment also provides backlit function keys
and a navigation key with tactile feedback.
Thanks to the extremely flat and fully
sealed die-cast zinc housing with the protec-
tion rating IP 65 / IP 67 the PDM360 NG-12
is especially suitable for use outdoors. Four
CAN interfaces with CANopen and SAE
J1939 protocol, an internal mass storage,
USB interface and interfaces for analogue
cameras ensure universal use.
. 012 450 0370 or
email
Reduce measurement system cost with the rugged controller
The CompactDAQ 4-slot controller integrates the processor, signal
conditioning and I/O into a single CompactDAQ system, making it
possible for NI engineers and scientists to reduce overall system
cost and complexity while increasing measurement accuracy. Inte-
grated measurement systems reduce the number of components,
connections and wiring needed, where noise and additional costs
are often introduced, to ensure high-accuracy measurements and
cost-optimised systems. “Because the CompactDAQ controller is a
stand-alone device, we don’t have to spend money on a separate
computer, signal conditioning or ca-
bling,” said Ryan Ewart, mechatronics
engineer atYanos Aerospace. “Using
the CompactDAQ platform, we’ve
reduced system complexity, cost and
installation time.” The CompactDAQ
controller features an Intel Atom
dual-core processor that can run
either industry-standard Windows
Embedded 7 or NI Linux Real-Time for
ultimate system reliability. By pairing industry-standard OS options
with LabVIEW system design software, customers can easily port
LabVIEW code from existing measurement systems to these new
CompactDAQ controllers. Engineers and scientists can combine
LabVIEW and over 60 sensor-specific I/O modules for CompactDAQ
to quickly customise data acquisition systems to meet their specific
application needs. “We designed this next-generation CompactDAQ
controller based on customer feedback, making it smaller, less
expensive and more rugged,” said Stefanie Breyer, director of data
acquisition R&D at NI. “By leveraging
the latest Intel Atom 3800 processor
within the controller, our customers
can deploy powerful processing paired
with high-accuracy measurements
anywhere.”
Enquiries: Mark Philips.
Email or
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