СТА 4/2010

DEVELOPMENT/ Marine Equipment 66 Universal server using the cPCI bus hardware for the shipboard information systems By Sergey Chashchin The article describes an universal server developed by Sea Project CJSC. This server utilizes the modern commercial structural components and computing facilities with cPCI bus and is designed for use as a part of the marine and coastal information systems. Also discussed are the capabilities of the server, its features and advantages. The article provides a structure chart of the universal server and implementation chart of the server based information system. DEVELOPMENT/ Railway Transport 70 LOGO! based automatic control system for the sliding gate By Yurii Kizilov The article presents an automatic control system for the sliding gates at the railway transport maintenance facility. The system is based on LOGO! module and employs the remote radio control principle. Also discussed in detail is the system operation algorithm under various situations and at different inputs. HARDWARE/ Drives 74 Explosion protection of the non electrical parts of the equipment based on the sliding monitoring By Stefan Pflueger The current international standards specify the explosion protection of the non electrical parts of the equipment. A risk of explosion can occur when the drive and the output device of the system are interlocked. The article analyses the potential consequences of such interlock and evaluates the potential ignition sources. Also discussed are the explosion protection solutions based on the rotational speed monitoring in order to identify the signs of sliding, an indicator of occurrence of a dangerous situation. The article covers the commercial modules for implementation of such solutions. HARDWARE/ Sensors 78 Buoy or guided wave radar? By Vitaliy Grigorchuk Today the buoy level gages are one of the most common devices that can be used to measure levels of any liquids in industry. When using these devices, the instrument engineers face the maintenance problems. What is an alternative solution to reduce costs and optimize the measurement process? PORTRAIT OF THE COMPANY 80 MEN Mikro Elektronik: solutions for critical applications By Aleksei Pyatnitskikh The article presents MEN Mikro Elektronik Gmbh as one of the leaders in manufacturing the reliable systems and components for harsh environments. The business indicators given in the article, information on the partners as well as description of the recent developments and unique solutions are provided to show the innovative activity of MEN Mikro Elektronik Gmbh, fundamentals of manufacturing high quality and reliable products, and a comprehensive approach to developing the reliable control systems for critical applications. ENGINEER'S NOTEBOOK 90 Modbus and Modbus TCP protocols and networks By Victor Denisenko The article provides an analytical review of literature on the Modbus and Modbus TCP protocols and networks. 96 Serial interface servers: step by step instruction By Ivan Lopukhov The articles discusses a specific class of communication devices known as "serial interface servers", their characteristics, tasks solved with the aid of these servers, adjustment and application examples. SHOWROOM 103 SYSTEM INTEGRATION PROJECTS IN BRIEF 109 NEWS 6, 34, 53, 58 CD ROM in this issue ICONICS REVIEW/ Hardware 8 Machine Vision and Digital Image Processing By Andrey Golovastov Currently, the computer processing of visual information has gained a new impulse for development and wide acceptance in various industries. The purpose of this article is to attract the reader's attention to the fundamentals and standards of the digital image processing and present software and hardware used. A significant part of the article is dedicated to an overview of the ADLINK video capture boards which represent a good reflection of the modern trends, advanced technologies and the research results and findings on the subject under discussion. REVIEW/ Software 20 The real cost of "roll your own" Linux By Sven Dummer The article provides a detailed description of how to build a specialized embedded Linux distribution in the cross platform environment. Also discussed are the unob vious sources of risks and hidden costs when using a "roll your own" approach to build the in house Linux platform. The article compares the "roll your own" and commercial approaches based on the example of the Wind River Linux platform. SYSTEM INTEGRATION/ Metallurgy 28 System for measuring temperature and oxidation and melt sampling in an electric steel furnace through the working door By Sergey Chistyakov, Sergey Sinyavin, Aleksei Savin and Dmitriy Kirkin The article describes one of the options for designing an automation system which is intended for contact measurements and melt sampling and replicated for various process facilities at the Cherepovets Iron and Steel Plant. Also discussed are the special features of the manipulator control system. The article gives reasons for preference of the SIMATIC controller, discusses the operating principles of the measuring instruments, shows the software capabilities and specifies the development tools. SYSTEM INTEGRATION/ Oil & Gas Industry 36 Problems and solutions on the upgrade of Sputnik and Mera AGMU in the oil industry By Boris Andreychikov The current stage of the technology development in the oil industry is characterized by working out the ways to upgrade the automatic group measuring units now in operation and the new ones by using moisture meters. The article describes the architecture, operation algorithm and evaluation of the accuracy of measuring the flowrate and relative content of crude oil in the products from the oil producing wells by means of Satel RVVL radio wave moisture meter specifically designed for this purpose. Also included are the performance characteristics and the results of the certification tests. SYSTEM INTEGRATION/ Electric Power Industry 50 Process control system of the Yumaguzinskaya Hydropower Plant By Evgeniy Lobachyov The Republic of Bashkortostan, the Bashkiria National Park in the Kugarchinsky District here, in this place, the hydrologists decided to realize their dreams and implement their "hydro thoughts". That is how an idea to implement the high technologies and in future, the process automation equipment for power generation came into being and finally, the Yumaguzinskaya Hydropower Plant was built at the bottom of the hydro engineering complex on the Belaya River. SYSTEM INTEGRATION/ Municipal Economy 54 Efficient use of resources and safety during the local arrangement of an intelligent process control system of the water pumping station By Anatoliy Kinebas, Victor Sokol, Aleksandr Gusarov and Sergey Tarazevich The article describes an integrated automated system of GUP Vodokanal St. Petersburg based on the example of process control system of the Volkhonskaya Booster Water Pumping Station. The system offers adequate solutions in terms of the efficient use of the resources as well as process safety in operation of the water pumping stations. SYSTEM INTEGRATION/ Food Industry 60 New approach to the automation of the spirit brew production By Aleksandr Gunko, Yaroslav Boyarchuk, Igor Komissarov and Aleksandr Dorofeev The article describes a new method of diluting starch to produce spirit brew. The company and industrial experience is summed up, and various methods are compared. The article provides and justifies solutions on how to upgrade the existing process control system in order to introduce and implement a new method based on this system. The special features of the upgraded system operation are shown by describing the tasks that the system performs. In conclusion, the article presents the factors which determine the efficiency of implementation of the approaches described in the article as well as some data which allow an understanding of potential economy. СТА 4/2010 www.cta.ru 112 TABLE OF CONTENTS CTA 4/2010 © СТА-ПРЕСС