New in gas processing technology
B. Andrew, Technical Editor
Intelligent standalone power supply
Bedrock Automation has added an intelligent, standalone power supply to its growing line of scalable, secure control technologies. The universal power supply is characterized by onboard intelligence, durability, cyber security and physical hardening in a standalone ICS power supply.
The new SPS.500 secure power supply provides deep trust cyber security authentication and onboard intelligence for diagnostics and secure Ethernet communications. Encased in a NEMA 4X sealed aluminum enclosure, users of any PLC, SCADA RTU, PAC or DCS can retrofit to the SPS.500 inside or outside enclosures.
The Bedrock SPS.500 makes the power supply a viable participant in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), with the following features:
- Ethernet and OPC/UA communications, enabling local or remote monitoring of power supply health
- A powerful, cyber secure microprocessor and onboard memory for diagnostics and software-defined functionality
- A built-in redundancy module, which simplifies installation and increases reliability
- Two built-in, configurable Form C contact relays, which provide operating and diagnostic status.
Increasing onboard intelligence with Ethernet requires integral advanced cyber defense, delivered with embedded authentication and FIPS140-2-compliant anti-tamper protection.
The Bedrock Secure Power Supply provides single or redundant supply, using 90-264 V AC main voltage 50 Hz/60 Hz input. Output up to 500 watts is software configurable, 21 V to 28 V.
Connected performance services
Honeywell UOP is introducing a new software-based service designed to allow refiners and petrochemical and gas processing plants to improve performance. The Connected Performance Services (CPS) business leverages the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) to tap Honeywell’s process knowledge, design expertise and understanding of catalysis with next-generation software platforms from Honeywell Process Solutions.
CPS offerings include applications to address critical challenges for refineries and petrochemical and gas processing plants, including better asset utilization, unplanned downtime, energy efficiency and gaps in expertise as plants become more sophisticated and experienced engineers retire. The CPS offerings are part of the larger IIoT ecosystem Honeywell is building to allow end users to harness IIoT technology to tap the expertise of Honeywell UOP and other leading suppliers and partners.
At the heart of the CPS offering is a cloud-based software service that continuously monitors streaming plant data and applies advanced analytics and machine learning, leveraging UOP process models and best practices to find latent or emerging underperformance, alert plant personnel and make specific operational recommendations. The system runs continuously and features digital dashboards that provide intuitive context and actionable understanding of a plant’s performance. The same dashboards are reported simultaneously to a dedicated Honeywell UOP process advisor, who also monitors performance and can provide additional direction and resources.
In addition to identifying underperforming assets and anticipating equipment failures and process issues, Honeywell can monitor and help manage energy use to support compliance with stricter regulatory standards, and also can bridge knowledge gaps among personnel who may not be fully experienced with the equipment. Roughly half of the industry’s most highly tenured staff are expected to retire over the next seven years.
The CPS platform is designed around the user experience, offering a practical interface that is easy to read and understand, and that provides quick and easy analysis and recommendations. By leveraging powerful embedded root cause analysis models, it puts critical performance information at the user’s fingertips to improve performance and offers predictive insights to identify issues well before they could result in costly problems.
4.3-in. LCD screen for industrial use
IDEC Corp. announced the 4.3-in. HG1G HMI, one of industry’s first display products to take full advantage of the worldwide standard 4.3-in. LCD screen size. Since this screen size is so widely used in gaming devices and other commercial products, it effectively obsoletes HMIs with smaller screen sizes by offering a larger and higher-resolution display area at a lower price.
The HG1G display is TFT color LCD with high resolution of 480 × 272 pixels, 65K colors, and 800 cd/m2 brightness. This level of resolution produces improved viewing experience, and the increased brightness allows screens to be easily viewable in direct sunlight. Viewing can be configured for either portrait or landscape, with a viewing angle of 60° from top, 65° from the bottom and 70° from left or right.
HMIs often need to communicate with a variety of different PLCs, controllers and other HMIs from different vendors, and the HG1G HMI delivers this functionality by supporting multiple communication protocols, up to four simultaneously. The serial port can support both RS-232C and RS-422/RS-485 communications simultaneously, and the Ethernet port can support up to four hosts and three user communication protocols at the same time. Combined, the serial port and the Ethernet port can support up to nine communication simultaneously—two serial and seven Ethernet.
The HG1G has a built-in web server that provides full remote monitoring and control via any web browser running on a laptop, a desktop PC, a smartphone or a tablet. Remote users can monitor current values or processes—and control operation, print information, switch screens or change program values—just as if they were in front of the touchscreen display. Users can also remotely perform troubleshooting, run tests and perform maintenance. No additional software tools or modules are needed to use this remote monitor and control function.
Explosion-proof audible and visual warnings
E2S Warning Signals recently launched STEx, its latest family of explosion-proof audible and visual warning devices. Optimized for use in fire and gas warning systems in offshore and marine safety systems, STEX is manufactured in 316L and 316 grade stainless steel to give enhanced corrosion resistance and extended operational life. The family includes high-output 117 dB(A) and 123 dB(A) alarm horn sounders with up to 45 tones, including the PFEER standard warning tones, and either flared or omni-directional radial horns, 15-watt and 25-watt PA loudspeakers, 21-Joule, 15-Joule and 10-Joule Xenon strobe beacons, LED beacons with user-selectable flash patterns, rotating halogen beacons and combined sounder beacon assemblies.
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