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In This Issue:
xCoupler Module. For One Food Processor,
After considering several options to connect the company’s sizing and weighing systems directly to the Oracle database, the company chose the xCoupler module from Online Development. The module installs in an Allen-Bradley ControlLogx PAC and exchanges data between the size and weight devices connected to the PAC’s backplane and the Oracle database via Ethernet.
Installing the xCoupler module in the PAC, connecting it to the database and then beginning to configure tag data only required an hour. The total configuration of the system using the module’s drag and drop WorkBench setup tool only required another three hours by plant personnel. No programming was required and no maintenance is required for system updates in the future. The company is using the xCoupler’s transaction log to resolve any questions about size and weight quantities delivered by the growers. This log cannot be altered and shows actual results provided by the size and weight devices. The module also features data store and forward capability. Should the Oracle database go down or a connection to it be lost, the xCoupler stores the data in its flash drive. It automatically sends an email alert, and then forwards the data when the database is available. Ease of integration, fast startup and secure data, this is why xCoupler modules are the berries.Share an xCoupler Success Story, Get an iPod – Become Eligible to Win an Xbox 360
Over the past several months, we have seen many creative ways that our customers are using the capabilities of the xCoupler information appliance module. And not just by exchanging plant floor data with a database or IBM MQ. Some are doing things like using its SMTP and TCP/IP communications capabilities coupled with sensors to create out of tolerance alerts as well. Others are using the xCoupler’s transaction log, as in the story above, to prove to suppliers or regulators that data provided is true and factual. If you have a use for the xCoupler appliance module that you would like to share with others, we would like to reward you for your time in submitting it to us. Every qualifying story submitted will earn another great appliance, an Apple iPod. Plus, every quarter, we will have drawing from all stories submitted to win another great appliance, an Xbox 360 game station. To enter your story, complete the information below and submit. We will respond to tell you if your story qualifies or if there are any added details that may be needed. Click Here to Enter Your Story Today. Complete Automation On The Move: Complete Automation On The Move (CAOTM) events are an ideal way for all of us in the automation business to keep abreast and learn about some of the latest technologies form Rockwell Automation and its Encompass Partners such as Online Development. Even better, these events are scheduled around the country making it easy for many to attend. In the latest of these events in Seattle and Las Vegas, we were able to showcase and demonstrate how the xCoupler module reduces the pain of connecting business systems to plant floor equipment. The biggest pain about connectivity we keep hearing: software programming. That’s where the xCoupler shines. It doesn’t require any. Just snap it into a ControlLogix® rack, connect to the business system via Ethernet, and do some dragging and dropping of parameters and your done. Thanks to the representatives from the following companies that stopped by our booth to see what the xCoupler module has to offer: Darigold, Nature’s Path Organic Foods, ConAgra Foods, Alcoa, Leviton, Romac Industries, Jeld-Wen, Boeing, Stimson Lumber, Safeway Bread, Medallion Foods, Weyerhauser, Technical Systems Inc., Ready Technologies, Tetra Tech, D&L Foundry Supply, CH2MHill, Portland Engineering, L2 Systems, Precision Engine Controls, U.S Borax, Central Automation, Solar Turbines, Abbott Vascular, E&J Gallo Winery, Metlsaw, United Bakery Equipment Company, Norfield, PSI Control Systems, Dreyers, PPG Industries, Six Flags, Chevron, Interstate Brands Corp., Pabco Gypsum, Starbucks, Rio Tinto Minerals, Hancock Lumber, and Qualcomm. xCoupler Goes to the Head of the Class at Automation University Over 400 visitors attended the Automation University in Malmö, Sweden, the first one held in Scandinavia. Over the two days of this Rockwell Automation sponsored event, attendees shared their time between hands-on training sessions and visiting the show floor were Rockwell Automation and Encompass partner products were displayed. Our xCoupler module again impressed a lot of the participants. The live demonstrations we conducted showed attendees how easy it is to collect data from a ControlLogix PAC, or even fetch and download a product recipe stored in an enterprise database. The entire process takes only a few minutes and a couple of mouse clicks. We heard from many that that same process normally takes weeks because of the software development involved. We spoke with customers from all over Scandinavia including TetraPak, Raute, ControlTeam, Kruger, Metso Minerals, Sapa, Maintpartner, 999, DS Automation, Norvidan, and many more. Next and last stop for Automation University 2007 in Europe: Paris, France in October. See you there! |
A Canadian processor of frozen foods pays its growers based on the weight and size of foodstuff they receive, such as blueberries. The plant system that was in place to record sizes and weights by growers wasn’t tied to their business system. As a result, size and weight data of the growers' deliveries had to be manually entered into the company’s Oracle database that holds accounts payable and other business data. The manual entering of data caused payment delays for the growers, as well as disputes about the actual sizes and weights of berries delivered.
