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Author: John Mulindi

  • Actuators as Automation Components

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    John Mulindi
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    An actuator is normally controlled by the controller. The actuator, in turn, changes the output of an automated process. The actuator in an automated process may in actual fact be several actuators, each of which provides an output that drives another in the series of actuators. Let’s consider the hydraulic actuator that controls the position…

  • Open Systems Interconnection Communication (OSI) Model

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    John Mulindi
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    Developed by the ISO (International Organization for Standards) in 1983, the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference model divides communication functions into seven-layer standard protocol system. The OSI model is a framework for developing a coordinated system of standards. The seven layers are described as follows: 1 Physical Layer This layer describes the means for bit…

  • Adaptive Control System

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    John Mulindi
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    Adaptive control system adjusts to changes and modifies its parameters to fit the prevailing circumstances. The adaptive control system is based on the use of a microprocessor as the controller. Such a device enables the control mode and the control parameters employed to be adapted to fit the prevailing circumstances, modifying them as the circumstances…

  • Control Modes in Automation Systems

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    John Mulindi
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    The mode of control is the way in which a control system makes corrections relative to an error that exists between the setpoint of a controlled variable and its actual value. We have a number of ways (i.e. control modes) by which a control unit can react to an error signal and supply an output…

  • The Importance of Power Line Communication in Smart Grid Operation

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    John Mulindi
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    Power line communication (PLC) (i.e. the sending of data over the existing power cables) plays an important role in smart grid operation; Power line communication networks can access smart meters that are connected to feeders, the smart meter receives a signal coming from the transformer which is electrically connected to it. This helps to identify…

  • How Cellular Communication Systems Works

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    John Mulindi
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    In cellular communication systems, there is a two-way wireless transmission between the cellular phone handset and the base station tower. The cell phone converts the audio signals into electrical form using a microphone. This information is imposed on a high frequency carrier signal by the process of modulation. The modulated carrier is radiated into free…

  • Soft-Core Processor on an ASIC vs. FPGA

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    John Mulindi
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    A soft-core processor can be executed via different semiconductor devices, such as an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) or a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). An ASIC is customized for a specific application, whereas the FPGA’s programmable logic blocks and interconnects allow a single FPGA to be used and reused in several different applications. On…

  • Electrical vs. Electronic Instruments

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    John Mulindi
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    Despite the fact that both electrical and electronic instruments measure electrical quantities like voltage and current, they differ from each other in terms of the built-in features; for example, purely electrical instruments don’t possess any in-built amplifying device to increase the amplitude of the quantity being measured whereas electronic instruments typically incorporate an amplifier. DC…

  • The Principle of Piezoelectric Sensing

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    John Mulindi
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    The piezoelectric transduction is based on the conversion of mechanical vibrations into electrical signals and vice versa. The piezoelectric effect involves the generation of electric charge by a material when subjected to a mechanical deformation. The redistribution of electrical charges in the piezoelectric material causes variations of the electric field inside the material. The reverse…

  • The Performance Limits for PID Controllers

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    John Mulindi
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    PID Controllers can be applied successfully to most control problems in process control, electrical drive systems and servo mechanisms due to the fact that most of these processes have a dynamic behaviour that can be adequately approximated by a second-order process. However, the PID controller is not enough to control processes with additional complexities like…