Control Intelligence

In the past, the relationship between electrical drawings and physical machines was largely left to the ability to visualize both. A motor might exist as a symbol on my electrical schematic, while its physical counterpart lived somewhere on a mechanical drawing. The two representations described different aspects of the same machine, but they were not necessarily connected.

In this episode of Control Intelligence, written by contri...

In this episode of Control Intelligence, Mike Bacidore is joined by Jeff Burnstein, President of the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), the North American trade group representing almost 1,500 companies involved in robotics, artificial intelligence, machine vision, motion control and related automation technologies.

Burnstein joined the association in 1983 and has held a variety of senior positions, culminating in his promo...

In this episode of Control Intelligence, editor in chief Mike Bacidore spoke with Doug Woods, president of the Association for Manufacturing Technology, which hosts the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) September 14-19 at Chicago's McCormick Place.

In this interview, Woods explains the missions of the association and the exhibition, which is the western hemisphere's largest manufacturing trade show, as well as expe...

In this episode of Control Intelligence, editor in chief Mike Bacidore spoke to Adrienne Meyer, CEO of the Control System Integrators Association, about the experience she brings from the Open DeviceNet Vendors Association and her MBA studies at the University of Michigan.

In this interview, Meyer shares what she’s learned over the course of more than a year at the helm of CSIA, most of which she’s spent visiting and sp...

In this episode of Control Intelligence, editor in chief Mike Bacidore spoke to Jagannathan Raghunathan, director of cyberphysical security services at Bureau Veritas, about the recent CISA alert.

Raghunathan is also co-chair of the PLC Security Top 20 List. In this interview, he outlines how the PLC Security Top 20 List addresses programmable logic controller (PLC) vulnerabilities by offering practical, engineering-focused guidanc...

The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued an alert on July 30 regarding a significant increase in cyber threat actors targeting programmable logic controllers (PLCs) in the water/wastewater sector.

In this episode of Control Intelligence, Control Design’s longest standing columnist, automation industry veteran Jeremy Pollard, spoke with Mike Bacidore about the vulnerabilities of PLCs; the evolution ...

Factory OT uses wireless networks regularly to interface the physical world and the digital world. Transducers make this connection possible. A transducer is a component that converts one form of energy to another. Industrial controls capitalize on this device by utilizing the convenience of wireless in safety, remote and environmentally challenged environments.

In this episode of Control Intelligence, written by contributing edito...

Sometimes motors can run at 175% of their rated load continuously, but the conditions should be specified within boundaries of the system. When we talk about running a motor at 175% continuously, it means the expected current load or the torque will be at roughly 175% of its rated full load Amps.

In this episode of Control Intelligence, written by contributing editor Tobey Strauch, Mike Bacidore explains when a motor should be allo...

In this episode of Control Intelligence, Mike Bacidore is rejoined by Dr. Brian Romano, director of technology development at Arthur G. Russell Company.

With more than four decades of experience in industrial automation and control systems engineering, Romano's career has centered around innovation, leadership and a forward-looking commitment to advanced technology in manufacturing. His work includes control systems architecture, e...

Machine vision has long been used in factory automation for quality inspections, the final checkpoint separating acceptable parts from the rework pile or the scrap bin. Today, vision systems are no longer just inspectors. They are becoming adaptive, data-driven participants in the manufacturing process, capable of influencing outcomes rather than simply recording them.

In this episode of Control Intelligence, written by contributin...

There is a growing trend to use laser scanning to create 3D images of the plant floor, of machine locations and of intricate areas that are congested with plant infrastructure to allow integrators to visualize how they can install new equipment or modify old equipment.

In this episode of Control Intelligence, written by contributing editor Tobey Strauch, editor in chief Mike Bacidore discusses how to combine 3D tools with engineeri...

In this episode of Control Intelligence, editor in chief Mike Bacidore spoke to Robert Little, founder and executive advisor of Robert Little Robotics in Raleigh, North Carolina, and the 2026 application winner of the Joseph F. Engelberger Robotics Award. He will be recognized at the awards dinner during the Automate Show in Chicago the week of June 22.

With more than 40 years of experience in robotics, automation and manufacturing...

Whether they’re used for position detection on gantries, for detecting parts for assembly or for innumerable other cases, the use of non-contact presence sensors has been a mainstay of industrial controls since the development of the first versions in the 1950s.

In this episode of Control Intelligence, written by contributing editor Joey Stubbs, editor in chief Mike Ba...

In this episode of Control Intelligence, editor in chief Mike Bacidore is joined by an important figure in the controls and automation world, Dr. Brian Romano, director of technology development at Arthur G. Russell Company.

With more than four decades of experience in industrial automation and control systems engineering, Romano’s career has centered around innovation, leadership and a forward-looking commitment to advanced ...