Omron Industrial Automation & Safety Solutions

Industrial Automation and Safety

The increase in industrial automation across the globe has increased the chances of unexpected interaction between humans and equipment or moving machines. This makes safety very crucial both in the design of industrial machines and within the production floor to avoid injuries or deaths. Its importance has seen several institutions come up with numerous national and international safety standards that apply to different types of industrial machinery, equipment, and processes. Among these standards are;

• ANSI
• ISO 13856-1
• ISO13849-1
• ANSI B11.1-2003
• CSA Z432-16

Equipment and machinery designers, therefore, need to familiarize themselves with the applicable specifications before they design any industrial product.

Omron

Industrial automation

Omron is a global renown supplier of reliable and advanced electronics and control system components. Omron’s products include timers, limit switches, power supplies, timers, safety switches and relays, photoelectric and proximity sensors, logic controllers, push button and pilot devices, AC variable frequency drives and amplified photomicrosensors. These components are used to automate systems by giving them the ability to operate automatically.

Safety solutions

In a bid to ensure seamless integration of safety with industrial automation, Omron has come up with numerous safety solutions. To achieve this, Omron employs trending technologies like safety Wi-Fi networks and Ethernet Automation Technology (EtherCAT). EtherCAT offers the possibility of integrating Fail Safe over EtherCAT (FsoE). One such solution is the Sysmac safety solution. They Sysmac safety solution entails the integration of NX Safety Controller with the Sysmac automation platform. This solution is a personification of Omron’s one connection, one software concept.

In the Sysmac solution, the connection between the NX Machine controller and other devices is established through the EtherCAT- FsoE protocol. The NX controller’s I/O units can be distributed freely across the network using an I/O rack. The I/O units can be mixed with standard NX I/O units. Sysmac Studio, the automation software, allows for the configuration of simulation and monitoring of the system.

Safety hardware

The Sysmac safety solution and any other safety system should be able to accept signals from safety sensors as inputs, whether an electro-mechanical switch with potential free contacts or wear-free sensors that use pulsed inputs or outputs. Safety devices at both performance and safety integrated level can be contained in one safety system. The Sysmac safety solution has been designed to contain both. Some of the commonly used sensors in integrated safety include;

• Codified magnetic sensors
• Inductive sensors
• Transponder sensors
• Optoelectronic sensors

The Sysmac programming software coupled with a safety CPU can manage up to 1024 digital safety I/O within a single network. Sysmac supports IEC 61131-3 programming standard and the PLC open safety compatible function block. Integrated safety allows information to be shared between the safety and standard program by simply defining the variables in the safety area. Sharing of non-safety signals between the two is also very easy. The Sysmac safety solution is based on two CPUs that are approved up to PL e or SIL 3 that is able to accommodate up to 128 safety node connections. Its program has a capacity of 2MB.

On top of keeping up with technology trends regarding safety systems, Omron has always ensured that its products adhere to International safety standards. If you are integrating safety into your automated system, you might want to consider using Omron product. They are readily available in all leading online stores like enrgtech. By using products that meet International safety standards, you are able to create a system that equally meets the standards.

Source : https://blog.enrgtech.co.uk/omron-industrial-automation-safety-solutions/