©2026 Automation.com, a subsidiary of the International Society of Automation.
-
ISA provides technical resources and standards to help industrial automation professionals advance their careers and the field. We enable automation professionals worldwide to solve problems and enhance their skills by bringing people together to create new technologies and share best practices with future automation professionals.
-
ISA Resources
-
Upcoming Events
-
Industry Insights
-
-
We attract over 140,000 unique automation professionals monthly, making us the premier online content provider and the only dedicated electronic magazine in the automation industry.
Monthly Magazine
-
Learn more about us
-
More things to read
-
Events and Webinars
-
Advertising Opportunities
Back- Aircraft, Aerospace
- Automotive, Other Transportation Vehicles/Systems
- Chemicals & Allied Products
- Communications/Networking/Data Services
- Computers, Electronics and Semiconductors
- Consumer Packaged Goods, Food, Beverage
- Education & Training
- Engineering Consulting/EPC
- Ethanol Production
- Fabricated Metal Products
- Facilities/Building Management
- Show More (34)
- Glass, Concrete, Stone and Clay Products
- Government or Military
- Industrial Machinery & Equipment
- Instrumentation, Control, Test, Measurement Systems
- Marine, Maritime
- Medical Devices/Equipment
- Metal Processing
- Mining & Minerals
- Miscellaneous or Other Manufacturing
- Oil, Gas and Petroleum - Extraction/Upstream
- Oil, Gas and Petroleum - Pipeline/Midstream
- Oil, Gas and Petroleum - Refining/Downstream
- Paper, Wood & Allied Products
- Pharmaceuticals, Life Sciences
- Plastics & Rubber
- Power Generation/Distribution - Electrical, Oil, Gas, Nuclear, Combined
- Power Generation/Distribution - Renewable: Solar, Wind, etc.
- Smart Cities/Building Automation
- Systems Integration/Value-Added Resellers
- Textiles, Apparel and Leather
- Warehouse/Distribution, Logistics, Ports
- Water/Wastewater
- Agriculture
- Show Less
Back-
Industrial Data and Connectivity
-
Industrial Automation and Control
-
Digital Transformation
-
-

Joel Don
Joel Don is an independent content marketing, social media and public relations consultant. Prior to his work in marketing and PR, Joel served as an editor for regional newspapers and national magazines throughout the U.S. He earned a master's degree from the Medill School at Northwestern University with a focus on science, engineering and biomedical marketing communications, and a bachelor of science degree from UC San Diego.
345 Results Found
Searching...
-
Feature
AutoQuiz: Why Must Voltage Be Reduced Along with Frequency in a Variable Frequency Speed Controller?
To maintain a constant (rated) flux density, the applied voltage must also be changed in the same proportion as the frequency (per Faraday’s law).By: Joel Don28 February, 2020 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Process Confirms That a Company Meets the Needs of Customers and Complies With Statutory and Regulatory Requirements?
ISO 9000 is a family of international quality management systems standards designed to help organizations ensure that they meet the needs of customers and other stakeholders while meeting statutory anBy: Joel Don21 February, 2020 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What is “Slip” in an AC Induction Motor?
Slip is usually expressed as a percentage, and varies by motor, from nominally 0.5 percent for very large motors to about 5 percent for small, specialized motors..By: Joel Don14 February, 2020 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Factors Affect the Reynolds Number for a Flowing Fluid?
The Reynolds Number for a flowing fluid can be generalized as the ratio of kinetic (or inertial) forces divided by viscous forces.By: Joel Don07 February, 2020 | 1 minute -
Feature
AutoQuiz: Identify Three Levels Within the Manufacturing Computer Systems Hierarchy
The manufacturing computer systems hierarchy is defined in ISA-88 and ISA-95 by Level 0 through Level 4.By: Joel Don31 January, 2020 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Are the Limitations of an Analog Multimeter?
An analog voltmeter works by passing a current through a coil that is suspended between two permanent magnets.By: Joel Don24 January, 2020 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How Are the Maintainability and Maintenance of Automation Systems Related?
Maintainability is the probability that a device will be restored to an operating condition within a specified period when maintenance is done with prescribed resources and procedures.By: Joel Don17 January, 2020 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How to Use the Parity System to Detect Data Transmission Errors
Parity is a simple method using a binary code (“1” or “0”) to detect data transmission errors by making the sum of the “1” bits in the source data either an odd or an even number.By: Joel Don10 January, 2020 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Electrical Event Can Occur With a 24 VDC Open-Collector Output Sinking Configuration?
An NPN (sinking) open-collector, when “energized,” switches the load side of the relay (at terminal “A”) to ground (terminal “B”).By: Joel Don03 January, 2020 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Device Is Used to Convert an Analog Signal From a Transmitter to the Signal Required by a Digital Controller?
A digital controller requires a digital signal as its input. A 4-20 mA transmitter outputs an analog signal. Therefore, a device to convert an analog (A) signal to a digital (D) is required.By: Joel Don27 December, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Are the NPV and IRR Methods for Evaluating Industrial Automation System Capital Investments?
Net present value (NPV) by itself is not a good indicator of the viability of a project or a good differentiator between two competing projects.By: Joel Don20 December, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is the Logical Analysis Troubleshooting Method for an Industrial Process?
Once a problem is identified in an industrial process, data must be gathered and analyzed to determine a viable set of potential actions and solutions.By: Joel Don13 December, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Should an Engineer Include in a Final Automation Project Report to Senior Management?
An executive summary and bullet-item lists for an automation project allows managers them to understand the basic outcomes and conclusions of your project.By: Joel Don06 December, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is the Purpose of an Instrument Location Plan?
Instrument location plans are most often used to support new plant installations and give the installer information about the actual physical location of the installation of an instrument.By: Joel Don29 November, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is the Significance of the Fieldbus Intrinsic Safety Concept?
The fieldbus intrinsic safety concept simplifies the rules governing energy storage in field cables and makes more power available to the fieldbus trunk.By: Joel Don22 November, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: Which Valve Actuation Method Is Best for a Very Large Force and a Small Actuator?
Hydraulic actuators are driven by a high-pressure fluid (up to 4,000 psig) that can be delivered to the actuator by a pump that is remote from the actuator itself.By: Joel Don15 November, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Are the Benefits of Self-Study Workbooks for Operator Training?
Self-study workbooks ensure that all students have been exposed to the same learning objectives and material.By: Joel Don08 November, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How are Pressure Changes Measured in Industrial Applications?
For most pressure applications, changes in pressure are detected by the change in deflection of a measuring diaphragm.By: Joel Don01 November, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Are the Cybersecurity Risks to a Geothermal Plant?
Automation systems are vulnerable to many cybersecurity risks, but email viruses pose the least risk to disrupt operations and create an emergency situation.By: Joel Don25 October, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: Technical Characteristics of the Open Systems Interconnection Model
The presentation layer for protocols used in control systems provides the translation of data received into a usable format, such as binary data from a programmable logic controller into floating poinBy: Joel Don11 October, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How to Install Thermocouple Extension Wires
Proper installation of thermocouple extension wires requires special terminal blocks to prevent additional junctions from being formed.By: Joel Don04 October, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How Are Errors Corrected in Industrial Network Data Communications?
Cyclic redundancy checking is a method of checking for errors in data that has been transmitted on a communications link.By: Joel Don27 September, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
Lessons Learned From a Forensic Analysis of the Ukrainian Power Grid Cyberattack
The Ukrainian power grid cyberattack was triggered when an employee opened an Excel spreadsheet attachment of an email.By: Joel Don23 September, 2019 | 11 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How to Calibrate a High-Range Electronic Pressure Transmitter
A dead-weight tester apparatus uses known traceable weights to apply pressure to a fluid for checking the accuracy of readings from a pressure gauge or pressure transmitter.By: Joel Don20 September, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is Receipt Verification in Industrial Processes?
Receipt verification is an industrial systematic process by which a site verifies that what was specified and ordered is actually what is received.By: Joel Don13 September, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Industrial Troubleshooting Technique Can Help Replace a Bad Component?
The substitution method may reveal the component that is the cause of the problem.By: Joel Don06 September, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What is a Database Record?
A database record is a single row of information in a table.By: Joel Don30 August, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: Characteristics of an Industrial Controller
For a direct-acting controller, the resulting output movement is in the same direction as the movement of the process variable.By: Joel Don23 August, 2019 | 1 minute -
Feature
AutoQuiz: When Does Cavitation Occur in Liquid Flow?
In cavitation, when the liquid drops below the vapor pressure around the vena cava, the liquid vaporizes.By: Joel Don16 August, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Happens When a Reset Action Is Added to an Industrial Controller Tuned for a Fast Control Loop?
Both gain and reset (integral action) act upon the error in the same direction, per a simplified proportional, integral, derivative (PID) control algorithm.By: Joel Don09 August, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What is the Risk in Using Standard ROI Ratios to Invest in an Automation System?
ROI equations do not account for lost opportunity to collect investment interest on money diverted to fund an automation project or the time value of money.By: Joel Don02 August, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How to Calculate Steady State Gain for a Standard Pneumatic Instrument Loop
Gain is defined in industrial control theory as the change in input divided by the change in output.By: Joel Don26 July, 2019 | 1 minute -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Are Common Terms Used to Quantify Dangerous Industrial Failures?
Spurious trips and nuisance trips are indicative of “safe” failure modes, not “dangerous” failures.By: Joel Don19 July, 2019 | 1 minutes -
News
Book Excerpt + Q&A: Situation Management for Process Control
Situation management is the competency, ability, and willingness of the human operator to properly and successfully manage the enterprise or activity under his or her charge.By: Joel Don15 July, 2019 | 4 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How to Measure the Resistance in a Circuit
Resistance is an electrical quantity that measures how a device or material reduces the electric current flow through it.By: Joel Don12 July, 2019 | 1 minute -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How to Calculate Uptime for an Automation System
The most important measure for production equipment support is operational availability, or “uptime.”By: Joel Don05 July, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: How to Troubleshoot a System Failure Due to a Bad Component
Troubleshooting is often an iterative process. If the proposed solution is not the correct one, further analysis and data collection are warranted.By: Joel Don28 June, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is the Purpose of a Markov Model Computation?
Systems that exhibit a Markov property are ones in which the future does not depend on the past.By: Joel Don21 June, 2019 | 1 minutes -
News
Book Excerpt + Q&A: Security PHA Review for Consequence-Based Cybersecurity
In process industries, mechanical safeguards have been replaced with digital devices. Problem: They have created gr3eater risk from cyberattack.By: Joel Don19 June, 2019 | 4 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: Characteristics of a Loop Diagram
Instrument loop diagrams are very detailed depictions of an industrial control or processBy: Joel Don14 June, 2019 | 1 minute -
Feature
AutoQuiz: Characteristics of a Fuzzy Logic Controller
A PI controller is tuned by adjusting gain or proportional band & integral time settings. Fuzzy logic controller is tuned by adjusting scale factors.By: Joel Don07 June, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is the Best Method for Measuring the Level of a Highly Corrosive Media?
Ultrasonic level detectors use the principle of reflection of an acoustic wave from liquid to vapor phase and vapor to liquid phase.By: Joel Don31 May, 2019 | 1 minute -
Feature
AutoQuiz: Which Signal Type Indicates Direction and Velocity in a Motion Control Application?
To indicate both direction & velocity, a signal with both positive and negative characteristics is required. Motion controls use either ±10 V or ±5 V signals to accomplish this.By: Joel Don24 May, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Type of Switch Is Designed to Detect the End of Travel of a Valve?
Limit switch is a general term to describe the class of devices that are used to detect the end of travel of a valve, louver, or any other item that may be in motion.By: Joel Don17 May, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is the Benefit of Industrial RFID Tags Over Barcode Systems?
RFID tags consist of silicon chips and an antenna that can transmit data to a wireless receiver.By: Joel Don10 May, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: When Should Operating Instructions Be Developed for an Industrial Process?
Operating instructions may be included in a functional specification or operating description and may range from a few pages describing how to operate one part of a plant to a complete set of directioBy: Joel Don03 May, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: Cold Junction Compensation Is Required for Which Type of Temperature Measurement Device?
A thermocouple is comprised of two wires of dissimilar metals, connected at one end, which is placed in the process to be measured. This is called the measuring junction.By: Joel Don26 April, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Security Property Is Affected If a Hacker Intercepts and Changes Set Point Data?
Data integrity implies that the data received is the same (value, format, quality) as the data sent.By: Joel Don19 April, 2019 | 2 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is a Schematic Representation of a Complete Hydraulic, Electric, Magnetic, or Pneumatic Circuit Called?
A loop diagram shows complete details of a hydraulic, electric, magnetic, or pneumatic circuit, showing all of the interconnections, components, and devices that participate in that circuit.By: Joel Don12 April, 2019 | 1 minutes -
Feature
AutoQuiz: What Is the Fastest "Electronic" Method to Bring a DC Motor to a Full Stop?
In regenerative braking, all of the motor's energy is fed directly back into the AC power line.By: Joel Don05 April, 2019 | 2 minutes
Advertisement
International Society of Automation
PO Box 12277
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
E-Mail: [email protected]































