I'm very excited to announce that with the update the GX Works3 version 1.095Z and firmware 1.290, Online Program Changes are now possible in SFC programming on the FX5U and FX5UC PLCs.
We have had the ability to program SFC on the FX5U/FX5UC PLCs for a while now, however if you needed to do a program change it required you to stop the PLC and rewrite the entire program. With this new update you can use the standard Online Change capability to update your SFC code without having to stop th
Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation group has now released GT Works3, their GOT/HMI design package as Windows 11 compliant.
If you have an account with Mitsubishi, you can always look at the Compatibility Matrix here:
https://us.mitsubishielectric.com/fa/en/account/my-software-portal/windows-compatibility-matrix/
As of today (June 30, 2022) here is the current compatibility Matrix.
Mitsubishi has released version 1.085P with support for Windows 11. As of today (May 5, 2022) you should be able to log into the Software Portal at http://us.mitsubishielectric.com/fa/en and download version 1.085P.
If you haven't registered your software, you will need to register it first. If it's already registered and more than a year old, reach out to Gibson Engineering to purchase a Software Maintenance Agreement which will give you 1 year of updates.
*GX Works3 is used to prog
As of late August of 2021 Mitsubishi Electric has released support of CC-Link IE Field Network Basic on the MR-J5-G and MR-JET-G series servo amplifiers.
Why is this important? Well, for starters as long as you don't need coordinated motion, this reduces the cost of implementing a servo system significantly. All current Mitsubishi PLCs with built-in Ethernet ports support the CC-Link IE Field Basic protocol, that includes the L-series, Q-series, iQ-F (FX5) series and iQ-R series. This ma
Not that long ago, Ethernet wasn’t common on PLCs and other industrial devices. Even 10 years ago you often had to buy a separate option card to add Ethernet to your PLC. But now it has become ubiquitous and with it has come a plethora of terminology and misunderstanding.
I often hear customers ask, “does this PLC support Ethernet communications?” Unfortunately, the answer for most current PLCs is yes. Why is this an unfortunate answer? The problem is Ethernet is not a communications sta
With Robotics expanding rapidly in the industry, the need for simple, easy to set up grippers for Robotic End of Arm Tooling is more important than ever.
Intelligent Actuator makes some of the industries best electric actuators. With simple setup and unsurpassed quality, their RoboCylinder line of products has been an industry leader for decades.
Now IAI has released a new ELECYLINDER Electric gripper. These 2 position actuators with built-in controllers replace air actuated cylinder
Did you know that Mitsubishi FR-A800, FR-E800 and FR-F800 series Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) include built-in Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) functionality?
That’s right, the VFDs/Inverters that you are used to using to drive your 3-phase motors have a built-in PLC that can be enabled to do logic control without an external device. Not only this, but you can add extra input and outputs via add-on cards to expand the functionality.
Let’s look at a simple example – the E800 VFD
Maybe you are new to Ethernet Networking or maybe you’ve been doing it for a while and you know how to get it to work but fumble most of the time before getting it right. Either way, this blog is intended to give a basic understanding of Ethernet networking. We won’t get into more advanced topics like VLANs and DMZ, and if you haven’t even heard those terms, that’s fine.
This is meant as a beginners guide. So let’s get to it.
Firstly, let’s talk about your address. No, I don’t me
Programmable controllers have come a long way in the past few years. And Mitsubishi's iQ-F line of PLCs is no exception - or maybe it is?
PLC programmers are used to thinking about using large rack mount systems when they need a lot of processing power, and while that still remains true, the lower end has grown so much that applications we used to have to reach for larger and more expensive PLCs to accomplish can now be done in much lower cost units. For example Mitsubishi's FX5 (iQ-F) se
Almost every week I support someone using Modbus communications in one form or another. And when I say one form or another, I truly mean that. Modbus is not a single protocol but a family of protocols. There’s Modbus ASCII, Modbus RTU, and Modbus TCP and maybe even more, but those are the ones I am most familiar with.
I cannot say that I am a guru on Modbus, but I can certainly attest to dozens, if not hundreds of hours setting up and using this protocol. Mostly I have used it in two fo
Innovative system brings the power of 3D inspections to In-Sight
The In-Sight 3D-L4000 is a breakthrough in three-dimensional (3D) vision technology. This unique vision system combines 3D laser displacement technology with a smart camera allowing factory engineers to quickly, accurately, and cost effectively solve a wide variety of inspections.
The patented speckle-free blue laser optics, an industry first, acquires high quality 3D images and on-board high-performance processing powe
As yet another example of the amazing flexibility and power that Mitsubishi’s iQ-F Controller, Mitsubishi has now added Sequential Function Chart programming to the FX5U and FX5UC compact, cost effective PLCs.
If you have been a PLC programmer for a long time you have probably programmed in ladder logic, and most likely Function Block Diagram languages (FBD) which has also been called Structured Ladder programming. You might have even used Structured text (ST) programming. But have you ever
Advanced warning, this may not be the most professional or business-centric blog post for Gibson Engineering's Support Community. I wanted to share an automation application and the associated story that may entertain some of our readers.
Earlier in the year, as we went into coronavirus quarantine and our kids were sent home from school, my wife decided it was a great time to get chickens. I've shrugged off this idea for a couple of years now. However, I came home one night to three excit
Color Inspection comes to the ViDi Platform
Cognex has announced the release of Color cameras for use with its ViDi Deep Learning platform. If you haven't been keeping up with Deep Learning in Machine Vision, this is huge news. Not very long ago Deep Learning and neural networks were limited to lab use or very large complex systems. But now you can train complex applications and deploy them on Smart Cameras on your product line to perform inspections that were never possible with traditi
Wow, October got away from me. I don't know about you, but things are still moving fast and completing new projects is taking longer than usual right now. But that's where having options and other resources can be a great help.
Did you know that Gibson Engineering has been running a Panelshop for decades? That's right, we have a group dedicated to custom panel work. We do everything from kitting, to small assembly work, to custom electrical enclosure, to large multi-bay control enclosur
Expiration dates, lot codes, and other important texts are on all our consumer products. Federal regulations require that food and medical related items have this important information and that it is easily read by the end customer. Consequently, manufacturers are responsible for making sure these texts are present and accurate. Traditional optical character recognition (OCR) tool sets use a combination of image filters and pattern matching to determine which character is being read. A large
Automated Sterilization of Work Spaces with disinfection top modules for mobile industrial robots
Organizations have started to adapt to a new reality with restrictions in commercial activities and social distancing. In order to protect employees and businesses, Mobile Industrial Robots is providing flexible solutions, especially when it comes to disinfection processes. Their automated sterilization solution for work spaces is useful across a variety of sectors. Amid this current sit
Cutting-edge performance for the toughest codes
Manufacturing environments in automotive, medical device, electronics, aerospace, and product security industries require rugged, high performing, and easy to use barcode reading technology to ensure top component traceability and productivity. DataMan 8700 series handheld barcode readers decode the toughest direct part mark (DPM) and label-based codes while withstanding harsh oils, dirt, and water. A built-in display screen enables quick setu
In the 2D industrial imaging realm, I am going to split the cameras into 2 groups: Monochrome and Color cameras. They both have different applications and we usually see monochrome cameras used in the automation industry and machine vision applications.
Take a look at the bottom infographic for how to turn light into a digital file. Industrial cameras are digital cameras so this applies to them too.
Light hits the subject (no light, no image), a lens collects the light then gets r
To start, an executive round table happened on Wednesday, September 9th, called “The State of the Global Robotics Industry” at RIA Robotics Week (Link here if you want to watch it). It was an interesting talk about the past couple of months, the current and most importantly the future of advanced manufacturing and robotics. I thought it was great to hear the opinions of some important names of the automation industry.
(If you haven’t watched the round table, feel free to read the summary I
*** Quick Update 6/27/2022 ***
This is a great quick overview from Mitsubishi
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Mitsubishi CC-Link networks have grown substantially over the past decade and it’s no wonder that there is some confusion on the various versions. This blog is to give a quick overview and hopefully clear up some of what can be rather muddy waters.
Let’s start with wha
I am going to be honest here, I didn’t think I needed a 7th axis on a robot. I thought it was a marketing gimmick or an additional linkage to make the kinematics equations harder… I was wrong.
Disclaimer: There are two different options to get 7 different axis; 1) a 7 axis robot, 2) an additional 7th axis for a 6 axis robot. Two different things. I am going to be talking about 7 axis robots in this post rather than adding an elevator or a slide to a 6 axis arm.
Save time on the d
With the introduction of cobots (collaborative robots) into the manufacturing environment, many people struggle to understand the limits of cobots and rush to assume that every new application they see is a good fit for a cobot. There are several factors to look at when deciding between a cobot, a traditional robot, or a traditional robot with integrated safety components for an application.
Amount of human interaction
Proximity of human traffic
Process positioning toleranc
