November/December 2017

50 44 34 14 24 43 66 65 67 CONTENTS Drives&Controls is a controlled circulation publication. If you live in the UK and want to subscribe phone 0333 577 0801 or fax 0845 604 2327. Alternatively for both UK and overseas subscriptions please subscribe online at www.drivesncontrols.com. If you have any enquiries regarding your subscription, please use these numbers. The content of this magazine, website and newsletters do not necessarily express the views of the Editor or publishers.The publishers accept no legal responsibility for loss arising from information in this publication. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be produced or stored in a retrieval systemwithout the written consent of the publishers. Paid subscriptions UK: £95 per annum Europe: £125 per annum Rest of World: £160 per annum Printing: GDWeb Offset Ltd, Rotherham, S63 5DL ISSN 0950 5490 Copyright: DFA Media Ltd 2017 NEXT ISSUE The January issue of Drives & Control s will contain our annual supplement on variable-speed drives, and a look at what’s been happening in the world of gears and gearboxes. UPDATE 13 Comment 54 Gambica column 57 ABB Back to Basics 59 Multimedia 59 Design Data 63 New Products 68 Products & Services IN DEPTH Follow us onTwitter @DrivesnControls Drives MagazineWeb site www.drivesncontrols.com Drives ShowWeb site www.drives-expo.com Join us on Facebook Drives & Controls Drives & Controls REGULARS DRIVES & CONTROLS NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2017 Vol 33 No 10 Editor Tony Sacks t/f: 01732 465367 e: tony@drives.co.uk Production Manager Sarah Blake t: 01233 770781 e: sarah.blake@dfamedia.co.uk Customer Liaison Chelsea Moss t: 01732 370340 e: chelsea.moss@dfamedia.co.uk Financial Clare Jackson t: 01732 370340 e: clare.jackson@dfamedia.co.uk ADVERTISING Director of Sales Nigel Borrell t: 01732 370340 f: 01732 360034 m: 07818 098000 e: nigel@drives.co.uk Sales Manager Sara Gordon t: 01732 370341 f: 01732 360034 m: 07505 867211 e: sara.gordon@dfamedia.co.uk DFA Direct Ian Atkinson t: 01732 370340 f: 01732 360034 e: ian.atkinson@dfamedia.co.uk Eastern US Karen C Smith-Kernc e: karenkcs@aol.com t: +1 717 397 7100 f: +1 717 397 7800 Western US & Canada Alan A Kernc e: alankcs@aol.com t: +1 717 397 7100 f: +1 717 397 7800 Italy Oliver & Diego Casiraghi e: info@casiraghi.info t: +031 261 407 f: +031 261 380 Japan Yoshinori Ikeda Pacific Business Inc e: pbi2010@gol.com t: +81 (0) 3 3661 6138 f: +81 (0) 3 3661 6139 Commercial Director Ryan Fuller t: 01732 370344 e: ryan.fuller@dfamedia.co.uk Publisher Ian Atkinson t: 01732 370346 e: ian.atkinson@dfamedia.co.uk Reader/Circulation Enquiries Perception-MPS Ltd t: 01825 701520 e: dfamedia@dmags.co.uk HEAD OFFICE DFA Media Ltd 192 High Street, Tonbridge KentTN9 1BE t: 01732 370340 f: 01732 360034 e: info@dfamedia.co.uk www.drivesncontrols.com 59 63 3 News A round-up of the latest business and industry developments from around the world. 14 Technology Cutting-edge innovations in motion, power transmission, controls and related technologies. 24 Servodrives What is the smallest speed increase you can set on a servodrive? An expert examines this frequently asked question and offers some advice on how to determine the best answer for your applications. 29 Safety in our special nine-page supplement on safety, we look at the topical issue of how to work safely with cobots, and examine how pairs of non-safety position-sensing technologies can be used together in safety applications. 39 Controlgear and Enclosures Do you really need to use costly active cooling technologies for your enclosures? We also look at how to choose the correct RCDs for use with frequency converters if you want to avoid nuisance tripping and to maximise machine uptime. 44 Controllers, HMIs and Software Are we entering the age of the control platform? Also, are HMIs an adequate substitute for full Scada systems in OEM machine-building applications? Plus case studies from a Ford plant in Germany and a tracked vehicle factory in Italy. 47 29