Milestones in Automation From The Transistor To The Digital Factory

Milestones in Automation The evolution of automation is closely tied to the development of electronics and microelectronics. It began 50 years ago with pure hardware solutions, wired circuits and control systems. This was followed by the period of software orientation and programming, which in the last decade, the era of communication and information, finally led to the concept of Totally integrated Automation. If the mark left by development at the beginning was due to the implementation of what was technically feasible, today it is the opinion of the user that is the decisive factor. "What functions and interfaces must programmable controllers offer in order to fulfill the demands of multi-networked technical applications of widely varied complexity?" The story told in this book therefore extends from the beginning of Simatic, the world's most successful programmable controller family, to to day's state-of-the-art technology, enhanced by specific solution examples and a brief look into the future. Easy to read and creatively designed, the book offers technicians, engineers and managers a profound look into the development history and possibilities for use of a technology which left its mark like no other on industrial processes and a huge range of technical systems.Zankl, Arnold is the author of 'Milestones in Automation From The Transistor To The Digital Factory', published 2006 under ISBN 9783895782596 and ISBN 3895782599.