Industrial automation is the trend towards the widespread use of automatic control and automatic adjustment devices in industrial production to replace manual manipulation of machines and machine systems for processing and production. Under the conditions of industrial production automation, people only indirectly care and supervise the machine for production. Industrial automation, according to its stage of development can be divided into: (1) semi-automation. That is, part of the use of automatic control and automatic devices, while the other part of the manual operation of machines for production. (2) Full automation. Refers to all the processes in the production process, including loading, unloading, loading and unloading, do not need people to direct production operations (people are only indirectly watch and supervise the operation of the machine), and by the machine continuously, repeatedly and automatically produce a product or a batch of products.
Industrial automation technology is a kind of control theory, instrumentation, computers and other information technology, the industrial production process to achieve detection, control, optimization, scheduling, management and decision-making, to achieve the purpose of increasing production, improve quality, reduce consumption, ensure safety and other purposes of the integrated high technology, including industrial automation software, hardware and system of three major parts. As one of the most important technologies in the modern manufacturing field in the 20th century, industrial automation technology mainly solves the problem of production efficiency and consistency. Whether high-speed, high-volume manufacturing enterprises or the pursuit of flexible, flexible and customized enterprises, must rely on the application of automation technology. The automation system itself does not directly create benefits, but it plays an obvious role in enhancing the production process of enterprises:
(1) Improve the safety of the production process;
(2) Improve production efficiency;
(3) Improve product quality;
(4) Reduce the production process of raw materials, energy loss.
According to international authoritative consulting organizations, the automation system investment and business benefits to enhance the output ratio of about 1:4 to 1:6. Especially in capital-intensive enterprises, automation systems accounted for less than 10% of the total investment in equipment, playing the role of "four or two for a thousand dollars". The traditional industrial automation system that is, mechatronics system is mainly on the control of equipment and production processes, that is, by the mechanical body, power part, test sensing part, actuator, drive part, control and signal processing units, interfaces, and other hardware elements, in the software program and electronic circuit logic of the purpose of the flow of information under the guidance of the coordination, organic integration and integration, the formation of the orderly rules of the material and energy Motion, so as to form an industrial automation system or product.
In the field of industrial automation, the traditional control system has experienced the development process following the base pneumatic instrumentation control system, electric unit combined analog instrumentation control system, centralized digital control system and distributed control system DCS.
With the development of control technology, computers, communications, networks and other technologies, the field of information interaction and communication is rapidly covering the field equipment layer from the factory to control, management at all levels. Industrial control machine system generally refers to the industrial production process and its electromechanical equipment, process equipment for measurement and control of automation technology tools (including automatic measuring instruments, control devices) of the general term. Today, the simplest understanding of automation is also transformed into: the use of machines in a broad sense (including computers) to partially replace or completely replace or exceed human physical strength.