Lauren Gibbons Paul

Automation World Contributing Writer

Augmented Reality Gets to Work

In both discrete and process manufacturing, augmented reality technologies are proving to be an operator’s best friend by helping to decrease repair times in the plant and in the field, improve accuracy, increase situational awareness, and boost safety.

Next-Generation Andon

The ‘Christmas-tree’ stack lights of yore are all grown up. Thanks to the rise of smart communication technologies, today’s Andon systems are IIoT- and intelligent-messaging-enabled indicators of real-time shop-floor KPI performance.

Where Ethernet (Still) Isn’t

Automation World’s latest poll revisits our 2016 survey on the state of industrial Ethernet adoption. The numbers seem to suggest nothing much has changed. But is that what’s really going on?

1912 F1 Opening

Digital Maturity: A United View

Automation World survey results highlight the importance of corporate and plant floor alignment for digital transformation initiatives.

More from Lauren Gibbons Paul

HoloLens uses Microsoft Dynamics 365 Remote Assist to digitally place experts from all over the world anywhere in the field.

Hardened Wearables Bring Help Into the Field

Voice-controlled, hands-free wearable devices are bringing virtual and augmented reality to field service, training and other uses.

A Better Day for Worker Safety

A Better Day for Worker Safety

Powered by IIoT and analytics, a range of controls and other devices are making it easier to be safe while also increasing productivity.

In Search of Industrial Cybersecurity Experts

With growing revelations of hacking conducted on manufacturers of all sizes, it’s no longer a question of whether ICS cybersecurity specialists are needed. The question is just how to obtain these hot skills.

Picking up objects of different sizes, shapes and weights is a tall order for robots. At the University of California, Berkeley, Professor Ken Goldberg (left) and Siemens’ Juan Aparicio analyze a robot’s ability to perform grasping motions downloaded from the cloud.

AI Comes to the Shop Floor

Amid all the hype, manufacturers are quietly using artificial intelligence and machine learning to solve specific problems in production, helping operators improve uptime, optimize production and more.

Digital Twins: A Critical Tool

As a sidebar to our August cover story on optimizing power consumption in a plant, this article explores a key trend: creating a digital twin of production equipment fueled by real-time data to have a simulated environment in which to experiment with different controls strategies for energy consumption.

Automation Makes Its Power Play

Automation Makes Its Power Play

It’s no longer enough to evaluate and adjust power consumption at the machine level. In the age of electrification, optimizing overall production is the next frontier in energy efficiency.

End-of-Arm Tooling Grasps Broadening Demands

End-of-Arm Tooling Grasps Broadening Demands

Robotics has expanded beyond automotive into a variety of industries, notably food and beverage and retail. This has driven changes in end-of-arm tooling to accommodate demands like quicker changeovers and multi-task capabilities.

MES and Historians in the Digital Spotlight

MES and Historians in the Digital Spotlight

Plant floor stalwarts for decades, historians and manufacturing execution systems are gaining new attention along with hot trends in digital and manufacturing intelligence. Staying competitive will require extending the MES across operations.

Making Sense of the ICS Cybersecurity Market

Making Sense of the ICS Cybersecurity Market

Attacks on industrial control systems are accelerating, threatening grave fallout. Because sorting through the flood of ICS cybersecurity products and services can be daunting, we offer some help.