Programmable automation controller (PAC)

 

 

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Programmable automation controller (PAC) is a term that is loosely used to describe any type of automation controller that incorporates higher-level instructions.

 

The systems are used in industrial control systems (ICS) for machinery in a wide range of industries, including those involved in critical infrastructure.

 

A PAC makes it possible to provide more complex instructions to automated equipment, enabling much the same capabilities as PC-based controls in an all-in-one package like a programmable logic controller (PLC).

 

PLCs were created in the 1960s as an improvement over relay-based systems. Although more advanced than relay, PLCs still functioned by simple ladder logic that resembled the appearance of wiring diagrams of relay systems.

 

In the beginning, PLCs had limited memory, required proprietary terminals and lacked remote I/O (input/output) capabilities.

 

Additional abilities required adding hardware cards. PC-based programming of PLC was introduced in the 1980s and offered greater abilities, more memory and sequential control. Early PACs came on the scene at the beginning of the 21st century.

 

PACs offered a combination of the abilities and technologies of distributed control systems (DCS) and remote terminal units (RTU) as well as some of the abilities offered by PC control.

 

 

 

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Distributed Processing

 

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Distributed processing is a setup in which multiple individual central processing units (CPU) work on the same programs, functions or systems to provide more capability for a computer or other device.

 

Originally, conventional microprocessors involved just one CPU on a chip. As microprocessor engineering evolved, manufacturers discovered that to speed up processes, more than one processor could be combined on a single unit.

 

Many modern processors involve a multi-core design, such as a quad-core design pioneered by companies like Intel, where four separate processors offer extremely high speeds for program execution and logic.

 

Distributed processing also can be used as a rough synonym for parallel processing, in which programs are made to run more quickly with multiple processors.

 

With the strategy of including more than one processor on a microprocessor chip, hardware users also can string multiple computers together to implement parallel processing with applications known as distributed processing software.

 

The distributed processing concept goes along with Moore’s law, which posits that the number of transistors on an individual integrated circuit (IC) doubles every two years.

 

As this theory has largely proven correct over the last four decades, engineering strategies like distributed processing also have added to the speed of logical devices for some amazing advances in the ability of computers to perform functional tasks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Industrial control system (ICS)

 

 

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Industrial control system (ICS) is a general term used to describe the integration of hardware and software with network connectivity in order to support critical infrastructure.

 

ICS technologies include, but are not limited to, supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) and distributed control systems (DCS), industrial automation and control systems (IACS), programmable logic controllers (PLCs), programmable automation controllers (PACs), remote terminal units (RTUs), control servers, intelligent electronic devices (IEDs) and sensors.

 

Historically, most machinery and engineering components used in manufacturing and the operation of power plants, water and wastewater plants, transport industries and other critical infrastructures were dumb, and those that were computerized typically used proprietary protocols.

 

The networks they belonged to were air-gapped and protected from the outside world. This has changed over the years and components of today's ICSs are often connected directly or indirectly to the internet.

 

Advances in smart sensor technology and wireless networking have made the blending of operational technology (OT) with information technology (IT) desirable and cost-effective.

 

Despite the benefits of increased speed, better responsiveness to conditions and improved reliability that IT/OT convergence had brought, however, there are drawbacks in terms of security.

 

Targeted attacks against ICSs by terrorists pose a threat to most nations around the world. As remote telemetry units used to input change become more capable of local control and as the Internet of Things (IoT) and Industrial IoT continue to grow, it becomes increasingly important for strategies to protect ICSs from security threats be top of mind.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Microprocessor (logic chip)

 

 

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A microprocessor, sometimes called a logic chip, is a computer processor on a microchip.

 

The microprocessor contains all, or most of, the central processing unit (CPU) functions and is the "engine" that goes into motion when you turn your computer on.

 

A microprocessor is designed to perform arithmetic and logic operations that make use of small number-holding areas called registers.

 

Typical microprocessor operations include adding, subtracting, comparing two numbers, and fetching numbers from one area to another.

 

These operations are the result of a set of instructions that are part of the microprocessor design.

 

When your computer is turned on, the microprocessor gets the first instruction from the basic input/output system (BIOS) that comes with the computer as part of its memory.

 

After that, either the BIOS, or the operating system that BIOS loads into computer memory, or an application progam is "driving" the microprocessor, giving it instructions to perform.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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