Digital Control Panels: What Are They?

Digital control panels have a wide range of application in industries. Application of digital controllers in industrial equipments has resulted in increased efficiency, reliability, and flexibility of operating the device. Industrial equipments that are equipped with digital control panels are generally more stable and less prone to overheating. They allow you to easily control the voltage, temperature, and pressure resulting in smoother operation of the device.

Here you will learn more about digital control panels. You will also discover how they have revolutionized the way industrial equipments operate in industrial settings.

Digital Control Panels: What Are They?

Digital control panels are electrical devices that serve as a system controller. In other words, they regulate and control operation of the equipments and devices. Generally, digital control panels consist of the following parts.

1.       Analog to Digital Convertor – Converts analog inputs to digital form
2.       Digital to Analog Convertor – Converts digital outputs to analog inputs
3.       A program that links the inputs and the outputs – The performs various functions such as amplifies low signals, stabilizes the system using state feedback, monitors sensory inputs, and controls the device.

Digital control panels can also store past input values. It can then automatically generate output values based on weighted sum of the input values. The digital control panels utilize Laplace transform to convert discrete signals into a complex frequency domain representation.

Digital control panels come in different sizes. It can be the size of a micro controller or a standard desktop controller. These digital controllers come in different box types – waterproof boxes, dust proof boxes, Nema 1 terminal boxes, and explosion-proof boxes. The type of digital control boxes that you choose depends on the moisture, humidity, and explosion risk in the area.

Moreover, the type of digital control boxes you choose also depends on whether it is for indoor or outdoor use. Nema 1 terminal box is perfect for indoor use while the weather resistant Nema 4 terminal box is suitable for outdoor use.

Application of Digital Control Panels

Digital control panels have transformed the way industrial boilers, chillers, lighting control, and air-handling units operate. The type, design, and technical specifications of digital control panel vary with the application requirements.

For instance, digital control panel equipped electric immersion heaters not only heat the fluids, but they also maintain fluids at a desired temperature. Digital control panels have a digital display that displays state of the device. They also have temperature sensors for accurate heat control and operation. The sensor measures actual state of the device and take corrective measures to ensure stability of the device.
Other uses of digital control panels included circulation immersion heaters, screw plug immersion heaters, and flanged immersion heaters.

Conclusion

In the end it can be said that digital control panels have greatly improved the efficiency and reliability of industrial equipment devices. They have provided greater control over managing the devices while ensuring stability and efficiency of operation.
Digital control panels have now become quite affordable. The cost of a small microcontroller comes to around $5. You can easily modify the digital control panels using computer software. You can scale the performance of the device and change the parameters. What's more, digital control panels are less at risk from environmental impact as compared to the analog counterpart.