A recent hint shared in the OptoForum reminded us of a super-useful tool in PAC Control that you might not know about: find missing connections.

Say you're moving blocks around or copying and pasting them. Of course you're in a hurry to get it done, and you forget to make new connections with existing blocks.

Topics: Tips, optonews, PAC Control, OptoNews 2016-10-26

The PAC Control command "Send Communication Handle Command" is a flexible and useful command to know.  

It sends a command that accomplishes a specific purpose for the type of communication handle you're using. For example, you might use it with a File or FTP comm handle to work with files on a SNAP PAC controller. 

Topics: Tips, optonews, PAC Control, OptoNews 2016-10-12

OptoForum member tohox recently posted a question about using PID control loops on a SNAP-PAC-R1 rack-mounted controller.

The issue? A really long dead loop time. 

"The time delta between the moment the strategy opens a given loop's valve [and] starts the pump+furnace and the moment a temperature increase is measured can sometimes be on the order of an hour," tohox notes.

Topics: Energy management, Tips, optonews, PACs, I/O, Building management, Modbus, PID loop control, OptoNews 2016-09-28

A proportional integral derivative (PID) control loop monitors an input or process variable, compares the variable’s current value to a desired value (a setpoint), and calculates an output to keep the value very close to the setpoint.

Topics: Process control, Updates, Tips, optonews, PAC Project, Building management, OptoNews 2016-09-14

Here's the latest Code Samples and Tips contribution in our new OptoForum: an example of easier peer-to-peer communication between PAC controllers.

This example takes advantage of the new RESTful API in SNAP PAC hardware controllers (both the standalone S-series and the rack-mounted R-series). 

Topics: Internet of Things, Tips, IoT, optonews, PACs, PAC Control, API, REST API, RESTful server, OptoNews 2016-08-31, REST

Last OptoNews you heard about all the new features in PAC Project 9.5 and SNAP PAC firmware 9.5, both just released.

The most exciting new features are the HTTP/HTTPS server and RESTful API, giving you secure access to I/O point and variable data in your PAC controller. 

These developer- and IoT-ready features are free—all you need to do is update your firmware.

But updating PAC controller firmware on a running system can pose a problem.

Topics: Updates, Tips, optonews, PACs, PAC Project, Firmware, PAC Control, OptoTagPreserve, OptoNews 2016-08-03

Sometimes a customer calls asking if we can help them recover their unarchived PAC Control strategy from an Opto 22 controller, or recover a PAC Display project. 

The answer in both cases is no.

Topics: Tips, optonews, PACs, PAC Project, OptoNews 2016-06-22

Here's a handy compilation of our most popular—and most useful—examples for PAC Control and PAC Display: PAC Project samples Greatest Hits.

This collection includes sample files we've created plus files you've posted to the OptoForum.

Topics: Tips, optonews, PAC Project, OptoNews 2016-06-08

Confused about sinking and sourcing when using digital I/O in DC circuits? 

Judging by the response to our past blog posts on this issue, many people are. So we've pulled together a lot of practical information and put it into a short new technical note.

Topics: Discrete control, Tips, optonews, I/O, OptoNews 2016-05-11