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Robert Repas

Email robert.repas@penton.com

Robert serves as Associate Editor - 6 years of service. B.S. Electrical Engineering, Cleveland State University. Work experience: 18 years teaching electronics, industrial controls, and instrumentation systems at the Nord Advanced Technologies Center, Lorain County Community College. 5 years designing control systems for industrial and agricultural equipment. Primary editor for electrical and motion control.

Articles by Robert Repas
New LED is the brightest
The MK-R LED from Cree Inc. produces a light intensity of 200 lm/W
Robotic help on the space station
A robotic hand operates with or without an astronaut’s presence.
Sensor Sense: Pulse ranging technology
The distance between this sensor and its target object is determined by measuring the time of flight of a bright burst of laser light.
First Space Fence radar site located
The location of the first radar base for a new Space Fence to track near-Earth objects will be located on Kwajalein Island in the Republic of the Marshall Islands
ASIC spots passenger child seats to stop airbag deployment
The ASIC, as part of an occupant detection system, prevents airbag injuries to infants by suppressing deployment of the passenger airbag if a child seat is present.
Obsolete or opportunity?
There are times when something that appears obsolete can open doors to other opportunities. There is no place in which this is more apparent than in a career path. Take mine, for example
Safety standard gives appliance wire a new lease on life
Appliance wiring material, banned in 2007, is now back in service owing to the realities of today’s global machine marketplace. But, its use comes with restrictions.
Sensor Sense: Metal-faced inductive sensors for durability
Metal-faced sensors provide high durability without sacrificing sensing distance.
Suppression circuits for clutches and brakes
Transient voltages in clutches and brakes may lead to erratic operation and a shortened life. Installing a suppressor is not that difficult
Motion design gets help from the cloud
Many positioning stages used in process applications — such as semiconductor manufacturing, microelectronic assembly, lab automation, and light machining — are characterized by attributes such as light inertial loads, short travel, small footprints, and low cost.
Scope this out
An understanding oscilloscope operations, abilities, and limits can hasten circuit design analysis and even quicker troubleshooting
Pipe crawlers keep creeping, thanks to SmartMotors
Four small servomotors, one per wheel, now keep pipe crawlers balanced as they travel hundreds of miles atop oil pipelines looking for dangerously corroded sections of pipe
Image sensors give Martian rover high-resolution eyes
Marcel Proust once said, “The only real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.” When that landscape is 165 million miles away
Gauging LED lifetime in optocouplers
In LEDs heat and high currents hasten the dimming process which can lead to unreliable operation in LED-powered optocouplers. Some simple and straight-forward analysis will keep their light shining bright.
Sensor Sense: Automation light grids
Intelligent light grids take many forms and cover applications from simple to complex. Sizes range from a few inches to several feet, and resolutions from 2 to 100 mm.
Commentaries and Blogs
Jury out on promises, but $347 3D printer is fun
by Elisabeth Eitel
Posted 5 days ago
in Product Design Engineering
Good night! Now they want to regulate 3D printers!!
by Lee Teschler
Posted 1 week ago
in From the Editor's Desk
Could wage disparity discourage women from engineering?
by Elisabeth Eitel
Posted 2 weeks ago
in Product Design Engineering

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