Post updated 2019-07-24. Ed. Fault Consideration & Fault Exclusion ISO 13849-1, Clause 7 [1, 7] discusses the need for fault consideration and fault exclusion. Fault consideration is examining the components and sub-systems used in the safety-related part of the control system (SRP/CS) and making a list of all possible faults. This is a non-trivial exercise!
Read MoreInterlocking Devices: The Good, The Bad and the Ugly
Note: A shorter version of this article was published in the May 2012 edition of Manufacturing Automation Magazine. When designing safeguarding systems for machines, one of the basic building blocks is the movable guard. Movable guards can be doors, panels, gates or other physical barriers that can be opened without using tools. Each of these…
Read MoreEmergency Stop – What’s so confusing about that?
I get a lot of calls and emails asking about emergency stops. This is one of those deceptively simple concepts that has managed to get very complicated over time. Not every machine needs or can benefit from an emergency stop. In some cases, it may lead to an unreasonable expectation of safety from the user, which can lead to injury if they don’t understand the hazards involved. Some product-specific standards
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