Blog
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Why Float Sensors Fail in CNC Coolant Sumps, and What Survives
Chips, sludge and tramp oil jam float switches in machine sumps, and a stuck float still reports a plausible level. What solid-state sensing changes.
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Air Compressor Pressure Switch: How to Set It, Why It Drifts, and What Replaces It
What an air compressor pressure switch does, how to set cut-in and cut-out safely, the five ways it fails, and when digital control is the better replacement.
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The $7 Terminator Gamble: What Cheap Bus Termination Really Costs
5% resistors, no potting, unstated pinouts: four ways commodity terminators fail industrial networks, with a fault-power calculator to check yours.
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DMX512 and BACnet MS/TP Termination: Stop Flicker and Dropped Tokens
Why DMX fixtures flicker without a terminator, why BACnet MS/TP drops tokens, and which RJ45 pins carry the resistor. With a cable mismatch calculator.
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RS-485 and Modbus RTU Termination: Resistors, Bias, and Pinouts
Where the 120 Ω resistors go on a Modbus RTU trunk, how to size fail-safe bias resistors, and the vendor RJ45 pinout trap. Includes a bias calculator.
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CAN Bus Termination: Why 120 Ω, When to Split, and How to Test
Why CAN needs two 120 Ω terminators, the 30-second multimeter test, and when CAN FD needs split termination. With reflection and corner-frequency calculators.
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Air Compressor Oil Life: Analysis, Change Intervals, and Digital Control
Base oil changes on analysis instead of the calendar, and use digital control to manage the heat, moisture, and wear that shorten oil life.
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Lead-Lag Control for Shops Running Two Compressors
What lead-lag control actually does, why mechanical pressure switches drift out of alternation, and how two controllers share runtime over a single-wire link.
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How to Choose Oil for an Air Compressor
Match the oil to the compressor type, the operating conditions, and the manufacturer guidelines to protect performance and warranty.
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Air Compressor Oil Types and Viscosity Grades
Mineral, synthetic, and semi-synthetic compressor oils compared, with ISO 32 / 46 / 68 viscosity grades and the oil properties that matter.
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Independent DOE-funded testing: 23% power reduction on a reciprocating compressor
Reciprocating air compressors are controlled the same way they were fifty years ago: a mechanical pressure switch and a timer. The switch drifts as it ages, ...
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Logic Probe 16 Demo: Multi-Protocol FPGA Test with TinyFPGA BX
Step-by-step application note: drive all 16 channels of the Logic Probe 16 from a TinyFPGA BX — SPI, UART, I2C, and an 8-bit parallel counter running simulta...
