Virtual Laboratory of Industrial Scenarios for Training in the Areas of Automation and Contrtol

An article written in part by Jorge-Alberto Ortega-Moody and published in the November 2016 issue of DYNA Journal, pages 1-7

Virtual Laboratories for Training in Industrial Robotics

An article written in part by Jorge-Alberto Ortega-Moody and published in the February 2016 issue of IEEE Latin America Transactions, pages 665-672

VIRTUAL LABORATORY OF INDUSTRIAL SCENARIOS FOR TRAINING IN THE AREAS OF AUTOMATION AND CONTROL

The incorporation of new technologies and technological developments in the area of automation and control requires constant training of the personnel involved in such area. The majority of this training begins in the laboratories of educational institutions and training centers for automation personnel. These laboratories are where theoretical knowledge gained in the classroom is applied. Unfortunately, being limited in infrastructure, the use of those laboratories, in the best case scenarios, are restricted to only some actuators and sensors. Industry training is another source in which individual companies have their own internal training programs led by experts in the field. However, this method of training is not always successful since any error in programming of the controllers may lead into putting personnel at risk or financial losses for the company

Diseño y construcción de un sistema de transporte laminar de bajo cizallamiento para la producción de masa de maíz nixtamalizada

La tortilla se obtiene por medio del proceso tradicional de Nixtamalización. Este proceso tiene dos inconvenientes: producción de efluentes contaminantes y ser discontinuo. La extrusión, ha resuelto la problemática de la generación de efluentes contaminantes, sin embargo, no ha podido sustituir al proceso tradicional de nixtamalización. Esto se debe a que la masa de maíz es un fluido pseudoplástico, el cual cambia su viscosidad en la presencia de velocidades de cizalla que ocurren dentro del extrusor. Con base a lo anterior, el presente trabajo propone el diseño y construcción de un Sistema de Transporte Laminar de Bajo Cizallamiento (STLBC) para la producción de masa para tortilla. Este sistema consiste de dos etapas aisladas térmicamente: Etapa de transporte y de cocimiento. Los resultados mostraron que el prototipo obtenido cumple con las características de cocimiento homogéneo, bajo cizallamiento, no produce efluentes contaminantes, y la masa obtenida, cumple con especificaciones de masa nixtamalizada

Design and construction of low shear laminar transport system for the production of nixtamal corn dough

The tortilla is obtained by the traditional process of nixtamalization. This process has two disadvantages: production of liquid waste and it is in batches. Extrusion has resolved the problem of liquid waste, however, extrusion as of yet, has not been able to replace the traditional process of nixtamalization. This is because corn dough is a pseudoplastic fluid, which changes its viscosity in the presence of high shear velocities that occur inside the extruder. With this in mind, the following investigation proposes the mechanical design and construction of a low shear laminar transport system (LSLTS) for the production of corn dough for tortillas. This system consists of two thermally isolated stages: transport and cooking stages. The results showed that the prototype obtained meets the characteristics of homogenous cooking, low shear, absence of liquid waste and the product meets the specifications for nixtamal dough