Taxes & rules - The winners - Computer&AUTOMATION

Products of the year 2024

Andrea Gillhuber, 08.04.2024, 07:00

Taxes & rules - The winners

The winning products in the 'Control & Regulation' category are proof of a paradigm shift in control technology.

3rd place - Siemens: The virtual PLC

3rd place - Siemens

Based on the functionalities of the Simatic S7-1500, the virtual programmable logic controller (PLC) 'Simatic S7-1500V' is hardware-independent, so that applications can be centrally managed and flexibly adapted to changing customer requirements. Projects can be scaled using virtual control and easily integrated into other IT offerings via open data interfaces.

Dr. rer. nat. Tobias Schüle from Siemens.

Projects can be scaled using virtual controllers and easily integrated into other IT offerings via open data interfaces.The virtual PLC is downloaded like an app and integrated directly into the IT environment. The virtual controller is fully compatible with the TIA Portal. This allows users to access familiar tools and build on projects that have already been created in the TIA Portal.

2nd place in the Taxes & Rules category

2nd place - SEW-Eurodrive: Control platform supports hybrid approach

2nd place - SEW-Eurodrive

SEW-Eurodrive has a new control platform that supports the hybrid approach of running two operating systems on one hardware. The 'Movi-C' controller type 'UHX86A' expands the control portfolio of the 'Movi-C' modular automation system in the upper performance range. Variants are available with different Intel processors, either Celeron or Core i3 to i7, in order to be able to adapt the hardware to the application in terms of performance.

Freddy Heinzelmann and Alexandros Matsikis from SEW-Eurodrive.

There are also several options for the fieldbus variant: the device can be integrated into Profinet IO, Ethernet/IP and Modbus TCP infrastructures. There is also a choice of capacities for the main memory, the hard disks and the NVRAM memory for persistent data storage. An Ethercat interface (or SEW's own SBusPlus protocol) is included as standard for connecting frequency inverters from the modular automation system for motion control as well as a variety of other Ethercat devices.

Computer&Automation "Products of the Year 2024" - Control & Regulation - 1st place: Codesys

1st place - Codesys: Hardware-independent SIL3 safety controller

1st place in the Taxes & Rules category

1st place - Codesys

With Codesys Virtual Safe Control SL, it will soon be possible to implement SIL3-certified safety controllers without certified hardware. For more than ten years, the Codesys automation software from the company of the same name has been able to be expanded with a certified SIL3 solution based on two-channel, certified hardware with 1oo2 safety channel architecture (one out of two).

Roland Wagner and Andreas Kehrer from Codesys

The hardware can now be abstracted using virtual controls. The software solution creates dual-channel capability through "Diversified Encoding", which is based on "Coded Processing". The processing of applications is divided into two logical software channels. The first channel executes the original security application, while the second executes the same application using coded processing algorithms, enabling it to detect errors. Both channels run sequentially one after the other in a CPU core and are constantly comparing themselves so that data and control flow errors are detected more frequently. Diversified encoding distributes secure inputs to both channels and, conversely, outputs from both channels are merged into secure outputs. Data streams generated by secure network or fieldbus protocols are enclosed and addressable in real time. This represents an equivalent solution to physical systems without being tied to hardware.