In-tech has developed an app that can be used to monitor machines and systems in real time. The app is now available in the PLCnext App Store from Phoenix Contact and can be used for PLCnext controllers.

Users can access live data values from the controllers and are informed if manual intervention is necessary. "All system operators who use PLCnext controllers from Phoenix Contact can download easymon and use it immediately," explains Tobias Wagner, Managing Director at In-tech.

The app must be downloaded to the control unit and to the mobile device.

© In-tech

The installation and commissioning process is as follows: If, for example, a system is not to exceed a temperature of 60 degrees, the operator loads the easymon app from the PLCnext App Store onto the controller. The data points to be monitored are then selected via a convenient web interface and notification criteria are defined. In addition, the user must install the easymon app - either via the Apple or Google store - on a mobile device, which then communicates with the machine via Microsoft's Azure cloud service.

The servers are located in the EU

"With easymon, the user defines which events the system should automatically report to them - and until then, they have their head and hands free for other tasks," says the Managing Director. The smartphone displays the current values live and notifies the user as soon as the predefined threshold values are reached. Several systems can be monitored with one app as well as one system with different mobile devices. All data is transmitted in encrypted form and stored on servers in the EU.

Transparent pricing model

The pricing model: it includes all costs incurred, including cloud usage.

© In-tech

The software can be adapted to various industrial systems and can also be expanded, for example to implement individual predictive maintenance applications. Each user can choose the offer that suits them best and pays a flat rate per month. All users who rely on PLCnext controllers from Phoenix Contact can now download the software from the App Store and test it for their systems free of charge for one month. In future, the app will also be available for other controllers in the app stores of the respective manufacturers. "The corresponding negotiations with the companies are currently underway," says Dr. Klaus Wiltschi, Head of Business Unit Machinery at In-tech.