省钱和安装蒂姆e with seamless connectivity

12 April 2021

Connectivity in automation technology must be regarded as a whole – from the workpiece all the way to the cloud. With seamless connectivity, the mechanical, electrical and intelligent interfaces all need to be taken into account, for all components.Fredrik Stalfrom Festo SE & Co KG explains more.

The objective of seamless connectivity is to make different interfaces as simple and easy to handle as possible, so using them is more reliable and faster. Machine builders and end users can then concentrate more effectively on their core tasks.

Meeting machine builders’ wishes

For mechanical and control systems, an almost overwhelming number of products, components and solutions are available from thousands of manufacturers – all with their own interfaces, hardware solutions, programming languages, software systems, communication protocols, etc. A typical question is: how can a mechanical axis, a servo motor and a servo drive be easily combined so that they complement each other perfectly? And how can this electromechanical drive package be integrated quickly and easily into the controller?

When Festo developed their automation platform, priority was placed on seamless connectivity from the outset. The mechanical system, the drive system with motor and controllers as well as the software modules were designed as one unit – this applies to the mechanical interfaces as well as to the electrical and intelligent interfaces. This is no simple task with millions of combinations of axis, motor and drive. Compatibility with the many controller manufacturers was also key.

For example, the latest generation of servo drives and servo motors from Festo, together with the intuitive commissioning software Festo Automation Suite, makes integration easier and speeds it up significantly. These components can be integrated virtually seamlessly into all commonly available, Ethernet-based external controllers and users will not notice that the hardware manufacturers are different.

The same can be said for remote IO connectivity. It is critical that a seamless communication chain is established from the simple sensor or IO link device all the way to the PLC and beyond to the cloud. In Automation whilst this is now quite normal, what is often missed are the pneumatic elements. With the new Remote IO system from Festo, the CPX-AP-I this connectivity extends directly to the Valve Terminals bringing with it all the diagnostic advantages.

Conclusion

Festo Seamless Connectivity from the workpiece to the cloud offers a solution to many of the challenges faced by today’s machine builders. Reducing the complexity of the automation task enables faster, more reliable build times, reduced work-in-progress and lower costs.

For further reading on connectivity and to download a whitepaper on the subject visit:

https://connectivity.festo.com/gb/en/