Onboard I/O can include digital, high-speed, and analogue points, including PT100/thermocouple and weight/pressure measurement inputs. Expansion modules support up to 512 local and remote I/O at distances of up to 1km.
There are 24 auto-tuned PID loops to control temperature, level, and pressure. Time-based and immediate interrupt support allows the controller to be used for “rapid response” applications, such as packaging machines.
Built-in recipe capabilities are supported by data tables that store the parameters needed to control a process. Data tables also allow the controller to store data-logs to a micro-SD card, which can also store application back-ups and allow PLC cloning.
Communication options include Ethernet, cellular, and industrial protocols such as Modbus, DF1 slave, BACnet, J1939 and CANopen. A protocol utility allows the PLC to communicate using almost any ASCII protocol. It can be accessed directly via a mini-USB programming port, or remotely using GPRS/GSM/CDMA and other IP networks for data acquisition and program downloads. Supervisors can be notified of critical information via e-mail and SMS messages.
Unitronics' new PLC-HMI has a 4.3" colour touchscreen
Machine operators communicate with applications via the resistive analogue touchscreen, or remotely using a free utility which displays data, colour trend graphs and alarm screens. The controller supports more than 1024 user-designed screens, backed by 12MB of memory for images and 1MB for fonts.
The accompanying VisiLogic software allows rapid hardware configuration, and PLC and HMI application programming. The software includes a library of drag-and-drop function blocks for complex automation tasks such as PID, and a free library of colour industrial images.
