Automation Expert IDE across multi-vendor HW

[Anonymous user]

Hi there,

I am new to the community and I hope you could provide me some additional insights about the multi-HW support of the IEC-61499 runtime.

My company is building a demo plant for our technology (chemical recycling of PET) and, while the current HW topology is using only M580 HW, in the near future we are going to add new skids, with their own electrical cabinets and PLCs from other vendors.

Can I already use Automation Expert IDE to deploy a distributed application across multi-vendor HW topologies?

[TomRos]

Multi-vendor hardware is an exciting part of the EcoStruxure Automation Expert story, but it does require a vendor to adopt the runtime shared by UniversalAutomation.org on their hardware. More information about what UniversalAutomation.org is will be disclosed in the coming weeks, especially at the SPS 2021 in Nuremberg, Germany.  I would recommend signing up with UniversalAutomation.org to keep up to date with companies that are interested in bringing this runtime to their platform.

Another option for distributing the runtime into other hardware is to use the Soft dPAC controller.  The Soft dPAC is platform agnostic and can be installed on any hardware from servers, to IPCs, to even Raspberry PIs using Linux Docker Container technology; as long as that hardware meets the Soft dPAC’s modest hardware requirements then it can be installed.

[Anonymous user]

Franco,

UniversalAutomation.Org is actively working with some vendors on implementing prototypes that use the Universal Automation runtime. You can see these prototypes in action at SPS on UAO's stand in Hall 7 from November 23rd to November 25th.

We expect some announcements early next years from vendors launching a Universal Automation offer, so stay tuned.

I would also encourage end users like GR3N to push your suppliers to join UniversalAutomation.Org and adopt the IEC 61499-based runtime.

More information can be found here:  www.universalautomation.org