Visitors to the Beckhoff booth will have the opportunity to use their own smartphones to interact with PC-based control demos—including the ability to connect with an entire wall of IoT-enabled devices and a six-axis robot arm using any mobile device with a web browser. For an added level of interactivity, Beckhoff will also show an advanced augmented reality and wearable HMI proof of concept in the form of a Microsoft HoloLens connected to Beckhoff IoT demos.
While providing the flexibility to securely transmit plant floor data to cloud services, the Beckhoff approach expands on already-existing systems instead of applying complicated workarounds created with third-party developers. TwinCAT 3, the PC-based control software platform from Beckhoff, has been expanded to give users the ability to create IoT and cloud-connected automation systems in the same universal environment they program PLC, motion control, robotics, safety technology and more.
In addition, new I/O solutions have been introduced in the form of the Beckhoff IoT Bus Coupler and IoT Box. These provide a simple method to directly connect I/O systems to the cloud and securely transmit data over today’s recognized standards such as OPC-UA, AMQP and MQTT. Additional Smart Factory solutions will factor heavily throughout the Beckhoff booth, such as One Cable Automation, which integrates the previously separate power and signal lines into a single, standard 4-wire Ethernet cable.
