PLCnext vs Microcontroller

PLCnext Technology & PLCnext Controls
1

Hello Phoenix employees, I had a presentation as my intership ends this week. My schoolteacher asked the question:What is the reason somebody would pick a PLCnext over a microcontroller. We had a short discussion with all the attenders and came up with some conclusions, but personally I would like to know what Phoenix thinks about that! Thanks in advance, Arne Smets

2

Hi Arne, By “microcontroller” I assume the questioner was referring to a general-purpose single board computer like a Raspberry Pi ? Some benefits of PLCnext over these types of microcontrollers include (in approximate order from most to least compelling, in my opinion):

                                               * The ability to run deterministic, real-time applications. This is provided by the PREEMPT-RT Linux patch.
                                               * Hardware features like industrial housing, wide temperature range, shock resistance, ability to connect industrial I/O modules directly to the CPU, etc.
                                               * The PLCnext Runtime. This is a process that runs on every PLCnext Control device, and includes: 
                                                 * The ability to easily schedule real-time tasks and programs, using the Execution and Synchonisation Manager (ESM).
                                                 * The ability to easily transfer data between separate real-time and non-real tasks, using the Global Data Space (GDS).
                                                 * Many additional industrial services like access to local and remote I/O, an OPC UA Server, Proficloud-TSD service, etc.
                                                 * The ability to extend the PLCnext Runtime with your own components and services written in your language of choice.
                                               * The PLCnext Store.
                                               * The ability to develop a single automation software project using any combination of IEC 61131, C++, C#, and other languages.
                                               * The ability to treat the device simply like any other "traditional" IEC 61131 PLC, if that's what you are comfortable with.

I think that all of the above features are completely absent from most general-purpose microcontrollers. If none of these features are important for a particular application, then a general-purpose microcontroller might be a better choice. :slight_smile: Just my 2c. ~ Martin. P.S. I hope you enjoyed using PLCnext during your internship, and best of luck in the future!

3

Thanks Martin, clear answer! I liked my internship a lot, even while it was quite hard to understand some things. Never worked with PLC’s before september, only with embedded software (mplab C). The company has a new student who will follow me up in the same project, as I will probably stay and help him out sometimes. Thanks for all the responses, as it was not really possible to ask my questions in the company itself (because PLCnext is a new oppertunity and nobody really worked with it before). Arne