Industry 4.0 "is a general term referring to the fourth generation of industrial revolution, commonly known as" production and manufacturing informatization "- which can also be understood as a combination of traditional automation and information technology.

The basic concept of "Industry 4.0" is modular cyber physical systems, which can achieve real-time communication between each other while cooperating with operators, automatically make judgments, and adjust production processes as needed.

In order to design an ideal new product, mechanical manufacturers need to consider the following factors when selecting relevant operational control equipment:

Logical control is no longer able to meet the requirements

A few years ago, programmable logic controllers were still widely used in the industry（PLC）To control machine equipment, PLC can not only process discrete input signals and discrete output signals, but also execute sequential programs. Normally, a PLC is connected to an independent operational controller, which is adjusted and coordinated through a fieldbusservoDriver. However, this approach is clearly no longer sufficient to meet industry demands, as digital manufacturing requires mechanical controllers capable of executing multiple complex tasks in parallel.
Therefore, this demand has promoted the development of programmable automation controllers (PACs). The modern PAC platform is an enabling technology that allows customers to manufacture production equipment required for Industry 4.0 through the PAC platform. This single hardware platform includes logic and process control, motion control, visualization, advanced programming languages, and software development tools that span different disciplines, thereby solving interface problems and facilitating understanding of modular design principles.

Note: When selecting the next generation control platform, please confirm whether the selected platform complies with relevant industry standards (such as IEC61131-3 and PLCopen) to reduce risks.

Connectivity is the key

In order to achieve higher flexibility and maximize the overall efficiency of the equipment, the production process needs to be automatically adjusted according to changes in demand. To achieve this, it is not only necessary to install intelligent devices that can communicate with each other in real-time, but also to have a controller platform as a central hub to achieve seamless two-way communication from the enterprise network to various actuators.

To avoid potential bottlenecks, intelligent field devices that support industrial Ethernet protocol should be selected to facilitate communication withControl systemsignal communication. A programmable control system with integrated network publishing functionality helps to publish data anytime and anywhere, and facilitates remote maintenance when needed.

The impact on the design of electrical control panels

Due to the precise position control required for automatic adjustment manufacturing processes, the use of servo drives is becoming increasingly popular as people tend to choose small batch sizes and large-scale on-demand production. However, increasing the number of servo drives requires the installation of larger electrical control cabinets, otherwise it may increase installation issues.

The current solution is to use a servo drive system, which is equipped with a central power supply module to reduce the number of external components used. Modern multi axis systems have also evolved to be equipped with stacked dual axis and three-axis modules, greatly reducing the size of control panels. In addition, since the single core cable servo motor combines the position feedback signal into the motor's power line, the cost of the cable has been reduced by half compared to before.

Before developing the next generation of mechanical products, understand how Parker's new EtherCAT based PAC controller and PSD servo drive can help customers improve machine performance while reducing development time, installation, and operating costs.

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