How multicore processing has opened new doors for PC-based controls

From increased memory and scan times to control of the motion axes, the opportunities are as affordable as they are imaginable. And, because the control platform is PC-based, machine builders can design solutions with long-term flexibility.

Multicore industrial PCs help to bundle new software functionality and enable multi-tasking, which also allows designers to build machines with smaller footprints. Electronics miniaturization further enables this trend, most notably with combinations of traditional machine components such as controllers and operator interfaces.

Where machine builders once needed a PLC with its own processor and an HMI with its own processor, along with a PC for data capture, the rise of multicore processing now puts the power to handle all of those functions in one system. Add in the ability to run CNC software and multi-axis motion control processes, and you’ve got a staggering combination with unprecedented options for machine builders and end users alike, regardless of software revisions. End users just want to connect to the controller and start programming.

This ebook explains how multicore processing has opened new doors for PC-based controls and offers working examples, as well as industry opinions on what’s beyond the next generation of machinery and controls.