About CODESYS
CODESYS software from CODESYS GmbH is an IEC 61131-3 compliant tool for programming control systems. It is a comprehensive system, incorporating languages from classic PLC programming to object-oriented controller programming, and includes extensive features for convenient project engineering and commissioning, such as data monitoring, debugging, and online changes.
The CODESYS Online Store also offers additional modules to expand functionality, such as motion control, robotics, and CNC, as well as common industrial fieldbus protocols such as EtherNet/IP and BACnet.
For more information please visit CODESYS.
Integration with Opto 22
Opto 22’s groov EPIC edge programmable industrial controller provides CODESYS as a control programming option and a runtime engine. You simply apply a free license (GROOV-LIC-CRE) and install the Opto 22 CODESYS Library Package, which is available as a free download from the Opto 22 website.
When you choose CODESYS as your programming option, other tools onboard groov EPIC, such as Ignition Edge®, Node-RED, groov View, and Secure Shell Access, are fully compatible.
What problems can it solve?
Unfamiliar control programming environment. A common problem faced by PLC programmers, especially system integrators, is that different projects may require different hardware platforms. Each can have its own unique programming software, requiring the engineer to learn a new development environment each time. The IEC 61131-3 programming standard in CODESYS ensures that platforms that adhere to the standard will be similar, and your experience will be portable from machine to machine and project to project.
Communication with third-party systems. Many brownfield projects are time consuming and costly, requiring a new control system that can share data with existing systems, with minimal disruption. However, CODESYS on board the Opto 22 groov EPIC can be supplemented with many of the add-on modules available from the CODESYS Online Store, which include drivers for common industrial fieldbus protocols.
PLC management. In projects or installations where many PLCs are deployed, managing them can be a challenge. Software updates require individual access and downloads, version control can be cumbersome, and collaboration on code development is difficult. The CODESYS Automation Server, available from the CODESYS Online Store, lets you use one interface to manage control tasks during the entire life cycle of a controller (application development, commissioning, operation, maintenance), across multiple PLCs. You can roll out applications in mass operations and use tools such as the integrated ticket system for commissioning and maintenance. In addition, you can synchronize projects with the CODESYS Automation Server, letting multiple engineers and developers work cooperatively.
IIoT projects. Opto 22’s groov EPIC system offers several onboard tools to help tackle IIoT or Industry 4.0 projects, but many control engineering programmers are intimately familiar with IEC 61131-3 programming and prefer to work within that environment. They can use CODESYS to program control in groov EPIC and also use the IIoT Libraries available in the CODESYS Online Store. These libraries are geared toward IIoT and cloud applications and include tools such as the MQTT Client, AWS IoT Core Client, Azure IoT Hub Client, and Google Cloud IoT Core Client, as well as libraries for reading and writing common IT data structures, such as JSON, XML, and CSV.
Have questions or an application you’d like to discuss? Please contact us.