Mitsubishi's FX3U is next generation compact plc
A new generation of compact plc, launched by Mitsubishi Electric's automation systems division, promises greater speed, flexibility and functionality for engineering applications such as automation, positioning, process control and networking.
There is a growing trend for servo/stepper technology in industrial processes, and for those companies who have more technically demanding applications or who are running out of memory capacity, the FX3U offers direct integration with servo/stepper systems and 64K memory.
Compared with its predecessor, the new plc processes four times faster, has eight times the memory, and an increased number of inputs/outputs (I/O). It also has a USB port and can be connected to the Ethernet and profibus models.
Costing no more than the current version, the FX3U has 'backwards compatibility' so that it can be used alongside existing products, while the FX2N software can be easily converted to FX3U. Expansion modules are compatible too. Over 40,000 data registers are accommodated, which simplify the process of data logging and energy monitoring.
According to the company, set-up and commissioning is fast and straightforward. USB and Ethernet connectivity facilitates faster downloading, and new direct addressing for automatic data processing (ADP) modules saves time during development. It also uses structured programming in a choice of different languages.
A new faster and simpler ADP interface is provided on the CPU and up to 80 analogue inputs and 48 analogue outputs are possible.