The ctrlX AUTOMATION partner ecosystem is growing

Third-party providers offer among other things HMI applications via a revolutionary automation platform from Bosch Rexroth

• More and more third-party providers are joining the open ecosystem
• Straightforward provision of applications via the ctrlX Store
• HMI partners: MGA, Mirasoft, Smart HMI

With the revolutionary ctrlX AUTOMATION platform from Bosch Rexroth, users can take advantage of an open ecosystem. Thanks to the platform, they can use apps from Bosch Rexroth, applications from third-party providers or apps they have produced themselves. As a result, applications for all automation tasks are available. More and more third-party providers are joining the partner ecosystem ctrlX World. There are already three partners for HMI applications: MGA Ingenieurdienstleistungen GmbH, Mirasoft GmbH & Co. KG and Smart HMI GmbH.

ctrlX AUTOMATION meets all the requirements as regards modern automation in the era of digitalization and connectivity. The system – comprising software and hardware solutions – has a Linux real-time operating system, completely open standards, app technology for programming, web-based engineering and comprehensive IoT connectivity.

Within the platform, users can use apps they have produced themselves as well as the applications from Bosch Rexroth and third-party providers. The apps can be downloaded from the ctrlX Store and assigned to the ctrlX CORE control platform via a licensing system.

Apps for any automation tasks – HMI applications essential

Thanks to the partnership, the partners can broaden their business models and increase the range of their solutions. In the ctrlX World partner ecosystem, there is already a wide range of existing applications from third-party providers. Customers can download AI apps for production and process improvements or intelligent software expansions for mechanisms such as gearboxes or gripping and clamping systems. At the same time, solutions for MES connectivity, voice recognition, network IT security, HMI visualization and much more are available.

There are three partner companies in the area of HMI (Human Machine Interface) which is essential for modern industrial automation in order to bring people and machines closer together:

MGA Ingenieurdienstleistungen GmbH developed a voice input app for ctrlX AUTOMATION in order to make life easier for machine operators when working. Users can move freely around the machine and concentrate on their work piece rather than the operating panel. The system is coupled to a response system, so the operator receives an answer from the machine too. For more than 20 years, MGA has specialized in process automation and control systems. With the voice input app for ctrlX AUTOMATION, it has created an innovation within the market.

Mirasoft GmbH & Co. KG also focuses on making life easier for automation technicians and speeding up their work. With the company’s AnyViz Cloud concept, cloud HMIs can be created with just a few clicks. Via the AnyViz Cloud, those responsible can keep track of all their industrial systems. They can generate visualizations, graphical analyses and reports quickly and intuitively. ctrlX AUTOMATION customers who use the Mirasoft app benefit from the convenient visualization and analysis of production processes for greater transparency and efficiency.

Smart HMI GmbH is also a Bosch Rexroth partner. It allows users in the ctrlX World to create Web HMIs for ctrlX AUTOMATION with no need for programming knowledge – whether it be for simple process control systems with few displays or demanding Web HMIs for machines and systems. The WYSIWYG HMI editor, numerous ready-made web widgets and sophisticated styling and layout functions make the system easy to use. If necessary, the web visualization which is based on standard technologies can be expanded flexibly. It runs as an app on the ctrlX CORE control platform but can also be executed on other ctrlX AUTOMATION components.

“The partnership with our third-party providers in the area of HMI and their apps underline the fact that ctrlX AUTOMATION focuses on simplicity, openness and flexibility for automation. Ultimately, what we want to do today is to control processes in the most flexible way possible while saving time and to harmonize people and machines in a sensible manner,” explained Hans Michael Krause, Product Manager ctrlX World at Bosch Rexroth AG.

As one of the world’s leading suppliers of drive and control technologies, Bosch Rexroth ensures efficient, powerful and safe movement in machines and systems of any size. The company bundles global application experience in the market segments of Mobile Applications, Machinery Applications and Engineering, and Factory Automation. With its intelligent components, customized system solutions and services, Bosch Rexroth is creating the necessary environment for fully connected applications. Bosch Rexroth offers its customers hydraulics, electric drive and control technology, gear technology and linear motion and assembly technology, including software and interfaces to the Internet of Things. With locations in over 80 countries, roughly 31,000 associates generated sales revenue of roughly 6.2 billion euros in 2019.
To learn more, please visit www.boschrexroth.com

The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. It employs roughly 400,000 associates worldwide (as of December 31, 2019). The company generated sales of 77.7 billion euros in 2019. Its operations are divided into four business sectors: Mobility Solutions, Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods, and Energy and Building Technology. As a leading IoT provider, Bosch offers innovative solutions for smart homes, Industry 4.0, and connected mobility. Bosch pursuing a vision of mobility that is sustainable, safe, and exciting. It uses its expertise in sensor technology, software, and services, as well as its own IoT cloud, to offer its customers connected, cross-domain solutions from a single source. The Bosch Group’s strategic objective is to facilitate connected living with products and solutions that either contain artificial intelligence (AI) or have been developed or manufactured with its help. Bosch improves quality of life worldwide with products and services that are innovative and spark enthusiasm. In short, Bosch creates technology that is “Invented for life.” The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its roughly 440 subsidiary and regional companies in 60 countries. Including sales and service partners, Bosch’s global manufacturing, engineering, and sales network covers nearly every country in the world. The basis for the company’s future growth is its innovative strength. Bosch employs some 72,600 associates in research and development at 126 locations across the globe, as well as roughly 30,000 software engineers.
Additional information is available online at www.bosch.com, www.iot.bosch.com, www.bosch-press.com, www.twitter.com/BoschPresse.