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3rd ctrlX AUTOMATION trade-press conference

Participants of the ctrlX AUTOMATION trade press conference 2021 in Lohr am Main

Welcome to the ctrlX AUTOMATION trade press conference ...

... for the third time. On September 21, 2021, Bosch Rexroth once again opened the doors of its Customer and Innovation Center in Ulm exclusively for twelve journalists from various trade magazines. The focus was on the innovations around the automation platform ctrlX AUTOMATION, the announcement of the new ctrlX World partners WAGO, NOKIA and ifm as well as more detailed information on the upcoming investments in the field of electronics production at Bosch Rexroth.

The product highlights for ctrlX CORE, ctrlX I/O and ctrlX WORKS at a glance:

Further development of the control platform

The first expansion stage of the ctrlX CORE control system already solves approx. 70 % of all general automation tasks. In order to be able to offer even greater user-friendliness, the control platform is now being expanded to include additional members and functions:

  • Configurable variants - these offer the possibility of using on-board I/Os in addition to extended interfaces.
  • In 2022, an additional extremely powerful variant will be introduced, offering approximately 7 to 8 times the performance of the previous ctrlX CORE through the use of state-of-the-art CPU technology.
  • The ctrlX CORE portfolio will be rounded off with an entry-level variant with reduced interfaces and options.

More connectivity and networking by expanding the I/O portfolio

ctrlX I/O is the functional extension of ctrlX CORE and is used, among other things, for horizontal and vertical integration. It offers comprehensive communication and performance extensions as well as I/O modules aligned with future technologies such as 5G, TSN and AI. Integration of partner solutions is enabled through the ctrlX World ecosystem and co-creation.

New functions for engineering through ctrlX WORKS

In 2021, extensive new features have been added to ctrlX WORKS for even more efficient engineering processes. For example, the execution of Docker-images is enabled. With the Software Development Kit (SDK) available on GitHub, users can now create their own apps even more easily. Another highlight is a development environment for Python and Google Blockly integrated on the ctrlX CORE. This means that users can now develop software directly on the ctrlX CORE. For the automation of engineering processes, ctrlX WORKS now offers a simple, clearly structured script interface, the Automation Interface. Recurring engineering processes can be automated using simple scripts. This reduces the effort by 80-90%.

ctrlX SERVICES - Services for the entire life cycle

Support throughout the entire product lifecycle is available to users via ctrlX SERVICES. This year, the focus was on the newly launched ctrlX Store. Here, apps from Bosch Rexroth and third-party providers are available for download. The ctrlX Store also offers users online access to all available apps and libraries for creating applications.

The ctrlX Device Portal provides up-to-date assistance in the event of a service case. The solution offers a complete service ranging from remote access, backup/restore to a private software repository. In addition, the deployment of new software functions for central administration and maintenance of device settings or remote maintenance is possible.

One year of ctrlX World - the co-creation model inspires on the market

Since the product launch, ctrlX AUTOMATION has developed from an automation platform to an open ecosystem. Thanks to the diverse partnerships of ctrlX World, profitable synergies are created for customers, partners, and Bosch Rexroth alike.

In the past few months, the ctrlX AUTOMATION service spectrum of the system has been significantly expanded, and additional third-party providers have joined the ecosystem. This year Nokia, Wago and ifm took part in the event and introduced themselves exclusively as new ctrlX World Partners.

The ctrlX developR Challenge starts: Developing innovations together

Under the motto "Push your ideas two steps ahead" we start the application phase of the ctrlX developR Challenge. Developers can register for the idea competition around ctrlX AUTOMATION and give free rein to their creativity in using the ctrlX CORE control platform. The goal is to transfer impulses and requirements of software developers into practice, to realize them with ctrlX CORE and finally to actually incorporate them into the automation platform.

Portrait view of Jasmin Heim, Game Changer Marketing

Jasmin Heim

Game Changer
Marketing

LinkedIn

 

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