Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs), Industrial Personal Computers (IPCs) and the Straightforward Robotic Controller

Article From legacy.roboticsonline.com

Brief Summary:

Programmable logic controllers (PLCs), industrial personal computers (IPCs) and the straightforward robotic controller are the three main types of robotic workcell control units. Each type of controller has different benefits and downsides, PLCs being the most cost effective and IPCs being more versatile.

Work cell control is an area of robotics that is changing rapidly due to the fast pace of change in technology.
Robot users will tend to drift towards IPCs because of their flexibility and because they are more user-friendly.
Robotic users can add a little bit of flair to what they are doing with IPCs.
Servo-Robot Corp. is a U.S. subsidiary of Servo-Robot, Inc. of Saint Bruno, Quebec, Canada.
Zywiol is vice president of product development at FANUC Robotics North America, Inc., of Rochester Hills, MI.
Robotic controllers are the master component used by robot users to successfully exercise direction over a work cell, and offer more than just robot control functionality.
There is PLC functionality within a robotic controller. Or, the robot controller is taking on the tasks done by PLC's in the past.
A company that does things well will take advantage of the strengths of the PLC, IPC, and robot controller platforms.
There is guaranteed performance with a robotic controller or a PLC
There will be an increase in the trend of robot makers looking at the manufacturing process of their robotic customers over the Internet to do remote diagnostics
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