The Industrial Automation Group of Advantech introduces its new PAC product line, the APAX-5000 series. This line PACs integrates control, information processing and networking in a single control system. The APAX-5000 series consists of controllers, I/O modules, backplanes and power modules, all with excellent functionality and user-friendly I/O design.
Critical applications need reliable and non-stop systems; it is not acceptable that the I/O processing is terminated for any reason. To reduce these operational risks, Advantech’s APAX-5000 features a unique architecture, two stand-alone CPU modules working together responsible for different tasks. One provides high computing power for HMI/SCADA, recipe, database and communication tasks (APAX-5570XPE or APAX-5571XPE) while the other is dedicated for SoftLogic I/O tasks (APAX-5520KW).
The APAX-5000 controllers also support backup functions. The same I/O processing program can be stored on two controllers; one will execute the I/O processing and if that controller fails, the second controller will automatically take responsibility for I/O processing within 1.5 seconds. Users don’t need to write programs for this mechanism and the backup system enables reliability for critical applications.
The APAX-5000 I/O modules are well equipped to be either local I/O or remote I/O through their Ethernet bus backplane. The APAX-5000 offers one and two slot backplanes, (APAX-5001 and APAX-5002). Each APAX-5002 backplane offers one expansion port. Using a standard Ethernet cable to connect the expansion port on the two backplanes, a remote expansion with local-bus speed is built with a distance up to 100 m.
In addition, any standard Ethernet switch can be used between the two backplanes.
The APAX series offers complete scalability functions that the system can easily upgrade by changing controller with difference processor (higher performance). This means users don’t need to re-write any program if they want to upgrade the system. Changing CPU modules with different processors with the same I/O modules can meet different requirements of control tasks, such as APAX-5570, APAX-5571 and APAX-5520. Users can save the investment for I/O because they can leverage the same I/O modules.
The APAX-5000 series is excellent choice for any batch process production environment such as: food & beverage, pharmacy, machinery control (compressors, chillers and control applications), and critical environment management systems such as pressurization and vacuum applications.
