 Mitsubishi Electric has announced their new FX3U series, the third generation of their successful FX range of compact PLCs. The new controllers have been completely redesigned for the international market. They feature a unique new second adapter bus system whilst maintaining full compatibility with the existing MELSEC FX series.
The FX3U is the flagship of Mitsubishi Electric?s compact PLC family, over six million FX units having been sold worldwide over the last 25 years. The new version claims significantly improved specifications and a wider selection of expansion, special function and network modules to broaden the geographical and in industry scope of the product.
The "unique" additional adapter bus
The functionally designed and compact units feature state-of-the-art technology and a new, user-friendly system. In addition to the regular system bus for the standard modules of the FX series the latest controller generation from Mitsubishi Electric has a second bus: the adapter bus. Up to ten additional modules ? four analog function adapters, two counters, two pulse output modules and two interface modules ( RS 232 or RS 485) ? can be connected to the left side of the controller. The new adapter modules developed specially for the FX3U are very small thanks to the latest microchip technology. They can be integrated in the system without additional programming and have special data registers that makes it possible to address them directly. This saves customers time and programming steps, and thus also cuts costs.
Expandable base units
The base units in the new series are fitted with modern microprocessors and configured for international operation with 100-240V AC or 24V DC power supplies. They are available with 16, 32, 48, 64, 80 or 128 inputs and outputs (I/Os), and with digital relay and transistor output technologies. All the base units can be upgraded to up to 256 I/Os with expansion modules. This can be increased to 384 I/Os with suitable networks (CC-Link or AS-Interface).
Another new feature is the display module that can be installed directly on the front panel of the unit or connected remotely via a cable. Important control data can be displayed and edited with four function keys and error messages can also be displayed as plain text.
The new specifications
The new technological highlights of the FX3U series include its large memory, very fast instruction processing, a significantly en-larged programming instruction set and improved functions and modules, particularly for positioning tasks.
The integrated, battery-powered non-volatile memory has capacity for up to 64K program steps. That is sufficient even for complex control programs and saves money for additional memory modules. With a program cycle time of just 0.065 microseconds per logical instruction the FX3U is one of the world?s fastest compact controllers. In fact, it is nearly 20 percent faster than the FX2N series, which set new standards when it was introduced in 1999. The speed increase is even more pronounced for analog signal processing: The FX3U processes basic and application instructions up to four and a half times faster than the previous top-of-the-line model. Over 70 new instructions make the programmer?s task easier. There are now a total of 209 pre-programmed instructions, which make it possible to program complex control tasks quickly and easily.
Like all compact and modular controllers from Mitsubishi Electric the new FX3U is programmed under Microsoft Windows with the modern European standard (IEC 61131-3) GX IEC Developer package (Function Block, Ladder Diagram, Instruction List, Structured Text, Sequential Function Chart) or with the wellestablished GX Developer (Ladder Diagram, Instruction List or Sequential Function Chart).
The integrated positioning controller
The new PLC can handle even more demanding positioning tasks without additional modules. Functions like high speed counters and pulse signal out-puts with frequencies of up to 100KHz are integrated in all the base units, along with a wide range of positioning instructions, including some new ones. This makes it possible to control up to three independent positioning axes. Users who need more can add the new counter and pulse signal output adapters that support frequencies of up to 200KHz and make it possible to control up to four independent stepping or servo motors.
Mitsi have designed the new FX to be future-proof
The base units can be expanded with compact and modular expansion options for precisely tailored configurations. All existing modules of the FX series can be used with the new controllers, ensuring long term protection for users? in-vestment in control technology. In addition to the digital I/O expansion modules the conventional system bus has connection facilities for up to eight special function modules.
Also new are a selection of powerful communications modules for Ethernet and Profibus DP networks, which have been specially developed for the FX3U series. They complement the existing product range, which already includes modules for all standard open and proprietary networks.
Additional interfaces contribute to the FX3U?s impressive communications capabilities. It can exchange data simultaneously with up to three different devices via serial interfaces. A serial programming interface (RS 422) is inte-grated in the front panel and is used to communicate with a computer or a HMI control panel. Other devices like barcode readers, printers, modems and other controllers can be connected via separate interface modules that can either be installed in the controller housing (RS 232, RS 422, RS 485 and USB) or connected via the adapter bus (RS 232, RS 485).
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