UNITROL 1020 Multi-cycle Deterministic Module

UNITROL 1020 Multi-cycle Deterministic Module

UNITROL 1020 There are security issues to consider when connecting control systems to databases and networks. Many vendors choose not to connect automation systems to corporate databases for security benefits, but for most vendors, the benefits of connectivity far outweigh security concerns. While it is possible to lock a PLC to prevent others from hacking into a plant’s network, because the PLC sends non-encrypted packets over Ethernet, it is not suitable for use in preventing hacking.PACs can encrypt data as it is transmitted over the network. Although this is not currently the first factor to consider, in the future it will be the main reason for adopting PACs for distributed systems in plants.

The UNITROL 1020 can only run at a fixed speed, and it was not designed to be able to process independently at different cycle rates. Today, however, complex control systems often require multi-rate deterministic applications that have multiple cycles, each running at a different rate. This requires the ability to perform parallel processing, a feature that is only available in operating systems running on PACs.