I have at a customer place the X20BC0083 bus controller with other X20 AI, AO, DI and DO connected to it. Is there any way to operate the bus controller by using Labview in the controller supported protocol Powerlink, is it possible to find examples, guiding lines, manuals? Alternatively, since I read from the 0083 manual that in absence of powerlink communication it is possible to communicate with it in the Basic Ethernet mode, does this mean that it is possible to fully operate it also within this basic mode? In such a case, where can I find the necessary set of commands or needed protocol? Thanks in advance and sorry if the question is too naive.
In theory it is possible, but there are no sample programs and it will be almost impossible to implemement.
Powerlink documents:
https://www.br-automation.com/en/technologies/powerlink/service-downloads/technical-documents/
X20BC0083 Datasheet and manual:
https://www.br-automation.com/en/downloads/control-and-io-systems/x20-system/bus-controller-modules/x20bc0083/data-sheet-x20cbc0083/
https://www.br-automation.com/en/downloads/control-and-io-systems/x20-system/bus-controller-modules/x20bc0083/powerlink-bus-controller-users-manual/
Your best bet is to exchange the X20BC0083 with an X20BC008T(OPC UA) or X20BC0087(Modbus TCP).
3 Likes
Hello Lauro,
For control with LabVIEW, I would recommend other bus controllers with a protocol supported by LabVIEW. Unfortunately, I don’t know exactly which ones, but I suspect Modbus TCP, Ethernet/IP or OPC UA.
Controlling a X20BC0083 via Basic Ethernet is generally possible, but this simply means that POWERLINK timing isn’t maintained. PLK frames (SDO frames) are still required for control. The frames themselves are described in the POWERLINK specification. The PLK objects are described in the X20BC0083 documentation. However, operating the bus controller this way is quite complex.
Best regards,
Florian
1 Like
thank you Corne and Florian
I wonder if instead of switching to the BC8087 (modbus, which looks good), a X20 cpu would suit too. The customer is saying that a normal IPC i5 will be installed and from this IPC , PLC CPUX20 will be connected via LAN cable. Do I understand correctly that a PLC CPUX20 can play the role of a bus controller such as the BC0083 ? thank you again lc
No, you don’t need a cpu.
A bus controller like the modbus X20BC0087 and some i/o cards is all you need.
The IPC i5 can directly communicate with the X20BC0087 with tcp frames.
See also 
GitHub - stephan1827/modbusTCPBR-DotNET: modbusTCP driver for B&R X20BC0087 bus controller
You can communicate also with the CPU, but then you also need to configure and program the X20CPU additional. See AS-Help Modbus TCP:
For labview I would also recommend modbusTCP. You can talk to it from any system that supports Ethernet. You can talk modbusTCP directly to the bus controller from labview. There is the .NET Class for windows that Corne mentioned and there is a new python class specifically for the X20BC0087 bus controller.
br-automation-com/modbusBR-Python: A python class for the X20BC0087 bus controller
1 Like
dear Corne, Stephan,
thank you for the feedback. Yes, I understand the X20BC0087 would suit, and I already used modbus TCP in Labview to other instruments in the past. In that case I will use those specific libraries you mention. However, it is the customer to say that they are going to replace the X20BC0083 with an X20CPU. Their BR programmer is supposed to configure the system. If correct maybe he should also program the X20CPU too. While I am supposed to make a Labview program and interface. If it is so, I was just wondering: can I talk Modbus from the IPC i5 (running Labview) to the X20CPU (or another protocol is more convenient), and will the communication depend on the specific program on the X20CPU?
thanks for everything till now guys
lc
Hi,
if you talk to an X20CPU I would recommend OPC UA. Its easy to set up on the PLC and the customer might use it already for the visualization. modbusTCP would work as well but in this case OPC UA would be the better choice.
Greets
Stephan