Lenze Americas has launched a powerful hardware platform for machine-oriented visualization and control applications.  Based on the proven architecture of the controller 3200 C, the new panel controller p500 complements an extensive Lenze portfolio of motion control products and software. Available in three convenient screen sizes (7, 10.4 and 15 inch), the ‘all-in-one’ panel controller p500 series is equipped with a touch-sensitive thin-film transistor (TFT) display.   

“Designed for virtually all modern automation systems, the all-in-one panel controller p500 offers an ideal solution for easy deployment in both centralized and decentralized architectures,” states Craig Dahlquist, Automation Product Leader, Lenze Americas.  “The maintenance-free p500 delivers top performance in the smallest of spaces with no forced cooling or moving parts.  It is the perfect combination of logic (PLC), motion and visualization in a single device.”   The high computing capacity of the panel controller p500 is provided by a 1.6GHz Intel® Atom™ processor.  Combining one gigabyte of internal main memory, two gigabytes of flash memory to replace the conventional hard disk, and an SD card slot for application data, the powerful p500 solution can be equipped with a soft program logic controller (PLC) for more demanding visualization applications.  

The compact panel controller p500 offers a fanless device in protection class IP65 (front) for resistance to shock and vibration and optimal performance in machine installations.  The maintenance-free p500 uses a super capacitor in lieu of a standard buffer battery in the internal clock.  A maintenance-free internal UPS automatically stores and retains data in the event of a power outage.  For higher power capacity the panel controller p500 can be expanded with an external UPS.   The basic features of the panel controller p500 include two 100MB Ethernet interfaces on-board that combine the functionalities of an integrated switch, an EtherCAT interface (master) and two USB connections in a single platform.  A standard slot is provided that can be used for the addition of communication cards (e.g. CAN, PROFIBUS Slave) to the devices.  The modular construction makes installation quick and easy.