Factories struggle with locked systems and slow updates. A new way promises open control that can grow with future needs. Read on!
Industrial automation is under pressure to become open, flexible, and scalable. Manufacturers, energy providers, and logistics operators face challenges such as vendor lock-in, fragmented protocols, slow deployment cycles, and limited adaptability to future standards. Traditional control systems are centralized, rigid, and often difficult to extend across distributed edge environments. These limitations make it harder to support real-time decision-making, integrate different machines, and keep pace with evolving standards like O-PAS.
ASRock Industrial’s AiUAC (ASRock Industrial Universal Automation Control) is built to address these issues through a software-defined control engine based on the IEC 61499 standard. Instead of binding organizations to a single vendor ecosystem, AiUAC enables vendor-independent, event-driven control across distributed edge nodes. This supports real-time, decentralized execution in industries where downtime or delays carry costs.
A major challenge in industrial environments is interoperability between different protocols and systems. AiUAC addresses this by supporting OPC UA, MQTT, Modbus TCP/RTU, and Ethernet/IP, ensuring communication across OT and IT systems. It also connects with EcoStruxure Automation Expert (EAE), which supports the IEC 61499 development cycle—from engineering design to runtime execution—allowing quicker deployment of automation tasks.
System visibility and maintenance are other challenges. Many control platforms lack embedded telemetry, forcing operators to rely on external monitoring systems. AiUAC includes system telemetry at the edge, providing real-time data on CPU and motherboard temperatures, GPIO states, and voltage levels. This enables diagnostics, condition-based monitoring, and predictive maintenance where operations take place.
Robotics integration is another need in manufacturing systems. AiUAC supports robot integration and includes high-availability features suited for distributed environments where reliability and scale are required.
Industries also need to plan for adaptability. With standards such as O-PAS and OCF on the horizon, organizations risk being tied to outdated frameworks. AiUAC is compatible with these standards, giving operators a path to adopt open, standards-based automation frameworks.
By aligning with open standards and focusing on interoperability, distributed control, and adaptability, AiUAC supports the transition from vendor-dependent systems to open, scalable automation platforms.
