Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 software drives automation productivity

February 12, 2015 2:11 pm

Software from Rockwell Automation intuitively aligns control system with manufacturing operation for improved design experience
 With the Rockwell Software Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 software from Rockwell Automation, engineers have new design capabilities that can dramatically increase automation productivity, improve start-up time and reduce costs throughout a project’s life cycle. The new additions include an application-centric view of code, enhanced work flows for more efficient re-use of content, and new collaborative tools that make it easier for multiple people to work together.
“Many machine builders and manufacturers struggle to support production changes due to unstructured code that is not easily understood and organised,” said Mike Brimmer, product manager, Rockwell Automation. “The Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 software improves the design experience by more intuitively aligning the control system with the manufacturing operation, thus leading to enhanced automation productivity.”
As part of a contemporary automation engineering design environment, the Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 software is used to configure Allen-Bradley Logix5000 controllers from Rockwell Automation for discrete, process, batch, motion, safety and drive control.
The Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 software features a new logical organiser that arranges program code based on the users’ applications – rather than how the programmable controller executes. Logical organisation of program code can help users identify and troubleshoot code faster for improved downtime recovery.
New library management work flows, meanwhile, ease the ability to store and re-use intellectual property. Users can simply drag and drop modules of code from the Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 library into a new project. The new work flows enable design engineers to re-use sections of code, which reduces design time and eases the ability to make future operational changes.
Automation system design and maintenance teams are increasingly global and specialised by function. This highlights an increasing need for more powerful collaborations tools. The Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 software is addressing this need by building on its already strong baseline of multiuser capabilities, which allows many users to work separately and then bring their work back together.
In addition, the Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 software supports the Allen-Bradley Kinetix 5500 servo drive with integrated safety to help machine builders reduce development and installation time. It also provides support that allows the Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 527 AC drive to be the first variable frequency drive to exclusively use the motion instruction sets within the Studio 5000 Logix Designer v24 software for machine control and motor synchronisation. 
Additionally, the Allen-Bradley Dynamix 1444 integrated condition-monitoring system allows manufacturers to leverage the Rockwell Automation Integrated Architecture system, rather than an isolated condition-monitoring device. It helps assess current equipment health, predict potential issues, and help avoid damage to critical machinery.