Arduino Brings Modbus TCP Over-The-Air Updates to the Arduino PLC IDE 1.1.0

The Arduino team has announced a new version of the Arduino PLC IDE, its integrated development environment for programmable logic controllers (PLCs) including the Arduino Opta range — now featuring full support for over-the-air updates via Modbus TCP, even when using a virtual private network (VPN).

"Since its launch in December 2022, the (free!) Arduino PLC IDE was designed to make automation easier, faster, and more approachable for engineers in any industry. Now in its 1.1.0 version, we are proud to say it is taking another leap forward in this direction," the Arduino team says of the new release. "Arduino PLC IDE v1.1.0 enables remote lifecycle management and aligns Opta with standard practices in industrial automation. It’s a game changer for machine builders and industrial automation companies operating and maintaining devices deployed in the field!"

Unlike the mainstream Arduino IDE, the Arduino PLC IDE is built with industrial users in mind. Designed for use with the Arduino Portenta Machine Control and Arduino Opta programmable logic controllers, it offers support for programming in both the familiar Arduino-flavored C/C++ via the Wiring library as well as the five languages specified in IEC 61131-3: Ladder Diagram, Functional Block Diagram, Structured Text, Sequential Function Chart, and Instruction List.

The new release brings two main improvements, with the biggest being better support for over-the-air updates to devices deployed in the field. "Over-the-air updates can be performed via Modbus TCP over an Ethernet connection, even through VPNs," the Arduino team explains. "This feature allows the update of the complete program, both the PLC runtime and the Arduino Sketch and the PLC runtime, guaranteeing all the system components are fully aligned."

The second is more of a quality-of-life upgrade than a must have: a shift away from having a programmable logic controller offer separate programming and debugging serial ports, making it easier for the IDE to automatically detect and connect to a device. "The debug through the second COM [port] is still available for expert users," the Arduino team notes.

The Arduino PLC IDE 1.1.0 is now available on the Arduino site, as a free download; unlike the Arduino IDE, it's exclusive to Microsoft Windows and is closed-source.