The en Z em SigCore UC Promises an Open Source Approach to Industrial PID Controller Design
Flexible friend for the home lab and industrial automation offers a range of features and the promise of open hardware and software.
California-based industrial control specialist en Z em has announced an upcoming crowdfunding campaign for the SigCore Uc, a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) input/output control model with analog and digital signal support — and which it plans to release under an open source license.
"SigCore UC is a powerful and flexible universal I/O controller built for demanding applications," claims en Z em's Edward Schmitz of the device. "With hardware designed to accept and generate a broad range of analog and digital signals and fully open source firmware and software, SigCore UC is equally suited for prototyping, integration, control, automation, education, and experimentation."
The SigCore UC includes eight digital inputs supporting 3–30V logic, four analog inputs with support from "millivolts" up to 30V and 4-20mA current loop sensors, four analog outputs configurable for 0–5V operation with pulse-width modulation (PWM) support on two outputs and support for 4-20mA current loops, and eight isolated single-pole double-throw (SPDT) relay channels rated at 10A 120VAC with both normally-open and normall-closed terminals available.
Elsewhere on the board are USB and Modbus TCP interfaces for real-time control and monitoring, linking to an in-house application for Microsoft Windows that offers live signal monitoring, relay toggling, and the ability to configure and calibrate the device — while "fully-documented" Python and .NET libraries provide a route for developers to write their own applications for the platform. The firmware also includes the promise of "industrial-grade" embedded PID control.
The company is planning to launch a crowdfunding campaign for the SigCore UC, at an as-yet unannounced price point, on Crowd Supply, with interested parties invited to sign up on the campaign page to be notified when it goes live; post-campaign, en Z em has pledged to release firmware and software source code plus hardware design files under an unspecified open source license "after the campaign ends."