showstack / software / twincat
TwinCAT
Beckhoff's automation platform, and the reason an ordinary industrial PC can be trusted with a motion loop: a hard real-time kernel runs alongside Windows on reserved CPU cores, so the control task keeps its cycle no matter what Windows is doing. Developed inside Visual Studio, programmed in the IEC 61131-3 languages plus C++ and Simulink modules.
Protocols it speaks
| Protocol | Direction | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ethercat | bidirectional | The native fieldbus — drives, I/O and sensors on one line, updated every cycle. |
| opc-ua | bidirectional | The usual way state is exposed upward to other systems. |
| modbus-tcp | bidirectional | Via supplementary functions. |
| profinet | bidirectional | Via supplementary functions. |
What to watch for
Functional safety is a separate rated channel — TwinSAFE — and it is not where your control code goes. It has to stay valid when the control program is wrong.
The show network may supply timing to an automation system. It must never supply permission.
Deterministic behaviour comes from the real-time kernel and reserved cores. A badly configured machine loses the guarantee without any obvious symptom until it matters.
Typical use
- Winches, lifts, revolves, turntables and kinetic scenery
- Deterministic control where a general-purpose OS cannot give a cycle guarantee
- Bridging automation state to a show-control system over OPC UA
Sources
- Beckhoff TwinCAT — Beckhoff Automation primary
Understand the mechanism
Something wrong, or missing?
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