Siemens Industry, Inc. - Simatic S7-1500 Controller Line

CHICAGO -- The new Simatic S7-1500 controller family from Siemens Industry, Inc. delivers outstanding performance and efficiency in mid- to high-level automation applications.

With integrated motion control, security and safety functions, the scalable line is easily commissioned with Siemens TIA Portal engineering software. Also, for the first time, the controllers feature a convenient color display for full plant transparency.

The S7-1500 family features a fast backplane bus with a high baud rate and efficient transmission protocol, ensuring maximum overall system performance.  All controllers in the S7-1500 family have two, built-in, standard, Profinet interfaces. The largest controller in the line has an additional Profinet interface onboard with a separate IP address, allowing network isolation to integrate into the corporate network.

Standard motion control functions enable analog and Profidrive-compatible drives to be connected without additional modules. The controllers support speed and positioning axes, as well as encoders.  PLCopen standardized blocks further simplify connecting Profidrive-compatible drives.

Siemens Security Integrated concept extends from block protection to communication integrity.  For copy protection, program blocks can be bound to the serial number of the memory card to ensure that the programs run only with the configured memory card and cannot be copied.  Access protection safeguards the application from unauthorized configuration changes by allowing different user groups to be assigned separate rights, based on authorization levels.  Special functionality is also included to recognize modified engineering data in order to prohibit unauthorized manipulation of the data transmitted to the controller.

The F-version (failsafe) function of the new controllers provides both standard and safety-related programs. A central Safety Administration Editor helps define and modify safety parameters. The controllers are certified in accordance with EN 61508 for functional safety and are suitable for use in safety-relevant applications up to SIL 3 according to IEC 62061 and PL e according to ISO 13849.

The S7-1500 controllers are integrated into Siemens TIA Portal engineering framework. The software offers a standardized operating concept for controller, HMI and drives, shared data storage and automatic data consistency throughout the project, as well as powerful libraries covering all automation objects.  The new Version 12 of the TIA Portal is characterized by greater functionality, automatic system diagnostics, integrated safety functionality, powerful Profinet communication, integrated security and optimized programming languages.

The hardware design of the Simatic S7-1500 contains numerous innovations focusing on ease of use.  For example, a standardized front connector with designed in “pre-wiring” position saves time and simplifies wiring.  Also, the controllers’ color display, a first on a Siemens CPU, provides detailed plain text information for full plant transparency.