A Smart Gateway can provide customers with a smooth upgrade of HMIs and other devices that need to communicate to A-B PLCs on a DH+ network, but have no DH+ interface. It provides numerous modern Ethernet, serial and fieldbus protocols for the HMI, driver or other device, and then communicates over DH+ to the A-B PLCs seamlessly. No changes are required to the existing cabling, A-B PLCs, the A-B PLC programming, or other devices on the DH+. A Smart SoftPLC can not only perform the gateway function, but can also control A-B Remote I/O. Users can upgrade existing A-B PLC systems without replacing or rewiring the I/O or changing the DH+ network wiring. By exchanging the obsolete, limited-functionality A-B PLC with a Smart SoftPLC, users get a modern, supportable controller CPU and have a low-cost migration path for future upgrades of the communication network and I/O.
