Platform-Independent Client Applications for Working with Industrial Controllers

The article considers a system for designing a platform-independent graphical interface of programmable logic controllers (PLC), based on the meta-level of describing the structure of PLC registers and a graphical interface of a control system. The architecture of the distributed monitoring and control system (MCS) is described by meta-data and supports controllers and GUI options for applications within the established specifications. Client applications interact with the PLC using a data server by loading meta-models of PLC interfaces and their graphical interfaces. The platform independence of server and client applications is ensured by implementation in Java. Client applications are implemented as desktop applications, web applications, and operator kiosk applications.