Monitoring energy use is a simple first step to decreasing costs and improving operations.

A manager usually doesn’t approve a major expenditure without a detailed accounting of where the money is spent. So why isn’t energy typically accounted for in the same way?

On the OT (Operational Technology) side of manufacturing, process, and other industrial facilities, energy is often a fixed, overhead cost. The plant manager or machine operator is responsible for performance metrics like throughput and quality, while the energy bill is paid by someone in the accounting department. The implication of this lack of energy visibility is often operational costs that are higher than necessary.

Use your PLC programming experience to program groov EPIC.

Ready to write a control program for your groov EPIC, but not sure how to get started? With three options to write your control program–PAC Control, the easy-to-learn flowchart language, the Linux-based Secure Shell (SSH) to run your custom program, and CODESYS, an IEC-61131-3 compliant language–which do you choose?

Take a closer look at the new EPIC I/O  module (GRV-IVAPM-3) and get up to speed on how to install and configure it for your power monitoring applications.

Hopefully, you caught the recent blog post that announced our new 3-phase groov Power Monitoring module (GRV-IVAPM-3). In this next blog post, we’ll take a closer look at this module to help you get up to speed on how to install and configure it for your power monitoring applications.

Which products are affected, and how to update your affected systems

Opto 22 engineers have addressed the Log4Shell/Log4j vulnerability recently reported in news media this week. Firmware and software updates for affected products are now available. Opto 22 urges you to apply these updates immediately, regardless of whether you're using groov View.

The Log4j vulnerability affects all products running groov View software, including: 

• GRV-EPIC-PR1, GRV-EPIC-PR2
• GROOV-AR1, GROOV-AR1-BASE, GROOV-AR1-SNAP
• GROOV-AT1, GROOV-AT1-SNAP
• GROOV-SVR-WIN, GROOV-SVR-WIN-BASE, GROOV-SVR-WIN-SNAP

Please see this Opto KB Article (KB90085) for more details.

Please note that the following Opto 22 products are NOT affected:

• groov RIO (GRV-R7-MM1001-10 and GRV-R7-MM2001-10)
• SNAP I/O brains, SNAP PAC controllers, and the PAC Project software suite
• Legacy products including mistic, Optomux, FactoryFloor, and others 

Seasons Greetings from Opto 22 as we look back on the year 2021.

As we reflect on another year, we want to convey our deepest appreciation to all our customers, distributors, partners, and loyal Opto users. We are grateful for your support and commitment to Opto 22 products, and we promise to continue to innovate and provide cutting-edge solutions to you in 2022.

Let's take a moment for a quick year-in-review.

Get a recap of the most searched topics and popular OptoForum posts of the year.

Let’s take a look back at 2021 through the eyes of the OptoForums. You remember last year's top 5, right?

For starters, we had almost 200 more people sign up this year over last. (Y-Axis below is the number of daily sign-ups).

Dashboard UI on integrated and HDMI displays, Dashboard-only user accounts, and login directly to the Dashboard!

If you follow this blog closely you'll have seen the news that the groov family has had a recent firmware release—version 3.3.1 for groov EPIC and 3.3.0 for groov RIO. 

This release brings a lot of great features that you can see in the OptoBlog posts linked above, but here I'd like to talk a bit more about the additional features added for Node-RED, specifically for the Node-RED Dashboard.

Learn about two new I/O modules just announced for the groov EPIC controller.

Two highly anticipated groov EPIC modules are here: the 3-phase power monitoring module with 64 channels of data (!), and the highly flexible, software-configurable multifunction, multi-signal module. These new modules can take your system to another level of efficiency and another step closer to your digital transformation goals.

Are you looking to lower your energy spend, avoid equipment failure, and reduce carbon emissions? These latest I/O offerings allow engineers to bring energy, performance, and machine health data directly from the edge into backend systems, for old and new equipment alike, aiming to reduce complexity, cost, and timelines.

Let's take a closer look at these new I/O options: 

Newly added in EPIC firmware 3.3.1 : manage unsecured devices on-prem or at remote sites through secure, on-demand connections.

Last week in the OptoBlog, Ben Orchard shared an overview of what's included in the latest groov EPIC firmware update 3.3.1. One of the highlights was a new networking tool: Port Redirect.

If you've updated to 3.3.1 and you're itching to try this new feature out, here's a step-by-step outline on how it works on a groov EPIC (GRV-EPIC-PR1 or GRV-EPIC-PR2).

Opto 22's updated technical note helps current SNAP PAC users decide if, when, and how to migrate to the newer groov EPIC system.

Opto 22 customers have been relying on the SNAP PAC system for their controls and automation applications for almost 15 years. But now you keep hearing about the new technology of the groov EPIC system.

How is it different?

Should you make the switch?

What would be the benefits of upgrading, and what issues would arise from making the change?