Looking for an innovative source to help with your application challenges?

What's on your list of requirements when selecting a supplier? How about 50 years of reliable products made in the U.S.A., multiple technologies for your digital transformation, and free product support and training?

That's the Opto 22 difference, and our engineering and sales teams are ready to help you with your projects.

Discover what makes Opto 22 different in this new, one-minute video.

In 1974, Robert Engman III stared down at 22 optically isolated, highly reliable, liquid epoxy-filled, solid state relays (SSRs) with no moving parts—quite an innovation back then—and he contemplated what to name the new company.

The result? "Opto" signifies optical isolation, and the "22" represents the original lineup of 22 relays. But this year, there’s another important number that we need to discuss—50!

Yes, Opto 22 is 50. Years. Young. 

This week, as we celebrate Opto’s Golden Anniversary of existence, I’d be remiss not to reflect on the legacy of a company I have loved being a part of for the last decade. And while my 11 years may seem like a long time, many of the folks I work with each day have tenures twice or thrice as long—they’ve been carrying the torch, maintaining the legacy that we are still building today.

You can feel secure in your SNAP PAC product designs.

In the ever-evolving industrial automation industry, it's crucial to have a solid foundation you can rely on. For many of you, that foundation has been built on our SNAP PAC systems, and you’ve grown accustomed to the reliability these systems provide your automation projects. We understand the importance of SNAP PAC in your operations, and we're here to reassure you: your trust in Opto 22 SNAP PAC controllers and I/O modules is well placed, now and into the future.

At Opto 22, we know that designs and projects that incorporate SNAP PAC are more than just configurations of hardware and software; they are the lifeblood of your operations, which is why we are committed to ensuring that you can feel secure in your designs for the long haul. 

These website tools make it easy to design your automation systems and choose the parts you need.

Hey Opto crew! Today, I want to walk you through something pretty cool and super useful – our System Configurators at Opto 22. These tools are all about making your life easier when it comes to picking the right automation gear. No fluff, just the good stuff, including all the specs for the parts you'll need, and you can access them all from the Products section of our website.

Learn more about the Opto Memory Map Protocol—a powerful method of interacting with Opto 22 controllers

OptoMMP works with everything from SNAP PAC brains to the latest groov products. Let's go over some of the basics about what OptoMMP is and how it works.

In my last blog post I showed how easy it can be to work with OptoMMP using tools built right into groov Manage. To add to that resource, this follow up provides an overview about what OptoMMP is, how it works, and why you might want to make use of it.

Honest answers to your questions about making the move from SNAP PAC controllers to groov EPIC.

I’d like to try and feed two birds with one handful of grain in this blog…

We often get these two questions from existing Opto 22 customers who are moving or migrating from SNAP PAC controllers to groov EPIC (or sometimes keeping SNAP I/O to work with an EPIC system).

1. Are they the same?
2. Which should I configure first, groov Manage or PAC Control?

New technical note shows you how to update security settings for your email applications.

You can use many Opto 22 products to send email notifications to keep engineers and technicians aware of important conditions in your system. For example:

• You can send email through a PAC Control strategy running on a groov EPIC or SNAP PAC controller.
• Your groov View HMI can send event notifications via email.
• Your Node-RED flow on groov RIO or groov EPIC can send email.

But you must make changes now to keep receiving emails!

Prepare to make security changes to your email accounts by May 30, 2022.

For a long time, automation engineers have sent email alerts and reports from automation applications via a ‘throwaway’ Gmail account. This seemed harmless enough at the time and really useful, but it wasn’t very secure. As email abuse has risen over the years, it's time for the “less secure” party to come to an end.

Does this mean an end to all email alerts? Not at all. You just need to adjust your Google Gmail settings and update to a new application password in each application. Of course, this applies (with different end dates) to most other email providers as well as Google; check with your email provider for details. This blog will focus on Google Gmail.

It's the end of an era for Opto 22's original SNAP Ethernet I/O

First introduced in 1998, the venerable SNAP-B3000-ENET was the genesis of our SNAP Ethernet I/O line. Genuinely industry-changing when we first launched it, now, we regret to announce that Opto 22 is nearing the end of production for this flagship legacy product.

As you know, we always continue producing older products as long as technically possible (see Opto 22's product philosophy). But unfortunately, we are once again faced with the unavailability of essential parts that make up the original Ethernet I/O. Although limited inventory is still available, SNAP-B3000-ENET will become obsolete once current stock is depleted.

Direct replacement available with SNAP-PAC-R1

Effective March 1st, 2022 the SNAP-PAC-EB1 and SNAP-PAC-EB2 Ethernet Brains will be End-of-Life (EOL). We always continue producing older products as long as possible (see Opto 22's product philosophy), but unfortunately we can no longer source an essential part for these brains.

We'll continue to accept new orders for these products until February 28th, 2022. Opto 22 reserves the right to approve and schedule all purchase orders for these products before confirmation.