The Suite
1. What is Orchestra Control Engine?
Orchestra Control Engine is a suite of software components for the planning, development and realization of real time control applications for machines, robot, cells and industrial complexes.
Orchestra is not only a very powerful control software, able to perform critical real-time applications, rather it is also equipped with programs for the development, debugging and testing that support the user in the realization of control programs.
2. What are the advantages of Orchestra Control Engine?
- the opening, since it is based on an open source framework in which it's possible to insert your own specific know-how and algorithms and to interface it with not-predefined external entities in an easy way to develop applications both of Motion Control and Logical Control.
- the modularity, as it offers the possibility to reuse the algorithmics, functionally developed through its subdivision into functionally distinguished units, as well as to modify the scheme of control at one’s own sweet will, without any imposed limit;
- the distributability, since it makes the dislocation of the software on physically separated hardware resources (even at several hundred meters of distance) easier;
- the scalability, because it makes possible to resolve with an only tool problems of notably different complexity and to choose the hardware of the correct "size" (and therefore of the cost) for the particular application (e.g.: embedded low-cost or multi-core ultra-performing solutions);
- the reconfigurability, because it allows to modify the system parameters both offline and runtime to quickly change its behaviour;
- the visual approach of the development environment.
3. Who is it addressed to?
Orchestra Control Engine is an innovative control suite dedicated to:
- control producers;
- manufacturers and integrators of machines and systems, who can purchase Orchestra Core together with already defined modules or they can autonomously develop new ones to realize personalized applications which will be destined to the final user.
- developers who use Orchestra Designer and Orchestra Builder for Motion Control applications and for the realization of compatible modules with Orchestra Core.
- final users, who acquire the application from the integrator and use the system through the user interface tools offered by Sintesi (HMI, programming environment GCode, Orchestra MultiPLC…) and/or by the integrator. The final users can directly purchase the complete system from Sintesi.
4. What is the commercial/non-commercial license of Orchestra Control Engine?
The non commercial license is the free license for non commercial use so for research and test purpose. The 1.0 beta version has non commercial use.
5. When will the commercial version be available?
The commercial version will be available in December 2007. Nevertheless, if a company wants to install and test Orchestra on its own machine tools or robots, it can do it without any cost with the free version of the software.
If, after a positive testing, the same company wants to use the suite or some components for commercial use, the commercial license will be necessary.
6. What hardware is Orchestra compatible with?
It depends on the components of the suite: OrchestraCore and OrchestraMultiPLC can only be executed on Linux/RTAI, while OrchestraHMI and OrchestraDesigner also on Windows (being written in Java); OrchestraBuilder on PCs on which it is possible to use the Simulink RealTime Workshop.
7. Can Control Engine be implemented on Windows?
It is possible to make Windows applications and Orchestra live together, by using software allowing to emulate Windows on Linux operating system or executing Windows virtual machines under Linux.
8. Is it possible to use Orchestra in fields different from industrial automation or control machines tools?
Thanks to its versatility the software is suited for different sectors of application as domotics and the mobile robotics.
9. Which programming languages for machines are supported by Orchestra?
From the point of view of the motion control, the language of reference is G-code according to the RS274D standard.
From the point of view of the logical control, the standard of reference is IEC 61131-3 which defines five languages, three of which are graphical (SFC, LD, FBD) and two textual (IL, ST).
Components
10. What are the components of the suite?
The Components are to be intended as the basic functionalities of the software (OrchestraCore, OrchestraRunTimeManager, OrchestraLogicProgramming, OrchestraGCode, OrchestraLibrary, OrchestraHMI) or tools for the integration and development of modules (OrchestraBuilder, OrchestraDesigner).
11. Which components have source code available?
The components with source code available are:
OrchestraCore;
OrchestraRunTimeManager;
OrchestraBuilder;
Modules of I/O;
Example Module.
12. Is it possible to personalize the HMI?
Yes, it is. The interface can be defined through the. xml configuration file, in which it is possible to define what objects will be present in the operational panel and in what position, besides defining a series of graphic properties and the possibility to create personalized panels integrable with the application.
13. Is the OrchestraHMI multiplatform?
Yes, because it is written in Java language.
14. Is it possible to define external modules to be integrated with the HMI?
Yes, since you can create java classes that can be integrated with the HMI making such application even more modular.
15. Which devices can the HMI be used with?
The HMI has been conceived to be used not only with normal PCs but also with standard touch-screens.
16. What is the Name Server?
The NameServer is a centralized software entity whose task consists in holding traces of all the other entities composing the net of control and that can interact among them: think, for example, to an instance of OrchestraHMI that wants to monitor the signals flowing inside an application of control performed by an instance of OrchestraCore. The purpose of the NameServer is that of allowing the registration/deregistration of an entity and of accepting requests of information about registered entities; moreover, it periodically verifies that each registered entity is still alive.
17. Is it possible to launch the different components of the suite on different machines?
Yes, it is. The suite Orchestra can boast a characteristic distributability or the possibility to perform different software entities on different and physically distant hardware resources: for example, you could have OrchestraCore in execution on a Linux/RTAI machine and OrchestraHMI on a Windows machine, with central NameServer on a Linux devoted machine. To the other extreme there can also be a configuration in which everything is in execution on an only machine (in this case Linux/RTAI).
Modules
18. How is it possible to realize new modules?
The OrchestraCore Modules can be automatically generated by OrchestraBuilder or written directly in C++ and integrated through Orchestra Designer. The logical modules can be realized by means of OrchestraLogicProgramming or written directly in C.
19. Is it possible to develop and commercialize modules to be implemented on Orchestra Control?
Yes, it is. Modules can be developed with the aim of OrchestraDesigner and OrchestraBuilder. These can be sold to Commercial License holders.
20. What is a DLC?
A DLC (Dynamically Loaded Component) is a library, loaded at runtime by the Core, which contains the real logic of a module or the algorithmic which will be executed at every cycle of the control loop. Every DLC will always contain a function of execution (step) and optionally a function of initialization (initialize), one of finalization (finalize) and one of management of alarm situations (safety).
21. What is an XMI?
XMI (XML Module Interface) is an XML file that goes with every module and that describes the interface, i.e. number of inputs and outputs and the relative cardinality, the number of internal and "extra" statuses, the number and name of the parameters.
22. What is an XMP?
XMP (XML Module Parameters) is an optional XML file that characterizes an instance of a module since it contains the initial values of the parameters defined in the XMI file.
23. Is it possible to modify the parameters defined in the XMP at Run Time, too?
Yes, through the HMI.
And the new parameter values can also be saved.
24. Is is it possible to interface Orchestra components with DAQ boards?
Yes, if these are supported by Comedi, an open-source project that supports the most common DAQ boards available and for which interfacing modules have been developed for OrchestraCore.
Community
25. When will Orchestra Community be active?
Orchestra Community is a project thought for allowing the interaction among the academic and industrial world. With the commercial version scheduled for December, a forum will be activated where registered users will be able to leave their opinions and contributions.
Nevertheless, it is already possible to get in touch with the Orchestra team to get further information and to start contributing to the development of Orchestra with your own contributions writing to the address contact@orchestracontrol.com
26. What will be possible to do by means of Orchestra Community?
Besides opinions and comments, users will be able to publish their own modules.
27. Is it possible to release a Module to the Community without losing the right to sell it to whom will do a commercial use of it?
Yes. Those who will develop Modules in an autonomous way can sell them to the future holders of the commercial license.