EC: Bedrock

Process Control Systems: Bedrock is automation reimagined to deliver the highest levels of security, availability, and performance to users. This is a Control Engineering 2016 Engineers’ Choice finalist.

October 15, 2015

Bedrock has been designed from a blank sheet of paper to meet three essential requirements for a modern industrial control system: simplicity, scalability and security. From this fresh start has emerged an extensively patented control and IO architecture with a pin-less electromagnetic IO backplane, deeply embedded cyber security, and computational power that surpasses the needs of conventional PLC, RTU and DCS automation applications.

Simplicity is achieved by universal software-defined I/O channels with single, dual or triple modular redundancy and single or dual digital power and universal controllers. Every module is endowed with the computing power and flexibility for the widest array of automation applications. Having so few software defined modules reduces costs across the entire project lifecycle, including engineering, installation, and lifetime ownership.

Unlimited scalability from tens to tens of thousands of I/O is achieved with an ultra-fast asynchronous control and I/O communication and computation architecture.

Cyber security is provided by Bedrock’s Black Fabric Cybershield, an embedded deep-trust cyber defense using patented processor, memory, communications, interconnections, backplane, and packaging technologies to integrate cyber security into every module at birth. Upon power up, transistor-level authentication and cryptography protects the user’s hardware, firmware, software, and application transactions throughout their application lifecycle. The result is real security that works.

Bedrock is an open automation platform with an Integrated Development Environment supporting IEC 61131 control languages and an embedded OPC unified architecture (UA) server, simplifying integration to multiple SCADA HMI and factory MES applications.

Bedrock Automation, www.bedrockautomation.com