Panel i While older CNC machines can continue to provide valuable service for years and years, a limiting factor can be the operating systems that they run on. Microsoft is no longer supporting Microsoft 7, XP or older versions of its operating systems. The Panel i is an industrial PC for retrofitting CNC machines that is available with either a 10.4-inch or a 15-inch screen, and comes with Windows 10 IoT Enterprise, a solid-state drive, up to 8 gigabytes (GB) of RAM, up to 500 GB of storage and multiple Ethernet and USB ports.
What’s new? The Panel i. While in some instances the retrofit may be very straightforward, Fanuc is offering a replacement program that can be tailored to the needs of companies, whether they have a larger fleet of machines, or lack in-house computer expertise. For example, some users may have customized software and data that will need to be transferred to the new system, and made to function smoothly with the new operating system, or may require additional drivers.
Benefits Cybersecurity. CNC machines that continue to use legacy industrial PCs running unsupported versions of Windows that are connected to online networks are vulnerable to cybersecurity breaches, and can put the entire network they are linked to at risk.
Fanuc America Corp., Rochester Hills, Mich., 888-326-8287, www.fanucamerica.com
