Safety controller is expandable and easy-to-program

If you have a small to medium sized machine or robot cell requiring safety systems implementation but want both economy of scale and the flexibility to extend the safety functionality as you expand your system's capabilities, then a new product from Banner Engineering is likely to be of interest, writes Les Hunt.

Marketed and supported in the UK by Turck Banner, the XS26-2 is an expandable, industrial-hardened safety control system with a highly intuitive, easy-to-learn graphical user interface. Indeed, apart from its expansion capabilities (up to eight expansion I/O modules can be added), it is the user interface that sets this particular safety controller apart from the competition.

Simple, uncluttered and easy to navigate for configuring and documenting safety functions and assessing the status of connected input or output devices, the interface uses a function block diagram format that consists of pre-engineered and pre-tested safety function blocks, as well as a set of Boolean functions.

And as you configure the function block, a corresponding logic ladder reference diagram and a text-based summary are created. Real time checks ensure that erroneous connections are flagged to the user, while full system simulation is available prior to system implementation.


The XS26-2 platform will cater for a wide range of safeguarding applications. The base controller models have 26 input terminals, four terminals for two redundant safety PNP outputs and a USB connection for loading configurations.

Base models are available with an optional on-board display. Another option is the inclusion of an embedded Ethernet IP/Modbus TCP capability for access to live I/O status and system diagnostics to assist in troubleshooting and commissioning.