Industrial remote-access routers with LAN, WiFi and 3G

Paul Boughton

eWON has unveiled the new eWON Cosy 131 range of industrial VPN remote access routers with LAN, WiFi, and 3G+ connection options.

With eWON Cosy, machine builders and OEMs can access machine PLCs and HMIs, and troubleshoot these from their own office, regardless of where the machine is located in the world.

The eWON Cosy 131 complements the existing eWON Cosy 141 range, but includes new features such as WiFi and 3G (no longer a need to use LAN), a USB port for connectivity with additional serial devices, an SD card reader for simplified on-site configuration, and a configurable LAN/WAN 4 port switch.

The eWON Cosy 131 range is sold and supported in the UK by industrial data communications specialist MAC Solutions (UK) Limited.

More than ever, industrial equipment users are demanding 24/7 continuous production, increased uptime and faster reaction times, be it in packaging, food and beverage, or other high speed production environments. The eWON Cosy 131 is the ideal, compact and cost-effective solution for remote machine access.

Many users of ‘traditional’, IT-provided, remote-access VPNs find it more and more complex to connect with remote equipment, through the customer’s Internet firewalls. “When it comes to 3rd party users gaining access to factory floor devices through corporate firewalls, with strict IT security policies, the dream quickly turns into a nightmare,” states Serge Bassem, CEO of eWON.

The eWON Cosy enables maintenance engineers to establish a secure VPN connection to the machine from anywhere, via eWON’s cloud-based remote connectivity solution, Talk2M. The router connects on the machine network, alongside the machine PLC and the HMI, allowing remote connection from anywhere, from any laptop, tablet or Smartphone. “The eWON Cosy solution does not require any involvement from the IT department and that really makes the difference for our customers!” adds Bassem.

Connecting industrial equipment to the Internet has been eWON’s passion since it was founded in 2001. Over 13 years, remote access technology has radically evolved from old-style dial-up modems to modern Internet-based remote-access, through the Talk2M cloud-connectivity service. To cater for all situations, the new eWON Cosy 131 offers the versatility to connect using either LAN, WiFi or 3G connections. “Offering various connection media options is highly appreciated by machine builders, who can now more easily deploy the same solution for all customers, simply by picking the most suitable connection technology, for each site,” concludes Bassem.