Gear that gets a phone and a screen onto the machine

Gear & accessories

The hard part is rarely the software. It is getting a phone onto the PLC's network, a screen onto the machine, or a serial device onto Ethernet. These are the parts we point people to, each with what it's for and when you don't need it.

On this page: phone onto the network · a screen on the machine · serial and Modbus RTU

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Phone onto the machine network

LK Go talks straight to the controller over the machine's Ethernet, so the phone has to be on that network. If plant Wi-Fi already reaches the PLC, you need nothing here; otherwise a wired adapter is the simplest start, a Wi-Fi bridge suits a crew, and a small switch helps when there is no spare port.

  • Anker USB-C to gigabit Ethernet adapter — the quickest wired path: spare switch port in, and the app sees the controller in seconds. Fits USB-C iPhones and iPads, no drivers. Skip it if plant Wi-Fi already reaches the PLC.
    For LK Go
  • GL.iNet Opal travel router — plug it into a spare switch port and the machine network gets Wi-Fi; the phone app connects in about a minute, and the whole crew can join. Skip it if one wired phone is enough.
    For LK Go
  • GL.iNet Beryl AX — the same job, faster, on Wi-Fi 6 with more range for big halls full of steel. Skip it if you work a few steps from the cabinet; the Opal covers that.
    For LK Go
  • 5-port industrial DIN-rail switch — for when the machine has no spare port: free ports for the phone adapter, the Wi-Fi bridge and a laptop. Fitting it moves one cable, so do it at a stop. Skip it if a port is free.
    For LK Go andLK On
  • Cat6 patch cables, 10-pack in 5 colors — color-coded spares so the temporary drop is obvious to the next shift. Skip it if the cabinet already has spares.
    For LK Go andLK On
  • RJ45 cable tester — the cheap answer to "is it the cable?" before anyone blames the network. Skip it if maintenance already carries one.
    For LK Go andLK On

A screen on the machine

For a screen that stays at the machine: LK On, or a spare tablet running LK Go in full-screen panel mode while the proper fix is on its way. On a bench beside the dead panel, none of this is needed.

  • VIVO pole-mount VESA arm — puts the screen at eye level on a machine post instead of a chair. LK On's VESA holes fit it; a tablet needs a VESA holder. Skip it if LK On goes into the old panel's cutout.
    For LK Go andLK On
  • TICONN IP67 enclosure with clear cover — houses the gateway or Wi-Fi bridge on the machine without bare boards on the rail. Skip it if there is room inside a closed cabinet.
    For LK Go andLK On
  • MDR-60-24 DIN-rail power supply, 24 V — clean rail power for LK On, a switch or a gateway, in the form factor already in your cabinet. Skip it if the cabinet's 24 V supply has spare capacity; LK On also ships with a desktop supply.
    For LK On

Serial and Modbus RTU devices

A phone has no serial port. A Modbus RTU device on RS-485 or RS-232 reaches LK Go and LK On through a gateway that puts it on Ethernet as Modbus TCP; to the app it then looks like any other TCP device. If the device already speaks Modbus TCP, skip this group.

Not sure what you need?

Start with nothing: if a laptop on plant Wi-Fi can ping the PLC, LK Go will connect without any of this. If a panel just died, the 10-minute triage guide comes first; a surprising share of dead panels turn out to be a power supply or a cable. Planning a screen that stays on the machine? That is LK On. Or tell us about the machine and we will say what, if anything, you need.