At last check they did not. Modbus was the data transfer protocol for the company Modicon. They were later aquired by Gould. I still see some of their stuff on ebay. It was pretty bullet proof. I first encountered modbus in the early 1980s. It became the defacto PLC protocol because it supported a version that used ascii characters that made it very easy to interface with the minicomputers of the day. There was also a binary version that was much more efficient at the high-speed (9600) data rates of the day.
Modicon Was the company that came up with the Modbus Protocol many moons ago. It is now Schneider Electric. Go to www.modicon.com for product information.
Modbus is a communications protocol originated by Modicon which is now part of Schneider Automation. Modicon manufacturers PLC's (programmable logic controllers) which are widely used in the industrial control world for all types of control systems.
The protocol is widely used in many devices and can be multi-dropped (up to 32 nodes) on a single 2 wire communication link using RS485 physical protocol.
The only downside is that industrial equipment is going to be very expensive compared to a "consumer" device of the same functionality.
The MODICON Programmable Controller was one of the first PLC's in the world - it introduced ladder logic & many other things we still use today - Modbus & Modbus Plus were invented to connect these PLC's & the open architecture led to a wide adoption industry wide - Later to become "Gould Moicon" this PLC line is no longer the industry leader but the Modbus legacy remains.
I'm sorry, Dan, but you are way off. This is a bit like asking if Ethernet makes copiers.
Ethernet was invented by Xerox, who does in fact my copiers. In modern times, Ethernet is handled by a standards body. (Over-simplification.)
Modicon invented Modbus, and Modicon does in fact make PLC's. In fact they made the FIRST PLC, arguably. Today, Modicon is owned by Schneider Electric, and they are still a leader in the field.
There are number of previous posts on the history of the PLC / controls market. You might also check the ones about "goofball questions."
No, Modbus does not make a PLC. But, the company that invented the PLC and developed Modbus Protocol, known as "Modicon", did make PLCs. Modicon was acquired by Schneider Electric and is now a brand name of that company. Schneider makes several different models of PLCs. These are sold in the US by Square D (owned by Schneider Electric North America), and in Canada by Schneider Electric Canada, and their distributors.
Modbus was developed by Modicon which is part of the Schnieder Electric group. Modicon does offer several lines of PLCs. Just go to http://www.modicon.com for details.
Muchos Kudos to Modicon for being guileless enough to put a temporary link to this silly thread on their web site ! ( www.modicon.com under "What's the buzz ?")
Modbus is just the protocol name. It is a protocl that has proven to be very dependable and easy to implement. For this reason, you can find it supported in almost all of the leasding PLC Automation controllers and many types of Process Controllers. Even though it has progressed from serial to Ehernet, the code has not changed very much at all. It's CRC error checking and simple handshaking methods make it a very streamlined protocol.
