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Machines & industrial control

Build the sequence.Understand the process.

An IEC 61131-3 Structured Text runtime with a browser IDE, a statement-level debugger, a historian, and 15 industrial protocol drivers. Write the logic, connect the equipment, and see exactly what it did.

Engineering guidesWatch the IDE walkthrough

Structured Text · 12 standard function blocks · Modbus, EtherNet/IP, OPC UA, FINS, DNP3, BACnet, IEC 104…

A familiar foundation

The PLC you already know how to program.

ControlForge grew out of GOPLC and is still, first, an IEC 61131-3 runtime. Start with the engineering work you recognize. The wider toolset is there when it adds value.

Program and inspect.

Structured Text programs, functions, and function blocks. Multi-task scheduling with priorities and watchdogs. Live variables and a statement-level debugger, all in the browser.

TONTOFTPRTOCTUCTDCTUDR_TRIGF_TRIGSRRSSEMA

Connect and monitor.

15 protocol drivers bring the equipment in. A built-in HMI and Node-RED dashboards put the operator's view on top, served straight from the runtime.

Modbus TCPEtherNet/IPFINS/OmronOPC UAMQTTSparkplug BDNP3BACnet

Investigate and refine.

The historian, alarms, and the event spine keep the record. Time Machine records the session. The digital twin lets you test the correction before the machine sees it.

HistorianAlarms & eventsTime MachineDigital twin

Example workflow

A sequence stops. Your understanding should not.

A test bench or indexer misses a transition. The useful outcome is not a restart. It is an explanation you can test and keep.

  1. 01 / CAPTURE

    Define the evidence.

    Pick the state, I/O, and events that matter and put them in the historian. Confirm they are being recorded before you need them.

  2. 02 / INVESTIGATE

    Find the transition.

    Trend the history around the missed step. Replay the session. Separate what was observed from what was inferred.

  3. 03 / VERIFY

    Test the correction.

    Step through the new logic in the debugger. Run it against the twin, then the bench, against acceptance criteria you wrote down.

  4. 04 / RETAIN

    Keep the lesson.

    Preserve the tested block, the regression case, and the diagnostic setup. Bring them to the next machine.

Recursive improvement for the engineer: every verified lesson strengthens both the application and your next engineering cycle.

Proof, not promises

On the wire, on video.

All 15 protocol drivers reported by ControlForge v1.0.1566 on 2026-09-05, and four demos you can watch.

Modbus TCPEtherNet/IPFINS/OmronOPC UAMQTTSparkplug BDNP3BACnetSNMPSELDF1IEC 60870-5-104InfluxDBctrlX EtherCAT I/OSocketCAN (CAN FD, J1939, OBD-II, DBC)

Video

A Raspberry Pi as the PLC.

Driving Factory I/O industrial simulations over Modbus TCP from the runtime on a Pi.

See it

Video

Digital twin, same code as the machine.

The same runtime and the same Structured Text, run against a simulated machine before the real one.

See it

Video

Built-in HMI, served from the runtime.

Three tasks at different scan rates, counters, start/stop controls. No separate HMI product.

See it

Video

Boss/Minion clustering.

Distributed PLC instances with live view switching across the cluster.

See it

Start with a defined application

Choose the right operating envelope.

A simulation, a test bench, or a monitoring project makes a focused first application. Verify target support, I/O behavior, restart expectations, and scan performance against your actual requirements.

Review platform capabilities · Browse project walkthroughs

One platform. A stronger next project.

What do you want to control, and understand?

Tell us about the machine, the interfaces, and the behavior you need to investigate. ControlForge is in private access.

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