Xentara is a software-defined automation platform that replaces traditional hardware PLCs with a microservice-based realtime control layer running on standard industrial PCs. It allows engineers to implement deterministic control logic in C++ or Rust, run it on Linux with preempt-rt, and expose all process data via modern fieldbuses and open APIs, blending IT and OT in one control stack. https://xentara.io/
In this video, Xentara is shown powering a BenThor laser marking cell where a classic PLC has been completely removed and replaced by the software platform running on an Advantech IPC. The BENTHORcube concept focuses on compact, flexible laser systems for marking and engraving, and here Xentara provides the realtime execution environment, I/O handling and safety logic while the machine performs QR-code marking on small “business card” blanks. The demo is part of the joint Xentara, Advantech, Hilscher and BenThor presence at SPS 2025 in Nuremberg, illustrating how a standardized software layer can be reused across many different machine variants in one ecosystem.
Engineering is done with Xentara Workbench, where system integrators configure EtherCAT fieldbus, OPC UA server endpoints, semantic data models, timing and schedulers, and fine-grained access control lists in one environment. The semantic data layer allows the machine to be modeled as a digital representation with typed signals, states and relationships instead of ad-hoc tags, making it easier to plug that model into MES, cloud analytics or digital twin tools. Combined with secure OPC UA exposure of OT data to higher-level systems, the platform is designed to keep classic control loops deterministic while still fitting into a modern data-driven workflow.
On top of realtime control, Xentara is positioning itself as an IT-OT convergence layer ready for AI and agentic workloads. The team is working on an MCP (Model Context Protocol) interface so that large language models and other AI agents can safely access machine semantics and live data as standardized tools, while partners plug in their own ML models via ONNX and similar runtimes. This gives machine builders a path toward AI-assisted engineering, automated parameter optimization and natural-language interaction with production assets without turning the control platform itself into a monolithic AI product in the market.
The laser cell shown at the Advantech booth combines a JavaScript-based HMI, a robotics interface, websockets and the C++ control logic into one coherent microservice architecture orchestrated by Xentara. Operators simply insert a part, select a job and let the system execute a fully synchronized cycle that includes safety interlocks, motion, laser firing and QR-code generation, while the same architecture could be reused for cutting, molding or other processes. This makes the demo a concrete example of how software-defined automation, semantic modeling and early AI integration can be layered onto existing industrial hardware to evolve machines beyond the classic PLC-centric demo.
Xentara IT-OT convergence with Benthorcube laser cell, C++ and Rust control, MCP, OPC UA, EtherCAT
Xentara SPS laser marking cell with Advantech IPC, microservices PLC replacement, OPC UA, MCP, AI
