PoKeys I/O controller devices

IO (input/output) controller is piece of hardware, module that manages the input or output signals of a microcontroller or embedded system. It takes care of interaction with external devices like sensors, actuators, switches, motors or other peripherals.

The device can be used as standalone controller with software running directly in the microcontroller of the device (we have PoBlocks for that) or it can be connected to the PC that can control the device and its IO functionality directly.

Our PoKeys devices are intended for controlling digital or analog inputs/outputs. As standalone, they can be programmed with our free PoBlocks software that quickly enables you to bring even the most complicated projects to life. It is graphical programming software that enables you to make complex programs and logic that you can upload to PoKeys device with one click. The program then runs standalone on our device.

We offer Ethernet and USB connectivity on our PoKeys devices for wide range of applications. Our devices also support CAN, Modbus, TCP/IP and other advanced industry standard communication protocols. They also support I2C, SPI, encoder, PWM, analog and other peripheral devices and sensors for easy integration and interaction.

For CNC control and operation we developed special io controller that enables easier connectivity for CNC specific peripheral devices such as stepper/servo motors, end switches, spindle, encoder, etc. The PoKeys57CNC is derivative of PoKeys57 device with CNC specific connectivity but any other PoKeys57 device (U/E) can also be used for CNC control.

FAQ – frequently asked questions

PoKeys57 family consist of the -U device, which uses USB interface. PoKeys57E uses ethernet interface

There is PoKeys software available for free for all PoKeys devices to test functionality and to set up the device and configure it. You can access all the peripheral options from basic I/O functionality for each pin to more advanced options such as encoders, timers, i2c sensors, pulse generator and a lot more. You can also access the Pulse engine that allows you to control and test your motors and set up all the motion control signals and speeds and accelerations etc.

PoKeys devices also enable you to program it like PLC controller with free PoBlocks – a graphical programming tool for PoKeys devices. It features an intuitive and clean interface and enables the user to quickly and easily design, deploy and debug a program that gets transferred and executed by the PoKeys device itself. PoKeys device can then be used as standalone device with support for PoKeys basic and extended I/O interfaces support, timers, counters, configurable clock sources, algebra, memory, logic and non-linear operations, time schedule, event drums, even PID and on/off controllers, etc.

For CNC control we partneres with Mach3/Mach4 team and we developed plugin for both Mach3 and Mach4. That way PoKeys devices are fully supported in Mach software which enables users to fully customize their CNC machines. When using PoKeys with Mach it is essential to only use plugin for configuration since everything is configured with plugin in Mach.

We are constantly adding features in our plugins for Mach3 and Mach4 for plasma control, laser cutters, drag knife, etc. and we are open for all the suggestions what we should incorporate in our plugin.