How to set up your PC to communicate with robot

Overview

This section describes how to connect your PC to the robot controller.

You can either connect the PC to the controller through an Ethernet network or directly to the controller service port. When using the controller service port, you can either obtain an IP address for the PC automatically, or you can specify a fixed IP address.

When the PC and the controller are connected correctly, the controller is automatically detected by RobotStudio.

Note

A PC SDK application requires RobotStudio or ABB Robot Communications Runtime to connect to a controller in run-time. The latter is included in the RobotStudio installation.

Why is a connection needed?

Connecting the PC to the controller is necessary for all online tasks performed in RobotStudio. For example, downloading a robot system or files to the controller, editing configuration files, programming and so on.

It is necessary for executing PC applications targeting a real robot controller.

It also enables you to communicate with the controller by means of a console window on the PC and get valuable information about controller status, FlexPendant memory consumption and so on.

Ethernet network connection

If the controller is connected to an Ethernet network, you can connect the PC to that network as well. The settings to use on the PC depends on the network configuration. To find out how to set up your PC, contact the network administrator.

Service port connection with automatic IP address

An alternative to network connection is using the controller service port. It has a DHCP server that automatically gives your PC an IP address if it is configured for this. For more information about configuring the PC to obtain an IP address automatically, see Windows Help on Configure TCP/IP settings.

Note

Obtaining an IP address automatically might fail if the PC already has an IP address from another controller or Ethernet device. To make sure that you get a correct IP address if the PC has already been connected to an Ethernet device, do one of the following:

  • Restart the PC before connecting to the controller.
  • Run the command ipconfig /renew from the command prompt after connecting the PC to the controller.

Service port connection with fixed IP address

Instead of obtaining an IP address automatically, you can specify a fixed IP address on the PC you connect to the controller.

Use the following settings for connecting with a fixed IP address:

Property Value
IP address 192.168.125.2
Subnet mask 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway 192.168.125.1
For information about See
How to set up PC network connections Windows Help - Configure TCP/IP settings.
How to connect the PC to the Controller service port Connecting a PC to the Service Port in the RobotStudio help.