Isn’t RS-485/modbus dead or old fashioned in the age of Ethernet and other advanced protocols?
Hardly. It isn’t the newest thing on the block. Or the fastest. However, literally hundreds of thousands of process control applications use RS-485 every day for SCADA applications. Lots of devices such as programmable logic controllers (PLCs), single loop controllers (SLCs), temperature and process controllers, transmitters, transducers, and control valve positioners speak RS-485 out of the box. It is a very well-known, well-understood and robust communications protocol that has been around and will continue to be around for some time. You may or may not build something from the ground up using it, but for existing RS-485 processes, it can be a lifesaver.
