Bosch Rexroth has selected Ubuntu Core for its app-based platform ctrlX AUTOMATION, Canonical announced today. Developers can now create apps, delivered as snaps, in the programming language of their choice, including C, C++, Python, Javascript or Go.

Traditionally, developers were restricted to specialist programming languages like IEC 61131, or G-Code in an industrial setting. With Ubuntu Core and snaps, developers using the ctrlX AUTOMATION platform have the freedom to use either conventional programming languages or modern alternatives.

ctrlX AUTOMATION is said to leverage Ubuntu Core, designed for embedded devices, and snaps, the universal Linux application containers, to deliver an open source platform to remove the barriers between machine control, IT and OT.

Industrial manufacturing solutions built on ctrlX AUTOMATION with Ubuntu Core and snaps will benefit from an open ecosystem, faster time to production and stronger security across devices’ lifecycle.

With Ubuntu Core and snaps, the ctrlX AUTOMATION platform enables developers to use a modern CI/CD and DevSecOps approach to deliver applications on edge devices in a traditional OT environment.

Ubuntu Core enhances security with strict application confinement. ctrlX AUTOMATION apps run with all dependencies in their snaps for increased isolation.