Control Seat FR202 Setup

The Control Seat FR202 is a fanless industrial controller based on the OnLogic Factor 202. It can run Virtual PLC applications, connect physical digital I/O to ordinary Control Seat tags, and collect data from devices such as Modbus sensors.

Choose Your Setup Path

Control Seat-supplied FR202

Systems supplied by Control Seat are prepared with the supported operating system, current digital-I/O firmware, the Control Seat runtime, and the FR202 hardware profile. Customer credentials are never stored in the factory image.

To connect one:

Open PLC → Runtimes in Control Seat.
Select Enroll a runtime, then choose Control Seat FR202.
Run the generated setup command on the FR202.
Paste the one-time secret when prompted.
Wait for the runtime to appear Online.

The setup command installs or verifies the runtime, waits for Ubuntu package updates when necessary, configures device permissions, and starts the managed services. You should not need to edit system files or run separate installation commands.

Bring your own FR202

An existing FR202 can use the same enrollment command, but verify these prerequisites first:

Requirement	Supported configuration
Operating system	OnLogic Ubuntu Server 22.04 64-bit for the FR200 series
OnLogic configuration	The matching `config.txt` and `usercfg.txt` supplied by OnLogic
Digital-I/O firmware	Version 1.3.1.0 or newer
Network	Outbound access to your Control Seat cloud or a route to your on-premises gateway

OnLogic explains the supported images, configuration files, serial modes, and FR202 firmware in its Factor Series technical resources.

Digital Inputs and Outputs

When the Control Seat FR202 hardware profile is active, the runtime discovers the internal controller and provisions:

16 digital-input tags: DI0 through DI15
16 writable digital-output tags: DO0 through DO15

These are normal Control Seat tags. You can rename them, move them into your own folders, use them in dashboards and flows, and bind them directly to PLC variables. Their hardware identity remains attached when their name or folder changes.

The FR202 uses sinking digital outputs. With conventional wiring, connect the load between the positive supply and the output terminal:

V+ → load → DO terminal → internal switch → ground

In this arrangement, writing true energizes the load and writing false de-energizes it. Do not invert the software value to compensate for a test circuit wired in the opposite direction.

Disconnect power before changing field wiring. Confirm voltage, current, protection, and fail-safe behavior for the connected load before using an output in production.

Connect a Modbus RTU Device

The five-pin COM terminal can operate as RS-232, RS-422, or RS-485. Its electrical mode is stored in the OnLogic serial bridge and is separate from the Control Seat runtime.

Before using Modbus RTU, configure the COM port for RS-485 using OnLogic's documented FR200 EEPROM procedure, then reboot the controller. A Control Seat-supplied system can be ordered with this preparation completed.

For two-wire RS-485 on the five-pin COM terminal:

COM pin	Signal
1	Ground/reference
2	TX/RX−
4	TX/RX+

Device labels such as A and B are not consistent between manufacturers. Match the device's documented positive and negative signals to TX/RX+ and TX/RX−; if it does not respond, verify polarity before changing software settings. Use a common signal reference when required by the device, and follow its termination and biasing guidance.

To create the connection in Control Seat:

Open PLC → Runtimes and select the FR202.
Open I/O & connections and select New connection.
Choose Modbus RTU.
Select the discovered OnLogic FR200 Serial Bridge. Control Seat stores its stable device identity, so you do not need to type a /dev/ttyUSB… path.
Enter the device's baud rate, parity, unit ID, function code, register address, data type, and polling interval.
Select an existing tag or create a new one, review the mapping, and connect it.

For the common defaults, start with 9600 baud, no parity, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit, and unit ID 1, then use the register map supplied with the device. Register addresses in Control Seat are zero-based.

Firmware and Power Recovery

Control Seat checks the digital-I/O firmware before allowing hardware reads or writes. If the controller reports a version older than 1.3.1.0, update it with OnLogic's ZMU firmware procedure, then shut down the FR202 and remove all power for at least ten seconds before restarting it.

A complete power removal may also be required if the digital-I/O controller stops responding after a firmware or low-level diagnostic operation. Restarting Linux alone does not remove power from the controller.

Troubleshooting

Message or symptom	What to check
Runtime stays offline	Confirm the setup command completed, the FR202 can reach Control Seat, and the selected hardware profile is Control Seat FR202.
Ubuntu is waiting for the package manager	Leave setup running. It waits for first-boot updates before continuing.
Digital-I/O firmware is unsupported	Update to firmware 1.3.1.0 or newer, then fully remove power for ten seconds.
Digital tags report permission denied	Re-run Reconnect runtime setup so the signed installer can repair the device permissions. Do not use broad `chmod` permissions.
Byte-mode confirmation times out repeatedly	Shut down and fully remove FR202 power for at least ten seconds.
Modbus serial port is missing	Confirm the COM bridge is enabled, reboot after selecting its serial mode, then reopen the connection form.
Modbus requests time out	Verify RS-485 mode, `+`/`−` polarity, signal reference, baud/parity, unit ID, function code, and register address.

Current Hardware Coverage

The managed FR202 profile currently exposes the 16 digital inputs and 16 digital outputs. The four analog inputs and two RTD inputs are not yet provisioned as managed Control Seat runtime tags. Use a supported external I/O module when those channels are required today.