Roadmap
One IEC 61131-3 language per version, in a fixed order and without date promises. What runs today is at the top.
One language per version
The platform – Studio, Anvil server and Tongs – numbers its versions as 0.(2+n).0: every new minor version brings one more IEC language. New buses and fixes come as patch versions 0.x.y.
-
Now
0.2 Structured Text (ST)
Editor, own compiler core and transfer to the controller. With patch 0.2.2 the ST editor is in productive use at the pilot customer SoLaWi Ackervielfalt.
in use -
Next
0.3 Ladder Diagram (LD)
The graphical language of electrical engineering. Not compiled yet.
planned -
After that
0.4 Function Block Diagram (FBD)
Wiring blocks graphically. Not compiled yet.
planned -
After that
0.5 SFC (sequential function chart)
Sequences of steps and transitions – in the standard a set of structuring elements. Not compiled yet.
planned -
No version
Instruction List (IL)
No longer part of the current standard – not coming. The reason is below.
deprecated
Connectivity, remote access, operation, migration
These areas move independently of the language versions.
| Area | What is planned | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity | Modbus TCP and RTU available. LoRaWAN is our focus. EtherCAT, PROFIBUS and EtherNet/IP are in progress; new buses come as patch versions. | Modbus available |
| PROFINET | In C++ against the Siemens stack. | planned |
| Rivet – remote access | Own version number (currently 0.1.0). Pilot with solidarity farms. | in development |
| Hearth – operator interface | Own version number (Hearth Studio currently 0.2.0). Runs over the internal Anvil bus. | preview |
| Migration / import | Native import of CODESYS projects (3 and 4). | planned, release open |
| Migration today | Import and export of PLCopen XML in the Studio (menu and AI tools). | available |
| Documentation in the Studio | Today: documentation as Markdown inside the project, editable on variables and data types. Planned: an editing field for POU and project documentation, a working documentation view with export, the Mermaid view in the Studio fed with data from the project and, optionally, a documentation coverage check by the AI assistant. | planned |
Why IL is not coming
IL (instruction list) was deprecated in IEC 61131-3 edition 3 (2013) and is no longer part of the current edition, IEC 61131-3:2025 (published May 2025). ForgeIEC does not develop it; it would also need its own translation path to assembler. Its uses are covered by Structured Text (textual) and by Ladder Diagram and Function Block Diagram (graphical), with Sequential Function Chart as structuring elements.
Sources: IEC 61131-3:2025 abstract at AFNOR · Stefan Henneken: comparison of edition 3 and edition 4 · Wikipedia: IEC 61131-3
Questions about the order, or about a bus you need? Write to blacksmith@forgeiec.io.