Patent attributes
A control device for operating a machine has a control unit with at least one actuating unit to which actuators and sensors are connected for operating the machine. The control unit has a bus line for transmitting control commands from an operating part to the actuating device. A plug connection between the operating part and the control unit is provided. A monitoring unit monitors an operating signal of the operating part. The monitoring unit triggers a safety function when the operating signal that is a heartbeat of the operating part is absent. Operating states of the operating part are monitored by the monitoring unit. An output signal of the monitoring unit is evaluated in that, when the operating part is switched on, the heartbeat is processed and, when the operating part is switched off, the absence of the heartbeat is ignored.
