Modern non-residential buildings place many high demands on building automation. These range from energy-efficient and sustainable building operation, and comprehensive energy management, through to the charging infrastructure for electromobility and fulfilling new legal requirements for recording energy and consumption data. This can be optimally implemented with EtherCAT-based control technology from Beckhoff, which provides an efficient central automation architecture thanks to ultra-fast data communication. In addition, a wide variety of network topologies can be implemented based on the client’s needs, and all established sub-bus systems can also be integrated into the topology with a high degree of flexibility.
EtherCAT celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2023, confirming its success as a high-performance real-time Ethernet system and open IEC standard for a diverse range of applications. These include a wide range of functions in industrial and functional buildings, such as air-conditioning, lighting and shading, technical control centres for supply systems, event technology, and measurement technology in energy distribution systems. Fast, consistent and reliable data acquisition is becoming increasingly important. Legislation now requires energy and consumption data for non-residential buildings to be recorded, which can only be achieved efficiently and cost-effectively with high-performance communication technology.
Specifications can be optimally implemented with the EtherCAT-based central automation philosophy. This is based on centralised control technology. This means that the control is distributed to one or more industrial PCs as required. This technology is supplied with the required data via decentralised I/Os and fast EtherCAT communication. A cost-optimised structure can thus be set up with as few controllers as possible, which can then operate the required number of I/O components as an alternative to the more complex conventional approaches, which generally have many controllers which only operate a few I/Os each. This central philosophy is supported by the openness of the EtherCAT-based system solution. EtherCAT provides a technological foundation for integrating all building automation fieldbus systems, and thus avoiding the subsystem bottleneck that often occurs with conventional data transmission. BACnet/IP, BACnet-MS/TP, DALI, DMX, EnOcean, KNX/EIB, Modbus, M-Bus, MP-Bus and SMI, for example, can be seamlessly integrated via the relevant EtherCAT terminals and bus terminals.
EtherCAT interoperability removes industrial networking barriers
Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
Selecting the right communication technology is one of the most important decisions engineers make, and interoperability helps with that decision. Key development tools and standards ensure interoperability among many EtherCAT devices and manufacturers.
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Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
Anyone who wants to efficiently monitor the climate in control cabinets will find a comprehensive range of control cabinet monitors for the DIN rail in Turck Banner’s cabinet condition monitoring family.
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Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
In December 2023, KROHNE made Ethernet-APL demo devices available to selected customers. This step marks an important milestone in the company’s own Ethernet APL development project for various sensor types. Ethernet-APL technology is a revolution in the process industry.
Read more...Standardising information in process automation applications
Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
The co-owners of the Process Automation Device Information Model have released the PA-DIM Version 1.1 specification. This release, a testament to collective efforts, includes expanded device-type support for process analysers, and an enhanced basic hierarchy structure with new extensions, benefiting the industrial user and vendor manufacturing community.
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Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
A leading global manufacturer of industrial machinery wanted to aggregate multiple applications into its CNC machines. Due to the use of different proprietary networks, integrating the networks and maintaining the components required substantial effort.
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Editor's Choice
Control systems are subject to very specific demands from every form of production technology, including waterjet cutting. IGEMS from Sweden set itself the goal of taking this process to a new level in terms of precision and speed, and achieved it with the help of PC-based control.
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Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
A leading global machine manufacturer in the food and beverage industry has put its automation concept, based on parallel wiring, to the test with the aim of achieving higher efficiency, lower costs, more flexibility, and standardisation. All requirements can be successfully implemented with IO-Link solutions from ifm.
Read more...Flexible EtherCAT communication interface for DALI-2 Beckhoff Automation
Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
The EL6821 EtherCAT Terminal from Beckhoff allows up to 64 DALI/DALI-2 slaves and 64 DALI-2 input devices to be connected. The TwinCAT 3 System Manager makes it easy to configure and parameterise DALI devices flexibly.
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Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
When it comes to managed switches, industrial-grade reliability, multicast availability and security enhancements based on the IEC 62433 standards are crucial features. There are a number of vertical markets where these switches can be used.
Read more...Plastics meets packaging for consistent and efficient process control Beckhoff Automation
Editor's Choice
PC- based and EtherCAT-based control and drive technology from Beckhoff represent a universal solution that transcends industry and application boundaries. This standardised and scalable automation platform offers numerous advantages. Industry experts delve into how machine builders and end users in the plastics and packaging industry can capitalise on these advantages.
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