Q4 • 2011

Heart of the Network

Microprocessors

and Software Are the

Underlying Technologies

Driving Advances in

Industrial Networking.

Here’s How You Benefit

From the Evolution

p19 Network Overhaul p22 Ins & Outs of Modular I/O p26 Redundancy? Again?

IN11Q4_01_Cover.indd 16 10/27/11 12:19 PM

Our STRIDE family of industrial grade unmanaged Ethernet switches and media converter is specifically built for industrialenvironments. Install Stride switches and your Ethernet control network will maintain more consistent cycle times evenunder heavy I/O and data exchange. The aluminum-housed models offer a wider operating temperature range(-40 to +85 deg. C).

Product Description STRIDE PLASTIC MODELSPrice/Part Number

CHECK OUT PRICES ON ETHERNET SWITCHES

AutomationDirect prices are U.S. published prices as of October 2011. Prices subject to change without notice.

5-port Ethernet switch with five 10/100BaseTRJ45 Ethernet ports

8-port Ethernet switch with eight 10/100BaseTRJ45 Ethernet ports

Ethernet-Fiber converter with one 10/100BaseT RJ45Ethernet port and one 100BaseFX fiber optic port

5-port Ethernet switch with four 10/100BaseT RJ45Ethernet ports and one 100BaseFX fiber optic port

$ 99.00SE-SW5U

9-port Ethernet switch with eight 10/100BaseT RJ45Ethernet ports and one 100BaseFX fiber optic port

AutomationDirectSTRIDE METAL MODELSPrice/Part Number$ 199.00

SE-SW5U-WT

$ 172.00SE-SW8U

$ 259.00SE-SW8U-WT

$ 172.00SE-SW5U-ST

$ 259.00SE-SW5U-ST-WT

$ 242.00SE-SW9U-ST

$ 399.00SE-SW9U-ST-WT

$ 162.00SE-MC2U-ST

Advanced Industrial Hardware• All 10/100BaseT RJ45 ports are auto-detecting, auto-crossover

and auto-polarity• Redundant power inputs with surge and spike protection• Optional 100Mbps multimode fiber optic port for distances

up to 4km• NEW! SC (push-pull type) fiber optic connector models, in

addition to ST (slotted bayonet) style versions

Real-time Performace• Store and forward wire speed switching - no delays• Full-duplex operation with flow control (no collisions!)• Auto crossover (MDI/MDIX) and auto polarity

True Industrial Design• Ethernet Isolation -1500 VRMS 1 minute• Spike protection - 5,000 watts (10x for 10 uS)• UL (CUL) listed and CE certified• Hazardous locations rated for Class 1, Div. 2

www.automationdirect.com

1-800-633-0405

Go online or call to get complete information,request your free catalog, or place an order.

www.automationdirect.com/ethernet

Shielded Cat5e cablesstarting at: $5.00

Also Available

1111-IndustrialNetworking-Communications-MAG:Communications 10/12/2011 4:10 PM Page 1

IN11Q3_FPA.indd 2 10/27/11 12:15 PM

Where Do I Go for Wireless Transmitter Products?

Your single source for process measurement and control products!

© COPYRIGHT 2011 OMEGA ENGINEERING, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

omega.com, of Course!

For Complete Product Details Visit omega.com/wirelessDilbert © United Feature Syndicate, Inc.

Visit omega.comto order your FREE copy of DilbertTM CONTROLCATTM New Horizons®

in Temperature, Pressure, Flow and More! Version No. 28 Featuring 105 DILBERT Cartoons!

FREE!

For Sales and Service, Call TOLL FREE

Because of transmission frequency regulations, these wirelessproducts may only be used in the United States and Canada(915 mHz models) or Europe (868 mHz models).

Alarms by Email or Text Message

*PATENT PENDING

Economical Solution for Facilities with Existing Wi-Fi Networks to Measure Temperature, Humidity and Barometric Pressure

Wi-Fi Wireless Sensor System802.11b/g Wireless Ethernet

wSeriesStarts at

$195

Visitomega.com/wseries

DIN Rail Monitorand Controller

wiDRSeries

$395All Models

Visit omega.com/widr_series

Visit omega.com/ithx-sd

iTHX Series Starts at

$395

Temperature andHumidity VirtualChart Recorder

High Power Transmitters Ethernet or Internet Connection

zED-P Series Starts at

$195

Visit omega.com/zed-p_series

Wireless RelativeHumidity/TemperatureTransmitters

UWRH-2 Starts at

$165

wi8 Series Starts at

$395

Meter/Scanner and ControllerTemperature-to-Wireless Connector/Converter SystemThe Smart ConnectorTM

*UWTC SeriesStarts at $125

Visit omega.com/uwtcomega.com/video Visit omega.com/wi8_series Visit omega.com/uwrh-2

INW_1111_Control Design 10/19/11 11:36 AM Page 1

IN11Q3_FPA.indd 3 10/27/11 12:15 PM

500Over

Switchesfor Edge-to-coreSolutions

IN11Q3_FPA.indd 4 10/27/11 12:15 PM

C O N T E N T S

Machine User Becomes Its Own RebuilderParts Manufacturer Rebuilds Its Machining Centers, Tying Them Together With a CC-Link Network to Simplify Design

BY JIM MONTAGUE, EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Healthy Wireless Networking OutlookThe Trend Continues. Users Demonstrate More Con dence to Embrace an Industrial Wireless Solution

7 FIRST BIT Do You See You?

8 PACKETS Duqu: Is It the Next Stuxnet?

22 PARITY CHECK Modular I/O Distributes the Data

26 BUS STOP Redundancy Is Redundant, Again

COLUMNS & DEPARTMENTS

COVER STORY

19

INDUSTRIAL NETWORKING is published four times annually to select subscribers of CONTROL and CONTROL DESIGN magazines by PUTMAN MEDIA INC. (also publishers of CHEMICAL PROCESSING, FOOD PROCESSING, PHARMACEUTICAL MANUFACTURING and PLANT SERVICES), 555 W. Pierce Road, Suite 301, Itasca, IL. (Phone: 630/467-1300; Fax: 630/467-1124) Address all correspondence to Editorial and Executive O ces, same address. ©Putman Media 2011. All rights reserved. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced in whole or part without consent of the copyright owner. INDUSTRIAL NETWORKING assumes no responsibility for validity of claims in items reported. Single copies $15.

I M P L E M E N T 1 9

R E S E A R C H 2 3

52011 • Q 4 • INDUSTRIAL NETWORKING

For additional information, please contact Foster Printing Service, the official reprint provider for Industrial Networking.

PMS 370 C

C: 60M: 0Y: 100K: 28

Call 866.879.9144 or sales@fosterprinting.com

RepRints aRe ideal foR:

n New Product Announcements

n Sales Aid For Your Field Force

n PR Materials & Media Kits

n Direct Mail Enclosures

n Customer & Prospect Communications/Presentations

n Trade Shows/Promotional Events

n Conferences & Speaking Engagements

n Recruitment & Training Packages

Use reprints to maximize

your marketing initiatives and

strengthen your brand’s value.

Reprints are a simple way to put information directly into the hands of

your target audience. Having been featured in a well-respected publication

adds the credibility of a third-party endorsement to your message.

Custom REPRINts

Heart of the Network

Microprocessors and Software Are the Underlying Technologies Driving

Advances in Industrial Networking

BY JIM MONTAGUE,EXECUTIVE EDITOR

D E S I G N 1 2

IN11Q4_05_TOC.indd 5 10/27/11 4:05 PM

All the Networks You’ll Ever Need.

One Chip. One Company.

Only netX Is the Single Source for All Your Network Connectivity Chips and Stacks.Hilscher’s netX gives you over ten times the connectivity of other network controllers in

a single “System on Chip” platform. Only netX eliminates integration hassles through an

elegant fl exible solution that covers everything from serial buses to Fieldbus to Ethernet.

So stop worrying about using chips from multiple sources. Start realizing the connectivity,

reliability and effi ciency of a single chip solution from one reliable vendor.

Find out how Hilscher’s netX can be your single network connectivity solution. Visit our website at www.hilscher.com/usa or call 1.630.505.5301.

©2011 Hi lscher North America, Inc. Al l trademarks are the propert ies of their respective companies.

netX Single Chip Solutions

ONE platform for all networks

1 Vendor supports 14 protocols

Over 200 products using netX & protocol stacks

Master/Slave for all networks

All stacks from Hilscher

Other Multi-Chip Controllers

Multiple platforms are protocol dependent

Need 5 vendors to support 6 protocols

Up to 3 separate vendors for 1 protocol implementation

Master/Slave is protocol & platform dependent

3rd party stacks owned by multiple vendors in several countries

IN11Q3_FPA.indd 6 10/27/11 12:15 PM

72011 • Q4 • IndustrIal networkIng

It’s our job to try to get to know our Industrial Networking audience well enough to construct kind of a basic profile of your preferences and practices when you design and/or use networks.

one tool we employ to do that is a regular program of usage studies in which many of you participate.

The lead-in to this issue’s product research

on wireless components (p23) presents a few snapshots of data from one of this year’s studies. Let’s give you a bit more from that study.

of those 61% of the survey respondents who currently have wireless or have plans to deploy wireless in the next 12 months, the most common applications for it were monitoring (64%), control (30%) and alerts/alarms (6%). those results make some sense as we also find that a near majority (43%) only needed their wireless to handle a cycle time of 1 s or more, while 22% indicated 100-499 ms. that’s not a significant change from the 2009 findings.

our study respondents need their wireless to talk with ethernet/ethernet variants (61%), Modbus (13%), Profibus (9%) and Foundation fieldbus (6%).

Finally, 18% of respondents indicated their biggest concern/need for wireless connectivity is security. Although that’s a comparatively small percentage, those results are basically unchanged from two years ago. I’d have thought there would be an upswing in those respondents who had become more convinced of the reliability of wireless. Maybe next year.

During 2011, we studied your industrial ethernet inclinations as well. Here are a few key findings from that study.

the most common connectivity applications noted for using industrial ethernet—and we asked participants to note as many as applied—were HMI to controller (78%), controller to controller (66%), overall machine control (58%), and electronic drives and maintenance/diagnostics, both of which attracted 43% of the study participants.

The most common nominal data rate and medium required by fully half of these industrial ethernet specifiers was 100 Mbps over Cat. 6 copper. That was followed by 20% running 10

Mbps over Cat. 5 copper, and 15% at 100 Mbps over fiberoptic cable.

we learned from 85% of the responders that PLCs top the list of industrial ethernet-enabled equipment planned for installation in the next 18 months or so. HMI (79%) and remote I/o (55%) round out the top three for planned purchases of ethernet-enabled equipment.

when we asked about the benefits

derived from using industrial ethernet, both interoperability and open standards were factors noted by two-thirds of the respondents, while about half noted ethernet’s low cost and uniformity, and more than 40% liked it’s web-based data-access capabilities.

At the other end of the spectrum, we asked about the factors that most limited their use of industrial ethernet. nearly half noted the hindrances caused by legacy equipment, and 31% mentioned security concerns.

when we asked how much the study participants spent annually on industrial ethernet components and systems, 22% indicated $50,000-$99,999, 21% spent $10,000-$24,999, 20% spent $250,000 and above (that’s up from 11% in 2010), and 18% indicated $25,000-$29,999.

we’re also trying to tap into an understanding of the insistent—some would say annoying—industry buzz that says It groups are gaining more responsibility for ethernet on the factory floor and in the plant.

not so much, said this year’s study group. At 79% of respondents’ plants, control engineers maintain the primary responsibility for industrial ethernet projects. At a mere 3% of facilities it is the It department’s responsibility, and at 18% of facilities, the responsibility is said to be shared by control engineers and It.

we know that results can shift from year to year simply from demographic variety in the sample, so watching these results trend out over a few more years will be important for us.

so, what do you think? Does this sound like you? If, for the most part, you think it does, we’ll pat ourselves on the back. If not, for goodness sake, tell us. we want our results to mirror the high accuracy and reliability that you expect from the systems you design and use.

do You see You?We’re also trying

to tap into an

understanding

of the insistent—

some Would say

annoying—industry

buzz that says it

groups are gaining

more responsibility

for ethernet on the

factory floor and in

the plant.

Joe Feeleyeditor in chief

jfeeley@putman.net

F i r s t b i t

IN11Q4_07_FirstBit.indd 7 10/27/11 4:06 PM

8 INDUSTRIAL NETWORKING • Q4 • 2011

Duqu: Is It the Next Stuxnet?THE STUXNET VIRUS HAS RECEIVED A GREAT deal of attention over the past few years because it brought into reality what had previously been considered on a hypothetical basis: a sophisticated cyber attack on a critical infrastructure. ough we have debated the level of hype surrounding the Stuxnet virus, considering that it specifi cally targeted Iran’s nuclear program, industry experts have warned that this particular malware was just the beginning, and industrial networks need to be prepared for similar attacks. Now another piece of malware has been found operating in systems in Europe.

Symantec (www.symantec.com), receiving the news from a research lab in mid-October, confi rmed that the new threat—called Duqu because it creates fi les with the fi le name prefi x “~DQ”—is a precursor to another Stuxnet-like attack. Duqu appears to have been created since the last Stuxnet fi le was recovered, according to Symantec, and its structure and design philosophy are very similar to Stuxnet. Parts of Duqu’s source code are nearly identical to Stuxnet. Whether that means Duqu was created by the same group that created Stuxnet or by somebody who gained access to the Stuxnet code is unknown, but regardless the new virus appears to have a diff erent purpose.

“Duqu’s purpose is to gather intelligence data and assets from entities, such as industrial control system manufacturers, in order to more easily conduct a future attack against another third party,” Eric Chien wrote in Symantec’s offi cial blog. “ e attackers are looking for information such as

design documents that could help them mount a future attack on an industrial control facility.”

Unlike Stuxnet, Duqu does not contain any code related to industrial control systems, according to Symantec, which reported that Duqu is primarily a remote access Trojan (RAT) and does not self-replicate. “Our telemetry shows the threat was highly targeted toward a limited number of organizations for their specifi c assets,” Chien wrote. “However, it’s possible that other attacks are being conducted against other organizations in a similar manner with currently undetected variants.”

Duqu executables were designed to capture information such as keystrokes and system information, Symantec said. e attackers were searching for assets that could be used in a future attack. Although it would appear that they did not retrieve any sensitive data, details are not available in all cases. Two variants were recovered. e fi rst recording of one of the binaries was Sept. 1, 2011. “However, based on fi le compile times, attacks using these variants may have been conducted as early as December 2010,” Chien explained.

Duqu has been less widespread than Stuxnet, and was designed to eliminate itself after 36 days of running in a system. e threat uses a custom command-and-control protocol, Symantec said, primarily downloading or uploading what appear to be jpeg fi les. It then also transfers additional data for exfi ltration.

Although Stuxnet was designed to sabotage an industrial control system, Duqu is geared toward general remote access capabilities. “ e

DON’T FORGET PROFINETIn “Old Machines, New Data” (www.IndustrialNetworking.net/legacy), Dan Hebert didn’t mention the only industrial Ethernet that makes connecting to legacy networks part of the speci cation: Pro net.

We have specs for proxies from Pro net to Pro bus-DP, Pro bus-PA, FF, DeviceNet, CANopen, and more.

To protect the users’ investment in Pro bus, Pro net uses an ingenious method to integrate the world’s most popular eldbus: a proxy. Similar to a gateway in that it connects disparate protocols, it di ers because the proxy is speci ed in the Pro net spec. This technique worked so well for the largest installed eldbus base, Pro bus, that the No. 2 eldbus, Interbus, decided to use Pro net instead of developing its own industrial Ethernet. The technique worked so well that the organization supporting Pro net also speci ed proxies for DeviceNet and many other legacy buses.

Carl Henning, deputy director,PI North America,

www.us.pro bus.com

Fieldbus Foundation (www. eldbus.org) released H1 Interoperability Test Kit 6.0.1, which tests functionality of an H1 eldbus device and conformity with Foundation speci cations. It addresses bug xes to the NI-FBUS Communication Manager (4.0.1) software and H1 device test cases.

PA C K E T S

Re ections

Bits & Bytes

Interoperability Open standards Low cost Uniformity Web-enabled data access

Leverages corporate IT infrastructure

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

WHAT BENEFITS OF INDUSTRIAL ETHERNET INTEREST YOU MOST?

MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT, INDUSTRIAL ETHERNET, AUGUST ‘11

IN11Q4_08_10_Packets.indd 8 10/27/11 4:07 PM

THE MOST DISTRIBUTED I/O SOLUTIONS.

Modular and block distributed I/O products for every fi eldbus protocol. From terminal wired in-cabinet I/O, to our innovative on-machine distributed I/O, TURCK’s eld-proven solutions o er connectorized versatility and protection up to IP69K. Con gure your system just the way you need with up to 72 I/O cards per node yielding nearly unlimited combinations of digital, analog, temperature, specialty, and RFID I/O points across Ethernet, PROFIBUS®, DeviceNet™, and CANOpen networks. Elevate device-level I/O to Ethernet. Digital, analog, temperature, specialty I/O – even integrated RFID can be delivered with plug-in simplicity. With TURCK distributed I/O products, now it’s easy to make some major points.

In stock with immediate availability.

1-800-544-7769 www.turck.us

SENSORS | NET WORKS/FIELDBUS | RFID | CONNECTIVITY | INTRINSIC SAFETY ©2011 TURCK, I nc.

Modular and block distributed I/O products for every fi eldbus protocol. Modular and block distributed I/O products for every fi eldbus protocol.

Temperature Counter EncoderRFID

Analog I/O

Digital I/O

Elevate device-level I/O to Ethernet

Easily integrate a modular RFID system

IP20, IP67 and IP68/69K I/O solutions

IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.IT it.

ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.ID it.

IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.IP it.

TUN-466B Distributed IO Ad_44-1111-04-ControlDesign.indd 1 10/4/11 4:15 PMIN11Q3_FPA.indd 9 10/27/11 12:16 PM

attackers intend to use this capability to gather intelligence from a private entity to aid future attacks on a third party,” Chien wrote. “While suspected, no similar precursor fi les have been recovered that predate the Stuxnet attacks.”

Symantec said it was alerted to the Stuxnet-like sample by “a research lab with

strong international connections.” Although the organization provided a detailed report, it has remained anonymous. “As we are in academia, we have limited resources to analyze malware behavior,” the original researchers commented in their report. “ at means we leave several questions for further investigation.”

Five Automation Foundations Form CooperativeFDT Group, Fieldbus Foundation, Hart Communication Foundation, Profi bus & Profi net Int’l and OPC Foundation agreed to form a joint company to manage eff orts on a single, common solution for fi eld device integration (FDI). e new company, called FDI Cooperation, was made formal at a signing in Karlsruhe, Germany, in September.

e company’s board of managers is made up of representatives from each organization, as well as managers of global automation suppliers, including ABB, Emerson, Endress+Hauser, Honeywell, Invensys, Siemens and Yokogawa. Hans-Georg Kumpfmüller, president of Siemens Process Automation, will serve as chairman of the board; and Achim Laubenstein of ABB Automation has been nominated as executive director.

e fi ve organizations initially approved the FDI project in March 2007, aimed at harmonizing the FDT and EDDL device integration technologies. e purpose of the FDI Cooperation is to complete the standardization of FDI under the International Electrical Commission (IEC); manage the FDI specifi cation; and fi nalize the FDI toolkits for system and device manufacturers.

Belden Locks In Byres SecurityBelden (www.belden.com), which provides signal transmission solutions, acquired Byres Security (BSI, www.tofi nosecurity.com) as part of its eff orts to protect industrial automation systems from cyber attack. Byres will become an independent business unit of Belden.

Belden has been using BSI’s Tofi no Security technology in its Eagle line of security products, and BSI uses Belden’s Hirschmann hardware in many of its Tofi no Security products. Bringing the two companies together, management aims to achieve market leadership in both industrial networking and industrial security.

PA C K E T S

www.anybus.com 1-888-826-9287

The next generationAnybus Communicator and X-gateway!

Anybus® communication gateways - your best choice for integration between any fieldbus and

industrial Ethernet network!

Communicator and X-gateway - proven and trusted!Industrial Ethernet connectivity to all major networksReliable and easy to useRugged and versatileLimitless connectivity

ONE GATEWAY FAMILY FOR ALL YOUR INDUSTRIAL NETWORKING NEEDS

IN ALL INDUSTRIES

Industrial networking made easy!™

IN11Q4_08_10_Packets.indd 10 10/27/11 4:07 PM

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

IndNet-1111-ol.pdf 1 10/7/2011 2:42:27 PM

IN11Q3_FPA.indd 11 10/27/11 12:16 PM

12 IndustrIal networkIng • Q4 • 2011

What gets your blood flowing? If you’re an industrial network, then cables and wires are the arteries, electricity is the fuel, and digital data are the nerve

impulses from the enterprising brain. So, what centrally located device pushes and coordinates the

rhythms of this circulatory network and the nervous system it supports? Where’s the heart?

Similar to so many critical, taken-for-granted workhorses, it’s hiding in plain sight. The heart of any industrial network is, of course, the central processing units (CPUs) in its equipment and subsystems. These ever-faster, more powerful, less costly and more varied microprocessors perform almost infinitely more calculations, run more sophisticated software, and exchange information over networks managed by Ethernet switches and routers, which have their own onboard chips.

It’s no stretch to say that microprocessors have helped industrial connectivity to evolve over the past 25 years from hardwiring to fieldbuses to Ethernet to wireless, and onward to Internet-enabled monitoring and the recent emergence of cloud-based services and virtualized computing on fewer servers.

“When you think about it, microprocessors and software allow all parts of our networks to function,” says Corey Heckman, automation manager at Control Systems 21 (www.controlsystems21.com), a system integrator in Dillsburg, Pa. “Without them, we’d have to try to use relays, big logic panels and hardwiring. It would be a nightmare because all of our projects would be unworkable.”

Control Systems 21 implements SCADA and PC-based devices for process control systems, mostly in industrial and municipal water/wastewater systems. To bring in required signals and data, its networks transition rapidly from wired to wireless hardware and back again, and their communications methods also move from serial to wireless protocols to virtual private networks (VPNs). As a result, Control Systems 21’s often far-flung networks use serial and Ethernet radios, cellular communications, and other wireless devices.

For example, for a mid-sized city to add wastewater metering to its municipal water system, Heckman’s team is networking all of the system’s pumps, PLCs, digital video recorders (DVRs) and other components at about 25 different sites. These locations include wells with high-level monitors, inputs for water from other systems, a reservoir with booster pumps, and data-collection metering for the wastewater system. The main network is using Modbus TCP/IP with Ethernet switches, but its communications also use the Internet for

by Jim montague, executive editor

IN11Q4_12_18_cvrstory.indd 12 10/28/11 9:11 AM

132011 • Q4 • IndustrIal networkIng

remote video surveillance of stations, VPN tunneling, Phoenix Contact’s Trusted Wireless Ethernet (TWE) radios and other components. All of these devices are polled by PCs running Trihedral’s VTS SCADA/

HMI software. Data from the remote stations comes in via serial UHF licensed or 900 MHz unlicensed radios or VPN tunnels, and

an OPC server translates and coordinates this input, so the SCADA/HMI software can analyze and display it.

“I was even able to set up an app, so the city’s engineers can monitor the water/wastewater system with Android smartphones,” Heckman explains. “Of course, this web-based application

also has verification steps and security certificates to make sure that access is secure.”

Cellular communications weren’t used much on the plant floor in the past, but that’s changing

as bandwidth increases through the growth of 3G and 4G technologies, reports Rich Harwell,

connectivity manager for Eaton’s (www.eaton.com) controls and automation group. “Many web-based

applications and access to local area networks (LANs) are being enabled by cellular, and so it’s going to show up in more

machines and industrial settings, too,” he says.

How CHips EvolvE and HElpAlthough microprocessors have multiplied their capacities and speed

many times over, while shrinking in size and cost, it can be harder to understand exactly what this means for industrial networks and their users and applications. Who can really comprehend billions and trillions of calculations flashing along in a microscopic space?

Certainly, the end result and evidence is that useful tools such as Ethernet switches have been popping up, but learning more about microprocessors’ internal workings could help convince more potential users of their capabilities and reliability. One often-repeated rule of thumb is that anyone planning a typically longer-lifecycle industrial network should make sure to install enough bandwidth, maybe even Gigabit Ethernet, to handle all the traffic from IT components, mainstream electronics and other devices with shorter lifecycles.

“Microprocessors might be on the lowest layer of the network, but they have a huge influence,” says Mike Justice, president of Grid Connect (www.gridconnect.com), which manufactures networking products. “For example, when I was at Lantronix (www.lantronix.com) about 10 years ago, we introduced X-Port, which was just a simple RJ-45 connector with an Ethernet chip inside. However, it let any serial device communicate via Ethernet, and so GE used it to add multiple networks to control devices for elevators, pneumatic tubes and other applications.”

Last month, Grid Connect introduced its gridARM microprocessor architecture to enable 1 Gbps Ethernet at low cost in scales, barcode readers, I/O points, and web-based controllers. “Lots of office devices use Gigabit Ethernet, and so the factory will need it soon to be scalable for the future,” Justice adds.

While microprocessors have shrunk and speeded up and done the same for all the devices in which they’re embedded, the persistent

needs of many applications and users have also caused those chips to adapt and adopt more varied functions. For example, older-generation semiconductors and standard microprocessors were cheap and plentiful, but they didn’t have the design flexibility and functions that many device builders needed. So they gave way in many cases to application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) that were produced in lower volumes by third-party fabricators. That gave users the design-stage flexibility they needed, even though they were typically built to do just one job. More recently developed were field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), which are similar to ASICs, but can be programmed by the user for specific tasks after they’re manufactured. And, of course, even more flexibility and capacity has been added since then to FPGAs and other systems on a chip (SoCs).

“Microprocessors Might be on the

lowest layer of the network, but

they have a huge influence.”

“Because so many control and automation applications need determinism, the Ethernet-based media access controller (MAC) layer in FPGAs and other processors can be modified to add more timing blocks to achieve the determinism required,” says Jason Chiang, senior strategic and technical marketing manager at Altera (www.altera.com). “This is the beauty of FPGAs. At the physical, printed-circuit-board (PCB) level, you can use one card to run multiple fieldbus protocols, such as Profinet, EtherNet/IP or SERCOS III. So we’ve been seeing a shift to more programmable logic and industrial networking on FPGAs. We make these for customers like Rockwell Automation and Siemens, and then they add their secret sauce to the Ethernet MAC hardware and run their software stack on it.”

Altera makes microprocessors, such as its Cyclone IV SoC FPGA, and industrial networking kit (INK) for developers (Figure 1). In mid-October, it also announced a new class of SoC FPGA with a full ARM core processor on it.

“We’re likely going to see three or four times the amount of Ethernet we have now because the chips and software are fast and cheap enough to handle it, and because they can run over copper, fiber or wireless, depending on the application’s environmental needs,” says Mike Miclot, marketing vice president at Belden (www.belden.com). “This will mean more real-time control and safety integrity level (SIL) functions at the same time, SCADA combined with security and surveillance, and video streaming in a lot more applications.”

This past January, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD, www.amd.com) introduced an embedded G-Series Accelerated Processing Unit (APU), which is small and fast enough to operate at 5 W in a headless, embedded PC form factor that runs Linux and can accept high-definition video (Figure 2). It can network everything from sensors to robots via Ethernet, monitor and network plant-floor operations, effectively replace many PLCs, and even has virtualization hooks to optimize the performance of a virtual operating system or

IN11Q4_12_18_cvrstory.indd 13 10/28/11 9:11 AM

14 INDUSTRIAL NETWORKING • Q4 • 2011

“hypervisor,” according to Dave Jessell, AMD’s embedded enterprise development manager. “Software usually gets most of the limelight, but it’s the hardware standards these microprocessors are based on that provide the foundation for software developers to do industrial applications,” Jessell explains. “G-Series APU is able to calculate algorithms closer to real time, which allows it to achieve better control and effi ciency, and connect many industrial devices as thin clients to a virtual server.”

Many machine builders demand that their control and automation suppliers provide components with more-open networking, so the end users of their machines won’t be constrained by proprietary hurdles, adds Bob Ferrar, director of the intelligent systems group at Intel (www.intel.com). “As a result, some suppliers are moving from proprietary and non-standard ASICs to more open ones based on standards like IEEE 1588 and others,” he says. “Sometimes, PLCs also can’t talk to each other very well, and so they might need an FPGA with protocols loaded on it to translate between them. However, this can cause speed to become an issue, which might be acceptable for an application cycling at 500 ms, but not for a robot arm running at 50 ms.”

SIMPLIFY AND COMBINE NETWORKS Just as more sophisticated software in the background allows users to type in less code and do more point-and-click programming, more capable and widely distributed CPUs are simplifying plant-fl oor systems and networks, and making it easier to use and service them.

For instance, to coordinate the data and control needs of an expanding woodyard operation at Packaging Corp. of America (PCA, www.packagingcorp.com) in Valdosta, Ga., its two system integrators recently decided to combine two separate control systems (Figure 3). is operation includes a woodchip stacker-reclaimer from Bruks Rockwood (www.rockwoodinternational.com), which uses Allen-Bradley controls and communicates via EtherNet/IP. PCA works with system integrator Electric Machine Control (EMC, www.emcinc.biz) in Birmingham, Ala. However, the yard’s log-handling cranes, debarkers and conveying systems are supplied by Fulghum Industries (www.fulghum.com) in Wadley, Ga., which employs other controls, including PACs from Opto 22. is equipment is integrated by Advanced Control Solutions (ACS, www.advancedcontrolinc.com) in Marietta, Ga.

To interconnect the two control systems for better data throughput and coordination of operations, the two integrators decided to maintain Opto 22’s local, distributed control system, and use the Valdosta plant’s Ethernet network. e Opto PAC could talk directly to the A-B PLCs because Opto 22 recently added support for EtherNet/IP.

“Once enabled, our I/O can be added to Logix platforms, and communicate with PLCs with no programming required,” says James Davis, Opto 22’s senior application engineer. “Also, Opto 22 controllers can serve as slave devices or adapters in the Logix architecture.” Likewise, ACS’s systems engineer, Sean O’Rourke, worked with EMC to interface to the A-B PLCs via fi beroptic

D E S I G N

Motion/Motor Control Board

Cyclone V SoC FPGA

HDL Motor Control and I/O Logic

Decimation, Clark Transformation,Space Vector Modulation.

IGB-T Control, etc.

ARM/Nios II Processor

A/D I/F

Dig. Encoder

MAC PHY

A/DConverters

PWM

PowerStage

Motor

Encoder

Load(MechanicalComponents)

Industrial Ethernet

PWM

ONBOARD WITH SOC FPGAS

Figure 1: To develop Industrial Ethernet devices that best suit their system requirements, designers can use development kits such as Altera’s Cyclone IV industrial networking kit (INK), which has communication ports, memory and eldbus interfaces, as well as expansion connections for motor/motion control, video surveillance and machine vision. Many of the INK’s functions are designed for use by the company’s eld-programmable gate array (FPGA).

PWMMotor

Alte

ra

IN11Q4_12_18_cvrstory.indd 14 10/28/11 9:14 AM

... ANYONE CAN USE IT

MECHATROLINK is an open fi eld network that connects a controller with a wide variety of motion devices.

www.mechatrolink.org

JOIN THE MECHATROLINK MEMBERS’ ASSOCIATION TODAY AND START BENEFITTING FROM OUR 900-PLUS MEMBERS NETWORK.

CONTROLLER

MOTION DEVICES

MOTORS

MECHATROLINK

IN11Q3_FPA.indd 15 10/27/11 12:16 PM

connections, which provided a reliable, high-bandwidth, high-noise-immunity, long-distance physical network.

“Configuration and setup was simple,” O’Rourke says. “We only needed to define the assembly instances, assign inputs or outputs, and specify the number of bits for how long each instance was going to be.”

This configuration was then downloaded to the Opto PAC, and all that remained was to configure the A-B RSLogix software, and define communication to the PAC as a “generic Ethernet module.” The two integrators add that reconciling two disparate control systems is becoming common because end users want more networking options as they build or modify their controls.

Similarly, one of the main benefits of smaller and cheaper microprocessors is that they allow more sensing and data collection points and increasingly wireless networking and control components, which means more can be installed in more places, perform more monitoring and data acquisition, enable better decisions, and do more track-and-trace documentation, especially in pharmaceutical and food and beverage applications.

“There are far more levels of visibility possible now by the plant or the administration,” says Jeff Smith, senior engineer for global controls architecture and

manufacturing networks at American Axle & Manufacturing (AAM, www.aam.com) in Detroit. “As a result, we can zoom into the equipment in a plant in Brazil or anywhere worldwide, and see how well they’re following established metrics, or we can drill into PLCs on a machine anywhere and troubleshoot it.”

Brian Oulton, Rockwell Automation’s networks marketing director, adds, “People are learning that they don’t always need standard PCs, but can use super-lightweight client devices instead. This is one of the biggest results of everyone adopting standard unmodified Ethernet and IEEE 802.11n wireless, so they can use more commercial technologies in industrial settings. Likewise, I believe we’re also sitting on the edge of real-time data playing a much bigger role in manufacturing, and then being able to use and respond to it much closer to real time.”

On the Internet, In the ClOudWhile some credit CPUs and software with driving industrial network performance, others believe the pull of Internet Protocol (IP) is a primary enabling force. And, of course, it’s even more attractive now that the cloud and other Internet-based services have arrived.

Thestrongest

link

gotstronger.Networking for yourindustrial system should be the easy part. Partnering with GarrettCom makes it simple and rock solid. Rely on our 21 years of expertise and proven solutions that include

•Hardenedproducts•Resilientnetworking• Ethernet,serial,WAN,wireless• IntegratedPoE•Outstandingsupport

With all the things you need to worry about, your network shouldn’t be one of them.

Wireless router

(510) 438 -9071www.garrettcom.com

16 IndustrIal networkIng • Q4 • 2011

under the hood

Figure 2: the die of AMd’s embedded G-Series APu colorfully represents just the surface of an advanced microprocessor’s complexity and capabilities.

AM

D

“Because so many control and automation applications

need determinism, the ethernet-Based media access

controller (mac) layer in FpGas and other processors

can Be modiFied to add more timinG Blocks to

achieve the determinism required.”

IN11Q4_12_18_cvrstory.indd 16 10/28/11 9:17 AM

“It’s true that IP needs processing hardware, but it provides ubiquitous communications that are well-established worldwide and have many options,” says Benson Hougland, marketing vice president at Opto 22. “However, industrial networks and IP have to interact with the real world at some point, and so the PHY form interface is what works with the microprocessors at low power and in combination with firmware or software to make those communications possible. This is why we evaluate new technology, provide ASICs at the I/O level to localize processes, and distribute intelligence and computing wherever it’s most effective. In general, the combination of data processing and communications is making more devices autonomous, and so we have more mobile applications and the cloud.”

Cloud-based services could further reduce data processing costs for users, including those in industrial control and automation, Hougland adds. “Using a virtualized server somewhere and file synching software means you don’t have to build and house your own servers.”

Eaton’s Harwell adds, “We’re seeing more fully web-enabled devices at the machine level, which reflects the increased connections between machines and the continuing growth of industrial Ethernet, which is itself a result of less costly, faster and more powerful data processing. Many machine builders are wrapping their arms around this because, instead of having to add a traditional SCADA package, they simply can build a regular operator interface at the machine level, and send data via a simple Ethernet port. They even can include real-time data views, data storage, archiving and analysis function, so they don’t need a data acquisition (DAQ) unit either. ”

Virtualization is for realProbably the spookiest change caused by faster and stronger microprocessors is their ability to use leftover computing capacity to collapse and combine several former operating systems or PCs, and run them as virtual functions on one or two physical processors in servers that can be located pretty much anywhere.

“In PLCs across the board, we see previously separate functions and components collapsing down into individual devices that can run them all,” says Intel’s

d e s i g n ®

Easy Expansion with SeaLINK Ethernet Serial Servers.

Computing/HMI Serial I/O

sealevel.com > sales@sealevel.com > 864. 843.4343

© 1986-2011, Sealevel Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Learn more about SeaLINK Ethernet Serial Serversat sealevel.com/pin/sealink-e or scan this QR code with your smart phone.

SeaLINK® Ethernet serial servers offer the easiest way to

connect RS-232, RS-422, and RS-485 serial devices to your

Ethernet network. All SeaLINK devices use industry standard

TCP/IP protocol enabling any host to access serial ports as

virtual COM ports. Designed using a powerful embedded

microprocessor, SeaLINK products are able to communicate

over multiple ports at sustained data rates up to 230K bps.

SeaLINK Ethernet Serial Servers Offer:

• 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16-Port Models

• Ethernet 10/100BaseT

• Configurable as RS-232, RS-422, or RS-485

• Appears as a Virtual COM Port to Host Machine

• Supports Custom Baud Rates and 9-bit Protocol

• Sealevel SeaLINK Software for Microsoft Windows®

and Linux Operating Systems

IN11Q4_12_18_cvrstory.indd 17 10/28/11 9:17 AM

Ferrar. “For instance, a user interface can run on one virtual operating system, while some control functions can run another virtual real-time operating system (RTOS), but they’re both on the same physical core.”

To make sure virtual computing is carried out securely, Trusted Execution Technology (TET) modules are being developed and added

to Intel’s own CPU architecture to help virtual computing applications check and make sure they’re operating securely, and that no other communications are being allowed, Ferrar says.

Likewise, running virtualized computing on just one or a few servers instead of many hardware PCs can make it easier to recover from accidents and possible

security breaches. “If you don’t depend as much on physical hardware, then you can recover in a few seconds or minutes simply by reverting to a safe version of your virtual computer, rather than waiting days or weeks for hardware computers to be checked and fi xed,” says Kevin Staggs, engineering fellow for cybersecurity research at Honeywell Process Solutions (hpsweb.honeywell.com).

Besides advising process engineers to adopt IT-based security practices, some microprocessors tack on security functions, such as setting stricter requirements for executing tasks, building protection layers into their silicon, and establishing chip-level encryption and fi rewalls, Staggs adds. Trusted Computing Group’s (www.trustedcomputinggroup.org) Trusted Platform Module (TPM) is a microcontroller that can securely store artifacts used to authenticate its PC’s platforms, such as passwords, certifi cates or encryption keys.

Surprisingly, just as hardware and their applications are condensing due to faster, higher-capacity data processing, many control and IT engineers not only cooperate more, but are beginning to see their job descriptions merge and their organizational supervisors become the same person. “We now have a number of folks who are bilingual in controls and IT,” says AAM’s Smith. “It helps to switch controls people on the plant fl oor with IT people and with administrators for a while, so they can learn about each other’s positions.”

D E S I G N

HMMM...BETTER CALL

PROSOFTTECHNOLOGY.

With every ProSoft Technology product, you get industry-leading technical support, over 20 years of network and protocol expertise, and unparalleled customer service.

Where Automation Connects +1-661-716-5100www.prosoft-technology.com/solutions

Wireless

Complete wireless solutions across platforms. ProSoft provides access points, repeaters, wireless in-chassis and stand-alone gateways allowing multiple protocols to talk as one.

Modbus

ProSoft Technology offers a complete breadth of solutions for Modbus, Modbus TCP/IP and Modbus Plus applications.

PROFIBUSPROFIBUS solutions for most Rockwell Automation® platforms. CIPconnect™ enabled modules offer module configuration, diagnostics and FDT/DTM support over EtherNet/IP.

When it comes to protocol interfaces and wireless solutions, ProSoft should be your first call.

TM

ASIA PACIFIC | AFRICA | EUROPE | MIDDLE EAST | LATIN AMERICA | NORTH AMERICA

NETWORK COOPERATION

Figure 3: improvements in data handling that result from faster, more capable CPUs allowed two system integrators to network di erent control systems at Fulghum Industries in Valdosta.

Opt

o 22

IN11Q4_12_18_cvrstory.indd 18 10/28/11 9:18 AM

192011 • Q4 • INDUSTRIAL NETWORKING

I M P L E M E N T

PARTS MANUFACTURER REBUILDS ITS MACHINING CENTERS WITH NEW AUTOMATION, AND TIES

THEM TOGETHER WITH A CC-LINK NETWORK TO REDUCE WIRING AND SIMPLIFY DESIGN

Machine User Becomes Its Own Rebuilder

THE SHOW MUST GO ON. IN MANUFACTURING, THIS MEANS keeping your machines and production lines up and running no matter what. And, if you compete globally and export machined parts to Asia, Europe—or anywhere else for that matter—then it’s a good bet your customers aren’t very concerned if you can’t get support for the machine that makes those parts. If you can’t deliver, they’ll just fi nd another supplier.

is was the challenge facing T&L Automatics (www.tandlautomatics.com) in Rochester, N.Y., which makes 60 million to 80 million precision-machined parts per year, usually with complex features and intricate details for manufacturers in the automotive, aerospace and defense industries (Figure 1). e company started as a screw-machine shop in 1974, and later added CNC lathes and transfer machines, which move parts around within work cells. T&L can machine 1/16 to 7 in. square parts—about 85% of which go to automotive manufacturers.

To achieve required precision and productivity levels, T&L Automatics had to improve the capability, reliability and output of its machining centers. For example, the original control systems on its six Imasflex seven-station, dial-index machining centers were experiencing frequent shutdowns and significant downtime at least once per week. Also, the maintenance contract fees to correct control problems were costing T&L tens of thousands of dollars per year.

“ e machine builder no longer had a presence in North America, so they weren’t available for support or repairs. We were on our own, and so we basically had to become our own machine builder,” says Tom Hassett, T&L’s president and CEO. “Still, we run these machines every day, so we know their individual circumstances. It also helps that we’re not afraid to try anything.”

TO PICK A PARTNER T&L met with local system integrator Unique Automation (www.uniqueautomation.com) of nearby Palmyra, N.Y., and together they decided to retrofi t T&L’s Imasfl ex centers by replacing their old, problematic CNC controllers and hard-to-maintain, point-to-point wiring with Mitsubishi C64 CNC controllers, Q-Series programmable

automation controllers (PACs) and operator interfaces—all tied together with CC-Link (www.cclinkamerica.org)

networking. Hassett adds that Unique Automation wrote the software for the controllers, and T&L’s own IT staff can add to their ladder logic programs

as needed to provide index-on-the-fl y, run-in-parallel or other functions.

“We’re always seeking new capabilities and ways to reduce costs,” Hassett explains. “In engineering meetings, and sometime even when we’re quoting

a project, we’ll ask ourselves if we can get some new performance, and then we’ll test it. Customers just look at the

parts they want, and so we fi gure out the fastest and best ways to do it. If that means changing a standard machine into a specialized one, we’ll try it. About 80% of our projects have some special task in it. Since about 2003, we’ve seen the U.S. manufacturing base shrink, but we didn’t

want to be blown away, and so we constantly innovate to stay ahead. We try not to raise part prices, so we try to off set increased expenses by being more effi cient and productive. Not all ideas work, so we rethink, retry and just keep digging.”

TWO NETWORKS BETTER THAN ONE e upgraded Imasfl ex machining center consists of seven machining stations, each with an X, Y and Z axis, as well as a spindle control (Figure 2). An eighth station is used by the operator for loading and unloading. To add CC-Link to the machining center, Unique deployed the PAC with two CC-Link master stations to control two independent CC-Link networks.

BY JIM MONTAGUE, EXECUTIVE EDITOR

PRECISE PARTSFigure 1: T&L Automatics machines and exports parts such as this automotive air conditioner manifold from bar stock.

IN11Q4_19_21_Featr2.indd 19 10/27/11 4:09 PM

20 IndustrIal networkIng • Q4 • 2011

“This CNC controller is more capable because it can run two machining stations from one CNC controller, and then the PAC acts as the traffic cop between the CNC controls, other machine controls and the operator interface,” says Joe Gerbig, Unique’s owner and operations engineering manager. “CC-Link allows us to have our local and compact I/O at each station, and only run one common cable back to the PAC. This gave us huge savings in material and labor. The only long-haul wiring left is for servo motor power and feedback cabling back to amplifiers.”

The first CC-Link network includes four CNC controllers to manage the seven machining stations. Each controller is a local station device and occupies four CC-Link network stations. Three CNC controllers manage six machining stations having X, Y and Z axes and spindle control for a total of 24 axes of control. The fourth CNC controller manages the seventh machining station with four axes of control. So the first CC-Link network serves a total of 28 axes of movement. This CC-Link network handles more than 1,000 I/O points for communicating status to the four CNC controllers as well as transmitting commands to control other functions of the machine.

The second CC-Link network consists of 24 remote I/O modules to handle the various inputs and outputs on the Imasflex (Figure 3). This second network connects more than 600 inputs and outputs to manage the actions necessary to machine complex features and intricate part details. These I/O include pushbuttons and selector switches for machine operation, pneumatic valve manifolds to control tool and part manipulations, tool changer inputs, over-travel/home switches, cooling pumps/valves, lubrication systems, hydraulic systems, and chip removal and filtration systems, as well as various outputs and indicators.

Less CabLing, Faster perFormanCeEven though its machining centers now have two CC-Link networks, upgrading from hardwiring to CC-Link still allowed T&L to eliminate about 8,000 ft of wiring per machine—down to 17,000 ft from 25,000 ft (Figure 4). Before the retrofit, broken, loose and shorted wires caused much of Imasflex’s problems and downtime. Diagnosing mechanical problems and adding new I/O points is easier and faster now because CC-Link connects the remote I/O stations to the PAC and interfaces. Multi-axis, high-precision machining is delivered by the CNC controllers that are connected to the PAC via CC-Link.

“It’s much easier for us to manage operations problems now,” Hassett says. “In the past, we’d see there was a fault in the machine, perhaps from a proximity switch down inside, but we’d have to guess where the problem was located. Now, our Q-Series PACs and CC-Link network lead us right down the path and point to the problem.”

Thanks to the retrofit, T&L also was able to cancel its maintenance contract with the original control manufacturer, which saved much of its former maintenance fees. It’s also been able to increase productivity by up to 20%. “Basically, the new controllers allow us to manage our machining better, and do more different operations at the same time,” Hassett adds. “Running less linearly and more in parallel has allowed us to decrease our cycle

seven statIonsFigure 2: t&L and system integrator Unique automation are retrofitting six of t&L’s seven-station imasflex machining centers with new controllers and a two-part CC-Link network to reduce wiring and maintenance costs and improve machining tolerances.

ConCentrated CablIngFigure 3: CC-Link’s remote i/o station is located at one of the seven machining stations in the system. CC-Link networking eliminates the need to route individual i/o wiring back to a central control panel.

IN11Q4_19_21_Featr2.indd 20 10/27/11 4:10 PM

times by 12-15 seconds per part to 28-30 seconds from about 40 seconds previously. That adds up to a lot of saved time and more throughput over the two 10-hour shifts we run four days per week.”

Better AccurAcy And Setup By using the PAC and the two CC-Link master stations, Imasflex’s new control program can read all inputs and outputs on the second CC-Link network, execute the control program, set all outputs, and communicate with the four CNC controllers on the first CC-Link network. The total processing time for this entire control loop is typically 7.3 ms, which was a significant improvement over Imasflex’s previous system.

Besides reducing costs and increasing productivity, retrofitting the Imasflex centers also tightened tolerances and improved the quality of T&L’s machined parts. With the original CNC control system, circular interpolation was difficult to accomplish. With the new system, T&L can hold tighter tolerances, enabling them to produce a wider variety of products. “The new controllers also give us more finite positioning and better

interpolation,” Hassett says. “This means the surface of the parts is much rounder. Instead of looking like a staircase, they look like a smooth circle.”

Likewise, to ease setup of Imasflex’s CNC machining parameters, one CNC operator interface panel is used for all seven machining stations. This panel is easily movable on a circular track, so operators can simply position the panel adjacent to the station on which

they’re working. T&L and Unique used CC-Link in conjunction with the PAC to remap the operator interface panel’s I/O to control any of the seven machining stations at the touch of one station-selection pushbutton. The remap also seamlessly connected the operator panel to the appropriate CNC.

In addition, T&L and Unique report, once they started the initial power-up sequence, the CC-Link networks were operational within hours, allowing the debug and commissioning phase to commence almost immediately without the need to diagnose any network-related issues. In fact, the retrofitted Imasflex was completely functional the first day they started the commissioning process.

So far, three of the Imasflex machines have been rebuilt. T&L and Unique are at work on the fourth and fifth, and plan a similar retrofit of one of T&L’s Liberty transfer machines and other equipment. The first Imasflex retrofit has been operating for more than a year without one control system failure.

i m p l e m e n t

212011 • Q4 • IndustrIal networkIng1400 Northbrook Parkway, Suite 300

Suwanee, GA 30024P: 770-497-9292 F: 770-497-9391

murrinc.com

Modlink: Power & Communication Together

Murrelektronik provides the right contact source for making brief connections to the control panel for performing set-up/diagnosis or carrying out process optimization. Modlink MSDD makes it easy to connect to laptops, programming devices, diagnostic equipment, PCs, printers, network and modems to the controller. MSDD avoids additional and improvised cabling and ensures problem free operation. The control cabinet stays closed, and your components are operated using the prescribed protection.

Communicate with Front Panel Interfaces:• Plug-in connection to process without opening the control cabinet• Globally accepted and country specific connections• UL and CE approved devices

Features:• Over 4000 combinations• Self-supporting locking cover• Low profile metal and plastic covers• Single and double frames avaliable

Scan the R code to visit our online catalog and learn more about Modlink.

uncluttered cabInet Figure 4: the inside of one of Imasflex’s retrofitted operator panels with cc-Link remote I/O modules shows considerably reduced wiring.

“The machine builder no

longer had a presence in

norTh america, so They

weren’T available for

supporT or repairs. we were

on our own, and so we

had To become our own

machine builder.”

IN11Q4_19_21_Featr2.indd 21 10/27/11 4:10 PM

22 IndustrIal networkIng • Q4 • 201122 IndustrIal networkIng • Q4 • 201122

pa r i t y c h e c k

Most initial project

designs, especially

for a conventional

i/o systeM such as

for a dcs or plc,

include a set of

spare i/o points for

later developMent

or Modifications.

the result is that

custoMers pay for

More equipMent than

they need.

Ian Verhappen iverhappen@

industrialautomationnetworks.com

In general, you’ll fInd modular I/o devices outside the cabinet fitted with an industrial network communications head and the ability to combine multiple types of I/o devices, including valve manifolds, into a single unit. modular I/o is typically used in a distributed or remote I/o configuration and allows users to freely change or add channels or cards individually, from one to 50 or more. modular I/o blocks are well-suited

to applications with a high mix of different signal types or where I/o flexibility is required or where it’s advantageous to mount the I/o remotely in the field or right on a process unit or machine. as soon as the distance between the machine controller and the I/o exceeds a few feet, a distributed architecture is better, if not actually required.

a good backgrounder for modular I/o technology is “Ins and outs of modular I/o” in the Q4 2008 issue of Industrial Networking. rather than repeat all that information here, we encourage you to look yourself at www.Industrialnetworking.net/modulario.

one of the other reasons to use modular I/o is that it maximizes efficient use of spares. most initial project designs, especially for a conventional I/o system such as for a dCS or PlC, include a set of spare I/o points for later development or modifications. The result is that customers pay for more equipment than they need so they can add a few sensors to the design or add a single channel of analog to the system. Separating the controller and I/o permits you more-efficient cabinet designs while remaining confident that even with late scope changes you can add I/o anywhere. another reason for modular I/o is that spare connections can be a flexible placeholder for any type of I/o until the need arises. modular I/o also limits the exposure of the industrial network cabling that runs through the machine. a distributed, modular I/o solution keeps the network cabling out of harm’s way and only the individual I/o device cables are run into aggressive environments.

different types of I/o have different demands on the data capacity of the backplane and associated processors in the communications interface and the flexibility that modular I/o offers, so use the manufacturer’s software when planning and commissioning systems to manage the physical and data processing requirements/limits of the system.

Within a modular I/o system, a network I/o

node (or slave) consists of two basic components: an interface to the network and an interface to the physical I/o. modular systems typically allow more than one I/o block to be used with a single gateway. The gateway then acts as a master for the I/o subsystem, and obtains I/o information from all connected I/o blocks and reports it as a single message to the network.

most network interfaces have built-in functions

such as communications-loss watchdogs that can trigger reversion to fail-safe mode, though this requires specification of fail-safe and power-up conditions. many interfaces also include the ability to do additional integrity checks. Communications redundancy, I/o redundancy and hot-swap module replacement are also offered in several distributed modular I/o product families or industry bus types.

So what industrial network or bus should be used to connect the remote modular I/o to the control system? The most basic question is “What industrial networks does this solution support?” The solution needs to include both ends of the network cable, the modular I/o and the protocols directly supported by the control system without the use of gateways. and third-party interfaces add complexity to any project.

The corollary question is whether the selected I/o solution is supported by multiple vendors on an open standard. The answer is likely to be yes. If only one vendor supports the solution or if it is proprietary, it will be difficult to switch vendors or get a variety of options in the solution.

modular I/o will continue to grow in importance for the machine industry in particular and could eventually replace conventional rack I/o in most machine control designs. This is certainly being borne out by a significant number of key industry suppliers of varying sizes who offer modular I/o systems. The key will continue to be the ease with which these devices can be integrated into systems and that will be based on the network and protocol used to make the connections.

Ian Verhappen is an ISa fellow, Certified automation Professional, and a recognized authority on industrial communications technologies predominantly in the process control field. Verhappen heads global consultancy Industrial automation networks.

Modular I/o distributes the data

IN11Q4_22_ParityCheck.indd 22 10/27/11 4:11 PM

232011 • Q4 • IndustrIal networkIng

R E S E A R C H

MonItor the VItalsEmbedded management CIP Object and pre-designed FactoryTalk faceplates for 802.11n industrial hotspot products allow direct EtherNet/IP communications from PLCs, PACs and SCADA software systems to each 802.11n wireless node. PLC/PAC programs can directly monitor link signal strength, data packet errors to detect problems and make decisions such as to activate a redundant link. ProSoft Technology; 661/716-5100; www.prosoft-technology.com

helps set It upWireless Device Manager (WDM) manages a field-instrument network by serving as a gateway and security manager. It provides an intuitive, web-based interface that allows plant personnel to set up an ISA100.11a network. WDM reduces the time required to commission, monitor and troubleshoot a wireless field instrument network.Honeywell; 800/822-7673; www.honeywell.com

Bullet’s IsBullet WirelessHART adapter with IS certification enables existing wired HART field devices from any supplier to communicate the process variable and other valuable device information via

WirelessHART. Loop-powered, it can be installed on a non-smart, analog device and will transmit a digital PV, eliminating operator rounds and manual data recording. MacTek; 609/801-0039; www.maktekcorp.com

wIreless transfer758-915 Bluetooth gateway transfers Profinet, Modbus/TCP or EtherNet/IP protocols via Bluetooth 2.0. It uses frequency hopping

spread spectrum technology and Low Emission Mode to coexist with WLANs. Web-based management provides password or IP address configuration options; on-unit LEDs provide configuration and diagnostic status. Wago; 800/din-rail; www.wago.us

VersatIle routerMagnum DX940 hardened substation industrial router is configurable with both 3G wireless and copper cable and fiber wireline ports. It has port-module flexibility for a wide variety of network configurations

within the same router enclosure. It provides secure access where wireline is too difficult or too expensive to deploy.GarrettCom; 510/438-9071; www.garrettcom.com

The Trend ConTinues. users demonsTraTe more ConfidenCe To embraCe an

indusTrial Wireless soluTion

healthy wireless networking outlook

TO HELP uS IDENTIFy THE LATEST uSAGE AND APPLICATION trends in wireless networking, we conducted an electronic survey of our Industrial Networking audience earlier this year.

This year, 61% of the study respondents currently have wireless or have plans to deploy wireless in the next 12 months. It’s not terribly surprising to find that this number is up from 55% in 2010 and 39% in 2009.

Of those respondents who have a wireless application, 30% use WirelessHART and 27% employ 802.11b/g. This reverses the outcome in 2010, when we found that 23% used WirelessHART

and 26% used 802.11b/g. The use of proprietary protocols dropped from 17% in 2010 to 8% this year.

Asked what their wireless application is used for, 74% of respondents indicated that they’re measuring process variables, and that’s up markedly from the 58% we noted in 2010.

Some 54% of respondents indicated their biggest concern about using a wireless connectivity is its reliability and the case for data loss. That’s notably up from 44% in 2010. Concerns about a lack of standards, security worries, and battery power were largely unchanged over the past 12 months, according to the study respondents.

IN11Q4_23_25_Research.indd 23 10/27/11 4:13 PM

24 IndustrIal networkIng • Q4 • 2011

R E S E A R C H

24

BasIc radIoBasic version of the Trusted Wireless Ethernet radio, TWE-Basic transmits Ethernet data from remote locations, even in high interference. It excludes RS-232 and RS-485/422 ports as a slave-only device for use with a standard TWE or TWE-BUS radio. It has MOTR-9 radio platform and a 1 W, frequency-hopping, spread-spectrum (FHSS) transceiver, and operates in the license-free, 902-928 MHz ISM band. Phoenix Contact; 800/322-3225; www.phoenixcontact.com/twe

sure thIngSureCross wireless I/O gateways and nodes have high-power radio frequency (RF) architecture with 1 W transmit power in the 900

MHz ISM band for a range to six miles between devices. Operators select 4-20 mA or 0-10 V inputs in the field. Additional models provide up to 12 discrete inputs or outputs.Banner Engineering; 888/373-6767; www.bannerengineering.com

analog alertswSeries wireless transmitters for analog voltage and current, temperature, humidity and barometric pressure communicate over standard 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi and send text message or email alarms if variables go above or below a pre-determined set point. The CE-compliant product has a NEMA 4/IP65 enclosure.Omega Engineering; 203/359-1660; www.omega.com

catch a wavePremierWave EN wireless device server includes an embedded

Linux development kit for wireless connectivity with tunneling, secure tunneling, configuration manager, web-based configuration manager, system level and diagnostic utilities, Ethernet-to-Wireless LAN bridging,

and Virtual IP Access for remote connectivity behind firewalls.Lantronix; 800/526-8766; www.lantronix.com

temperature transmItterRosemount 248 wireless temperature transmitter is a single-point

transmitter using WirelessHART technology. The single sensor transmitter accepts thermocouple, RTC, mV and ohm inputs.Emerson Process Management; 800/999-9307; www.emersonprocess.com

up to BatBat54-Rail and Bat300-Rail WLAN access points and clients have ISA 12.12.01 Class I, Div. 2 and ATEX IEC/EN 60079 Zone II certification. Bat300-Rail complies with protection class IP40 and supports IEEE802.11n (300 Mbps) wireless communications standard and MIMO technology. Bat54-Rail devices have up to two radio modules, operating at 5 GHz or 2.4 GHz.Belden Hirschmann; 719/217-2299; www.belden.com

In or outIndoor/outdoor GhostBridge wireless Ethernet bridge with a line-of-sight range to 15 km and 150 Mbps point-to-point speed between

two remote devices or networks is sold in pre-configured pairs with LED indicators to align them. It has an 80-degree, 15 dBi sector antenna integrated into the housing and a 5 GHz radio built from 802.11n 2x2 MIMO technology. A PoE pass-through Ethernet port also allows users to connect remote devices to a LAN. The unit consumes 8 W maximum.

B&B Electronics; 815/433-5100; www.bb-elec.com

mInd the nodesFor company’s industrial Ethernet switches, wireless access points/bridges/clients and serial device servers, MXview industrial network management software monitors up to 1,000 nodes of networking devices in physical topology maps that show comprehensive real-time information, such as network connections, device status, traffic and activities. Users can play back network events recorded as historical topology snapshots to trace exceptions. Moxa; 888/moxa-usa; www.moxa.com

gateway to the hartWirelessHART Gateway connects the wired structure and wireless network with its network management to organize and control the wireless network and connect this to a control or SCADA system.

Field device signals are received and passed on via the appropriate bus protocol in the fieldbus. The gateway can be installed in Zone 1 areas and can serve up to 250 WirelessHART field devices.Pepperl+Fuchs; 330/486-0002; www.pepperl-fuchs.us

IN11Q4_23_25_Research.indd 24 10/27/11 4:14 PM

Wireless routersIndustrialPro M2M routers provide secure, cost-effective wireless connectivity

to remote locations and assets. As reliable primary WAN connections or backup to existing network links, the routers are suited to harsh industrial environments where space may be limited and wired connectivity not feasible.Sixnet; 518/877-5173; www.sixnet.com

Box of netWorkWireless in a Box Ethernet version enables deployment of wireless Ethernet, and an I/O version allows for installation of multi-point wireless direct I/O. They are NEMA 4X and IP67-rated, are available in a stainless-steel or plastic enclosure, and have a Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz modem, which can function as an access point, bridge, client or router. The enclosures come with power supply, circuit and surge protection, terminal blocks, ground blocks, antenna and cables.Weidmüller; 800/849-9343; www.weidmuller.com

Wireless ACCessScalance W784 line of IP30-rated wireless LAN access points includes an aluminum

housing and a small footprint to be wall-mounted or panel-mounted on a 35 mm standard mounting rail. The access points support the Wi-Fi-protected access (WPA2) specification and the advanced encryption standard (AES) for 128-bit encryption, along with MAC address filtering. The access points also support the standard point coordinated function (PCF) protocol as well as industrial PCF (iPCF).Siemens Industry; 800/964-4114; www.automation.siemens.com

exPlosion-Proof ACCess PointsAW-XAP enclosure houses WLAN access points, routers and bridges for 802.11b/g networks in hazardous locations. Two Div. 1 antennae atop an explosion-proof enclosure enables a WLAN access point in a Class I, Div. 1 area. An alternative glass antenna dome permits mounting stock whip antennae. The enclosure system has third-party approval from UL, and ATEX certification when specified.Meriam/Adalet Wireless; 216/281-1100; www.meriam.com

MoBile DAtAThe Wonderware IntelaTrac system includes configurable software and ruggedized mobile hardware solutions and can be operated using smartphones, PDAs, rugged

handheld computers, laptops and PCs to enhance the productivity of mobile workers. IntelaTrac is structured around a suite of components, which include software, hardware, secure wireless infrastructure and RFID technology. IntelaTrac v. 3.2 offers simplified integration with multiple back-end systems.Invensys; 949/727-3200; us.wonderware.com

a d i n d e x

Advertiser pAge no.

ArC Advisory group .......................................... 11

Automationdirect .................................................2

garrettCom ........................................................... 16

Hilscher .....................................................................6

HMs industrial networks ................................. 10

Moxa ..........................................................................4

Murrelektronik ..................................................... 21

omega engineering .............................................3

prosoft technology............................................ 18

sealevel systems................................................. 17

siemens .................................................................. 27

transition networks........................................... 28

turck ...........................................................................9

Yaskawa electric .................................................. 15

ContaCt us555 W. pierce rd., suite 301, itasca, illinois 60143

630/467-1300 • Fax: 630/467-1124industrialnetworking@putman.net

Editorial tEam editor in Chief Joe Feeley executive editor Jim Montague Managing editor Aaron Hand digital Managing editor Katherine Bonfante senior technical editor Walt Boyes senior technical editor dan Hebert editorial Assistant Lori goldberg

dEsign & ProduCtion tEam senior production Manager Anetta gauthier Art director derek Chamberlain

Publishing tEam group publisher/vp, Content Keith Larson director of Circulation Jack Jones vp, Creative services steve Herner vp, technology rose southard

subsCriPtions888/644-1803

salEs tEamnortheastern and mid-atlantic regional manager

dave Fisher • dfisher@putman.net24 Cannon Forge dr., Foxboro, Massachusetts 02035

508/543-5172 • Fax: 508/543-3061

midwestern and southern regional managergreg Zamin • gzamin@putman.net

555 W. pierce rd., suite 301, itasca, illinois 60143630/467-1300 • Fax: 630/467-1124

Western regional managerLaura Martinez • lmartinez@putman.net

218 virginia, suite 4, el segundo, California 90245310/607-0125 • Fax: 310/607-0168

inside sales manager polly dickson • pdickson@putman.net

630/467-1300 • Fax: 630/467-1124

rEPrintsFoster reprints

Jill Kaletha • jillk@fosterprinting.com866/879-9144 ext.168 • www.fosterprinting.com

252011 • Q4 • inDustriAl netWorking

IN11Q4_23_25_Research.indd 25 10/27/11 4:14 PM

26 IndustrIal networkIng • Q4 • 2011

B U S S T O P

John Rezabekjrezabek@ashland.com

Several decadeS into the microproceSSor era of automation, the availability of redundancy in logic solvers, controllers, i/o and network hardware has become fairly commonplace. often it isn’t that much of a premium to achieve a level of redundancy, as many companies provide redundant ring solutions for ethernet.

So should we just apply redundancy carte blanche? aren’t two (or three) always better than

one? Why not opt for better availability, especially if the cost isn’t prohibitive?

There’s a lesson we learned in redundancy that i frequently reflect upon. Thirty years ago, our company had very successfully applied modicon 584 plcs in numerous pumping stations along the trans-alaska pipeline. our controls group leadership was very pleased with them because they represented our first large-scale application of ladder logic solved by microprocessors. The plcs—we actually called them pcs at the time—had proven themselves to be very reliable, even though they had no processor, network or i/o redundancy. So when interlocks and dryer-sequencing logic were required for a new petrochemical complex, the choice to use the 584 was considered a no-brainer, even more so when modicon introduced the J-211 redundancy supervisor. The rugged and reliable 584 could only be better if it were fitted with a hot-backup redundant logic solver, right? We were so confident that we brought virtually every snippet of logic in the complex into the plc to be solved. The mighty, fast (for their day) and redundant plcs couldn’t possibly be less reliable than a mechanical relay in a panel, could they?

i think modicon was aiming to make a foray into the continuous process industry, where one can’t simply halt the line briefly to replace a fuse or swap a card, or wait for a shift change—the process was expected to run continuously for months and years between planned outages.

But the early J-211 solution created complexity and confusion where there had been clarity. We learned the hard way through numerous spurious and plant-wide trips that the J-211 and the architecture it required had created additional single points of failure.

We were novices and this was the first system for our integrator as well, and we likely would have

been better off with a simplex logic solver, or even old clunky relays distributed in local panels. it was exciting to use our new hammer to hit every nail, but in doing so we actually decreased the plant availability, increasing its vulnerability to spurious and usually self-inflicted trips.

The essential learning was this: Simplicity and distributed control almost always trump complexity. The dcSs that are loved by the

process industry cost millions because a lot of brilliant engineers spent their careers making them bullet-proof and user-proof, and have often matured through lengthy and ugly trials-by-fire in pioneering end users’ plants.

The other important lesson took me a few decades longer to learn: making the most reliable component(s) redundant has little impact on overall availability. it wasn’t until the Safety-instrumented-System (SiS) gurus made us look at their pie charts, which aimed to show the contribution of various system components to reliability and spurious trip rate. The logic solver and all its i/o was the tiniest sliver of the pie. Granted, it was already highly redundant, but improving things like network reliability would never compensate for the much less reliable sensors and valves. For redundancy to have a measurable impact on availability, it has to be applied to the least reliable components.

So we had a discussion the other day about network redundancy. “if you’re going to make a network redundant, always employ geographically separate paths” was the advice of our instructor (and fellow in contributing editor), ian verhappen of Sait. cables on the same route would both fall victim to the backhoe or the cherry picker, and the redundancy would have bought you nothing.

But in the days of point-to-point, were we ever compelled to make a 36-pair cable redundant? is a single twisted pair or fiber carrying fieldbus or ethernet any more vulnerable to the vagaries of backhoes and cherry pickers than the brute-force copper network we’ve traditionally applied?

having been guilty of reflexive application of redundancy, i’d encourage users to evaluate causes, their likelihood, and the severity of the consequences, to better gauge its value. consider using this analysis—not emotion—to guide your choices.

It was excItIng to use

our new hammer to

hIt every naIl, but In

doIng so we actually

decreased the

plant avaIlabIlIty,

IncreasIng Its

vulnerabIlIty to

spurIous and usually

self-InflIcted trIps.

redundancy Is redundant, again

IN11Q4_26_BusStop.indd 26 10/28/11 8:43 AM

E20

00

1-F

37

0-M

10

1-X

-76

00

Answers for industry.

Seamless communication between all automation components with SIMATIC NET helps boost productivity.

Whether Ethernet infrastructure, fieldbus communications or wireless: SIMATIC® NET communication products combine industrial reliability with open standard connectivity – from the field level to the management level. SIMATIC NET components share a core intelligence with over 100,000 Siemens compatible automation products. We call this level of open flexibility and interoperability Totally Integrated Automation (TIA). Ideally suited for your requirements, TIA optimizes factory, machine, and process operations, allowing you to increase efficiency and gain a competitive edge. www.siemens.com/tia

How does Totally Integrated Automation provide ideal connections for success?

E20001-F370-M101-X-7600_AZ_TIA-Net.indd 1 26.08.10 18:13IN11Q3_FPA.indd 27 10/31/11 9:33 AM

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

FACE-THE-TRIAL-IN.7.875x10.5.pdf 1 7/30/2009 8:22:30 AM

IN11Q3_FPA.indd 28 10/27/11 12:16 PM