This month's issue of PROFINEWS places the focus squarely on the use of PROFINET in the process automation industry. From Ethernet-APL, to PROFIsafe, to Module Type Package (MTP), to the PA Profile, PI's technologies are making inroads like never before.
Between PROFINET, PROFIsafe, Modular Type Package (MTP), and omlox, it's no small wonder PI's technologies are poised to have a significant impact on the process industry. In my many years of work as a PI board member, it was often a matter of building bridges between technologies and people, i.e., creating many interfaces.
Supply bottlenecks, energy prices, staff shortages – the process industry is currently facing very significant challenges. This is where omlox can make a significant contribution, helping to locate objects in expansive and complex production facilities.
It is important to design the interaction between PROFINET and the OPC UA device integration models in such a way that it is easy for the user to get started. This makes it easier to implement data analytics and predictive maintenance scenarios or asset management in the plant, for example.
Many medium-sized companies, whether in the food+bev industry, the packaging industry or electronics suppliers, are increasingly turning to robot-assisted applications (pick & place). Here, the work to integrate robots from different manufacturers is overly tedious and time consuming. PI is looking to change all that.
New products this month include: MQTT capability for PROFIBUS I/Os from Softing; cylinder position sensors with IO-Link from Turck; electronic position indicators with IO-Link from SIKO; and IO-Link Wireless solutions from Balluff.
Since the beginning of 2022, certification for the PROFIdrive and Encoder profile is mandatory. And so, the Profile Tester, a Windows-based tool with a graphical user interface, can be downloaded free of charge by all members to ease conformity testing to the specification.
A new concept for zoned areas is proposed: Place small remote I/O valve terminals instead of building central or large decentralized solutions. Collect the intrinsically safe signals on-site and supply the pneumatic drives via short pneumatic lines. Communication takes place directly via PROFINET to the controller.
