PI (PROFIBUS & PROFINET International) is making strong progress on Industrie 4.0. Main work is done in the teams of the PI working group "I4.0@PI" with sub-groups for individual topics. The requirements are being closely harmonized with users and senior experts from the various participating companies.
As the growth of PROFINET continues, new customer requirements for additional Asset Management functions have been incorporated. Added is the ability to record assets to make maintenance and operation easier despite increasing complexity of processes and related machines.
As the popular saying goes, paths are made by being walked. In this sense, PROFINET has clearly shown that a technology can outgrow its expectations and blaze new trails as a pioneer. When an Ethernet-based communication system was first being considered 16 years ago, no-one had any idea that this technology would be a "door opener" to totally new areas of use, in this case, Industrie 4.0 and Industrial Internet of Things applications.
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PROFINET, PROFIBUS, and IO-Link will be on display at the SPS/IPC/Drives Show in Nuremberg this month. Find the PI booth at the entrance to Hall 2 in stands 220 and 221. The 3,500 sq. ft. booth is themed “PROFINET – the Backbone for Industrie 4.0.”
From the domain expertise required to filter the required data in the correct way to expanding automation and IT networking knowledge requirements, the Internet of Things is dramatically altering the duties and expectations for control engineers.
PROFIBUS PA cables can land in hazardous environments; Ethernet cables cannot --yet. However, PROFINET is still a great backbone in process applications for today and tomorrow.
At a joint symposium, PROFIBUS & PROFINET International (PI) and NAMUR e.V. discussed the use of Ethernet in the process industry. The goal of the event was to evaluate, coordinate and prioritize the requirements placed on an Ethernet communication system for process automation.