What are the usage environments for industrial Ethernet switches?
Industrial Ethernet switches are designed to withstand temperature variations (typically from -40°C to 75°C). Their form factor is designed to withstand external interference, meeting IP40 protection standards, and they often allow for direct, natural cooling of the product's highly sensitive internal components. The products utilize high-quality, high-reliability components (e.g., industrial equipment uses thermally conductive silicone instead of fans, and electrolytic capacitors are rarely used; these are found in commercial switches because their short lifespan leads to unreliability).
Who would need industrial Ethernet switches?
To illustrate simply: Isolating the factory's equipment layer from the office computers is analogous to using Ethernet as a "giant equalizer." It's very real to think of all devices (including PCs, servers, PLCs, sensors, actuators, etc.) connected to the same network at the same level. This is because there's a strict control over the amount of data transmitted each time; sending and receiving over Ethernet is first-come, first-served. Connecting the factory's computers and equipment to the same LAN allows engineers to access the network via the internet and allows the factory and business offices to stay connected via email. It also gives business office and MIS personnel the option to monitor the network's operation at the factory level. The downside of all internal connectivity is that data flow between control devices can easily become bogged down in email, ICQ, and access to different web pages. Industrial Ethernet switches effectively isolate critical control devices in their own collision domains. Engineers can access the devices from outside the collision domain, but as we pointed out at the beginning, data is freer within the collision domain.
This type of application, involving isolated, independent devices, is similar to that described above. However, in this example, only one device is connected to a port on the industrial Ethernet switch, isolating the device within its own collision domain. For a concrete example, a control engineer could use a multi-port industrial Ethernet switch to connect a PLC and sensors/actuators. Except for occasional diagnostic and reconfiguration information sent from another part of the network, the switch virtually isolates all control activities from the rest of the network, providing a high-speed connection between two separate collision domains.
In fact, many important applications benefit from the use of industrial Ethernet. Industrial switches are Ethernet switching devices used in industrial control fields. They can withstand harsh working environments, adapt to low and high temperatures, have strong resistance to electromagnetic interference, are resistant to salt spray, and are highly shock-resistant. They are mainly used in industries such as industrial transportation, buildings, mines, oil fields, and hydroelectric power stations.
