Industrial Ethernet technology has become one of the most popular communication networks due to its advantages such as low cost, stability and reliability, high communication speed, abundant software and hardware products, wide application, and mature supporting technologies.
In recent years, with the development of network technology, Ethernet has entered the control field, forming a new type of Ethernet control network technology. This is mainly due to the development of industrial automation systems towards distributed and intelligent control, making open and transparent communication protocols a necessary requirement. The technological advantages of Ethernet technology in the industrial control field are very obvious.
I. Technical Characteristics of Industrial Ethernet
1. Ethernet is a fully open and fully digital network, and devices from different manufacturers can easily interconnect by following network protocols.
2. Ethernet enables seamless connection between industrial control networks and enterprise information networks, forming a fully open network for integrated enterprise-level management and control.
3. Low software and hardware costs: As Ethernet technology is very mature, software and hardware that support Ethernet are highly valued and widely supported by manufacturers, and there are a variety of software development environments and hardware devices for users to choose from.
4. High communication speed: As the scale and complexity of enterprise information systems expand, the demand for information is also increasing. Sometimes, even the transmission of audio and video data is required. Currently, 10M and 100M Fast Ethernet are widely used, Gigabit Ethernet technology is gradually maturing, and 10G Ethernet is under research. Its speed is much faster than fieldbus.
5. Great potential for sustainable development. In this era of rapid information change, the survival and development of enterprises will largely depend on a fast and effective communication management network. The development of information technology and communication technology will be faster and more mature, thus ensuring the continuous development of Ethernet technology.
II. Network Advantages of Industrial Ethernet Technology
Industrial Ethernet is an Ethernet technology used in industrial control. While technically compatible with commercial Ethernet (i.e., the IEEE 802.3 standard), actual products and applications differ significantly. This is primarily because the design of ordinary commercial Ethernet products often fails to meet the needs of industrial environments in terms of material selection, product strength, applicability, real-time performance, interoperability, reliability, interference immunity, and intrinsic safety. Therefore, industrial Ethernet, which differs from commercial Ethernet, is used in industrial control applications. So, what are the advantages of industrial Ethernet?
1. Wide range of applications: Ethernet is the most widely used computer network technology. Almost all programming languages, such as Visual C++, Java, and Visual Basic, support Ethernet application development.
2. High communication speed: Fast Ethernet with speeds of 10 and 100 Mb/s is already widely used, and 1Gb/s Ethernet technology is gradually maturing, while the highest speed of traditional fieldbuses is only 12Mb/s (such as Siemens Profibus-DP). Obviously, Ethernet is much faster than traditional fieldbuses and can fully meet the ever-increasing bandwidth requirements of industrial control networks.
3. Strong resource sharing capability: With the development of the Internet/Intranet, Ethernet has penetrated into every corner. Users on the network have been freed from the constraints of geographical location of resources. They can browse data from the industrial control field on any computer connected to the Internet, realizing "integrated control and management", which is unmatched by any other fieldbus.
4. Significant Potential for Sustainable Development: The introduction of Ethernet will provide possibilities for the future development of control systems. Users will not need to invest in independent research for technology upgrades, a feature unmatched by any existing fieldbus technology. At the same time, the development of robotics and intelligent technologies requires communication networks with higher bandwidth and performance, and communication protocols with greater flexibility—requirements that Ethernet can well meet.
