Ethernet/IP enhanced to integrate IO-Link devices

ODVA has published enhancements to The EtherNet/IP Specification, which outline how to integrate devices built to the IO-Link Communication Standard into CIP architectures. The addition of this capability allows for IO-Link sensors and devices at the lowest level of the network to be better connected with EtherNet/IP controllers and devices at higher levels of the network.

“IO-Link device integration with CIP provides seamless communications between CIP originators and IO-Link devices through the intermediate IO-Link master, all using existing IO-Link hardware and standards,” said Dr. Al Beydoun, president and executive director at ODVA in a press release.

IO-Link to CIP connectivity is designed to reduce engineering effort and eases the acquisition of data and information so plants are better able to meet the demands information technology/operations technology (IT/OT) convergence is bringing to the factory floor. IO-Link devices can now be recognized within EtherNet/IP without the end user having the burden of data conversion. From the perspective of EtherNet/IP, an IO-Link device is viewed as a native CIP device sitting on a (virtual) subnet. The IO-Link master provides the CIP capability for the IO-Link device, transparent to the originating CIP application.

All three types of IO-Link communication (cyclic, acyclic, and events) are mapped to CIP communication types. CIP to IO-Link communication is possible with an unchanged IO-Link master and device specification that is standardized within IEC. Direct communication is enabled via translation between CIP originators and IO-Link devices through the intermediate IO-Link master. All IO-Link devices are treated as if they were CIP Connection target devices (I/O Adapters) on a virtual IO-Link subnet.

– Edited from an ODVA press release by CFE Media. See more Control Engineering Ethernet stories.

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