Identifying potential future problems, diagnosing current problems and the steps to take to make your network fit for the future.

Recently, a new phenomenon has appeared during the search for the causes of network failures. It has been noted data communication issues are becoming more frequent in situations where conventional network analysers do not reveal any weak points.

It was the investigation of shield currents on industrial data communication lines that prompted the usual diagnostic approach to take a completely new turn. It soon became clear that the bus itself was in perfect condition, but was being affected by external influences that are generally referred to as “EMC interference“. Further extensive measurements, both in the bonding system and in the shielding connections of bus lines, revealed an association between high leakage currents (mostly of higher frequency) and bus failures.

This presentation will explain the theory behind the measurements, the tools used to perform them and will provide limits against which all industrial networks should be checked against.

This presentation will discuss the basics of how we should approach a safety-related control project and discuss how networking supports the implementation of the safety system using PROFIsafe as an example of a black channel safety-related control solution.

It is widely accepted that the most important decisions are made at design stage of a project. This presentation examines the fundamental principles of good network design for PROFINET systems, although many of the ideas are applicable to PROFIBUS and other networking systems. The presentation will discuss the main factors that must be considered at the design stage of an automation system. Practical examples will show how facilities for health checking, fault-finding and maintenance can have a crucial impact on plant availability. The presentation will also examine how properly thought out network monitoring and redundancy can drastically affect plant up-time and thus profitability.

This presentation will look at the tools and techniques that are available for engineering activities such as health checking and fault finding. In particular the presentation will explore some of the devices that are now available for automated network condition monitoring. These devices can provide 24/7 remote monitoring of your networks to provide rapid reporting of network problems and provide indication of performance degradation and give pre-warning of impending failure. The presentation will include a practical demonstration of some of the available tools.

A short journey to explain the IoT The Internet of Things, IIoT The Industrial Internet of things, IND4.0 from IND1.0 and Big Data. How PROFINET is placed as the ideal Industrial Fieldbus to fulfil the above, how its implemented and why you should consider it. Some of the myths explained.

With an installed base approaching 4 million nodes IO-Link is THE protocol for communication down to the sensor and actuator level. This presentation will be covering what a typical IO-Link solution consists of, how it interfaces to the control system and the benefits that can be derived from this increased level of communication with IO-Link devices. These include: easier handling of measurement signals, remote and automatic device parameterisation, smart sensor diagnostic functions, safety over IO-Link whilst also being an enabler for Industrial IoT and Industry 4.0 strategies.