In the field of industrial automation, Texas Instruments (TI) has always been at the forefront. With the advancement of Industry 4.0, TI has provided a range of products and solutions to help manufacturers achieve the future of intelligent manufacturing.
Ethernet Communication Technology Balances Speed and Reliability
Texas Instruments’ Vice President and General Manager of the High Speed Data (HSD) division, Ahmed Salem, said that Ethernet has long provided the bandwidth needed for advanced automation, with speeds ranging from a few to several hundred or even terabits per second. For example, EtherCAT and Profinet are industrial Ethernet protocols designed to meet the challenges of industrial environments. The proportion of new industrial communication devices using industrial Ethernet has increased from 38% in 2016 to 68% this year.
In addition, the development of Time Sensitive Networking (TSN) standards has made Ethernet a common option for control networks. With features such as highly accurate distributed clocks and automatic priority determination for time-sensitive control messages, Ethernet ensures that control signals are transmitted within a specified time window. TI’s product portfolio includes a wide range of wired and wireless solutions that have been tested and validated to meet the highest industrial, automotive, and regulatory standards.
Ethernet Communication Technology Works with Traditional Infrastructure
While new protocols and TSN have made Ethernet suitable for use in industrial control environments, installation costs remain a barrier to adoption. In the past, Ethernet designs used multiple twisted pair cable, with a maximum length of 100 meters. This meant that manufacturers hoping to adopt Ethernet not only had to replace all their cables but also had to change the entire layout of their factories built using earlier single-pair technology, which could involve cables several kilometers long. Most manufacturers cannot afford to stop production lines for weeks to replace expensive infrastructure. Therefore, the development of single-pair Ethernet (which can run using existing cables in factories) has been crucial to achieving adoption.
Texas Instruments is helping to develop multiple forms of industrial Ethernet by supporting single-pair, multi-pair, or fiber optic cabling with its physical layer transceivers series. Automation system designers can choose from a range of transceivers—such as DP838x industrial Ethernet transceivers that operate at high speeds of 10/100Mbps and 10/100/1000Mbps—to achieve high rates and low latency or DP83TD510 transceivers that enable cable lengths up to 2 kilometers. All transceivers are able to withstand the high temperatures and electromagnetic noise found in factory environments.
Ethernet Communication Technology Supports the Lean Future of Manufacturing
Texas Instruments is working to support the future trends of manufacturing by providing a range of products and solutions. Processors designed specifically to support edge AI—such as Texas Instruments’ AM6xA processor product family—can eliminate the need for centralized programmable logic controller communication. Running machine vision algorithms locally not only enables robots to work with humans but also allows them to learn from humans. For example, tasks performed by individuals can be optimized by adjusting their sequence.
In the long term, Industry 4.0 will also involve the continuous monitoring of critical systems—including sensors, actuators, and their connected communication infrastructure—as well as the deployment of predictive analytics that can automatically predict when maintenance or repair work is needed. For newer vision-based robotic systems, technologies like V3Link can enable low latency, synchronous, and lossless video transmission, helping to prevent accidents in factory floors involving humans and machines. Improving coordination between humans and other robots requires advanced local processing and typically also requires wireless connectivity to enable reliable indoor positioning. Texas Instruments is working with a range of other companies to support the realization and deployment of these trends.