Industrial automation leaders are endorsing TSN

With a rapidly growing demand for the technology, the number of industrial automation vendors offering TSN-compatible devices continues to grow, reports CLPA.

By enabling convergent communications at the core of Industry 4.0 applications, Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) is being regarded by market leaders as a must within the Connected Industries of the future.

TSN in an enhancement to standard Ethernet that ensures inherent determinism through a number of IEEE 802.1 specifications. When looking at industrial Ethernet, two of these standards emerge as key to drive Industry 4.0 applications, IEEE 802.1AS and IEEE 802.1Qbv, which handle time synchronisation and traffic scheduling, respectively.

Together, these functions provide deterministic performance, making it possible to share multiple types of data traffic on the same network, driving convergence and the merge of information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT). Thomas Rodenbusch-Mohr, product manager at Belden, explains: “TSN is standardised within the IEEE, making the technology extremely important, in my opinion. Secondly, you can do real-time applications based on this open standard, so you don’t need to be locked into a proprietary ecosystem. Finally, you can save on infrastructure costs because you can run IT and OT traffic on the same network without disturbing your critical control data packets, for example.”

Driving the large-scale adoption of TSN

In order to deliver competitive products and help customers fully reap the benefits of TSN, industrial automation vendors have been developing a variety of devices that leverage the technology. When it comes to implementing it, the market leading solution is CC-Link IE TSN, the first open industrial Ethernet combining gigabit bandwidth and TSN functions.

Simon Seereiner, head of product management at Weidmüller, comments on the drive towards the launch of CC-Link IE TSN compatible devices: “TSN is an exciting technology, specifically for real-time deterministic communications.

“We, at Weidmüller, started very early to work together with the CLPA on the implementation of the necessary requirements for TSN communications and connectivity. Together with the organisation, we have certified the full range of RJ45-based patch cables as well as field attachment connectors.”

Masaki Kawazoe, director of commercial marketing for factory automation at Mitsubishi Electric, agrees on the value of the TSN technology and the gains achievable through convergence: “Mitsubishi Electric has already a lot of existing solutions compatible with CC-Link IE TSN. Customers can easily integrate all our products and CLPA’s partner products together. They can also have these devices communicate with the IT level through TCP/IP communications on the same one network. Customers can also integrate safety solutions on this network. This is very powerful and beneficial to customers.”

The need for devices that can leverage TSN is also felt by end users, as Sascha Lambauer, strategic product manager at Weidmüller, adds: “Weidmüller is working together with the CLPA and, of course, our customers are pushing us in this direction because TSN can enable the next level of production and is definitely needed in the market.”

In fact, there are already more than 50 companies worldwide in the manufacturing and processing sectors, that are taking advantage of TSN to advance their operations.

Selecting the right partnership

In addition to being the first network technology with TSN functions on the market, CC-Link IE TSN is being selected by industrial automation vendors for the extensive development support offered. Jan Aulenberg, product manager at Phoenix Contact, elaborates on this: “The biggest beneficiaries of the collaboration with the CLPA is the customer, because with the conformance test certification that the CLPA is offering for CC-Link IE TSN, it is always guaranteed that the endorsed products are fulfilling all the requirements of a CC-Link IE TSN network.”

Ultimately, it is important for forward-looking industrial automation companies to start their implementation of TSN now. Chih-Hing Lin, global technology partner manager at Moxa Europe, concludes: “TSN will become the unified and real open communications infrastructure for next-generation communications. CC-Link IE TSN is, from our point of view, one of the major industrial control protocols on the market. It is also one of the most advanced technologies and we are very happy to cooperate with the CLPA to drive the adoption of this new technology.

“This is why we think the collaboration with the CLPA on CC-Link IE TSN has high potential and a very bright future. I would encourage every company in the automation sector to join the CLPA so that we can work together as a team to provide the best mature and cost-effective solutions to our customers.”

Currently, there are over 120 CC-Link IE TSN certified devices available to create a comprehensive solution for machine builders and end users looking to build next generation industrial automation technology into their systems.

CLPA Europe

Travellers Lane
Hatfield
AL10 8XB
UNITED KINGDOM

01707 278953 or 02102 486 1750

partners@clpa-europe.com

www.clpa-europe.com

More news
16 hours ago
Hydrotechnik UK is renaming and rebranding
With effect from the 11 September onwards, Hydrotechnik UK will now be known as Hydrotechnik UK Test Engineering. The name change is to better reflect the range and depth of products and services manufactured and offered.
19 hours ago
RS wins ‘Best Company for Sustainability Reporting’ in the industrial sector
RS Group has won the award for ‘Best Company for Sustainability Reporting’ in the industrial sector at the Corporate ESG Awards 2023.
23 hours ago
Atlas Copco pledges 98% air compressor uptime with new Availability Guarantee
Atlas Copco’s compressor users who are already benefiting from a new or renewable complete maintenance care plan under the company’s Total Responsibility agreement, now have even greater assurance of productivity − the added option of an Availability Guarantee.
2 days ago
Apex Dynamics UK previews two new product ranges at PPMA Show 2023
Apex Dynamics UK is unveiling two new product ranges at the PPMA Show 2023 – a series of helical gearboxes and a servo worm gearbox range – showcasing its groundbreaking gearbox technology.
2 days ago
CC-Link IE TSN adds value to additive manufacturing operations
While material science has led the way in additive manufacturing advances, high precision motion control and the ability to combine this with all other machine functions has delivered significant competitive advantage for one AM machine manufacturer by adopting CC-Link IE TSN.
2 days ago
Meet ACS Motion Control and Physik Instrumente (PI) UK at Machine Building Live
At MachineBuilding.Live, ACS Motion Control and Physik Instrumente (PI) UK will be showcasing positioning technologies and motion control solutions designed to provide industrial applications with unrivalled levels of precision.
3 days ago
WAGO and JPR Electronics unite to showcase innovation
WAGO and JPR Electronics are excited to announce their partnership at this year’s Engineering Design Show. This collaboration promises to be a remarkable highlight of the event, demonstrating their commitment to excellence and cutting-edge technology.
3 days ago
Pallet system for round battery cells
When a manufacturer of batteries for electric vehicles needed a pallet circulation system with different interfaces to facilitate automated inspection of the battery modules, it turned to mk Profile Systems.
4 days ago
AMRC in the race to inspire next generation of engineers
Make UK and the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) are teaming up to inspire the next generation of talented engineers as the two organisations host an event for National Manufacturing Day – with two McLaren show cars joining the starting line up.
1 week ago
Automatic loading and unloading of pressed parts
A robot-based 3D measuring system is helping an automotive manufacturer reduce the cycle times of its press lines. Four Ensenso 3D cameras from IDS Imaging Development Systems provide the basic data and thus the platform for process automation.

Login / Sign up