By introducing
the new 2nd generation Safety Monitor "The AS-Interface Masters" at
Bihl+Wiedemann created big waves at the beginning of 2007. Now, even before the
end of the year, there is even more exciting news coming out of Mannheim: The
intelligent multi-talent is now available with integrated AS-i Profibus Gateway
according to AS-Interface specification 3.0. This all-in-one variety in
stainless steel not only reduces cost but saves space in the cabinet as
well.
In
the world of athletics Dream Teams have a famous tradition. This
media-effective concept was first used to describe the legendary US Basketball
Team winning the Olympic gold medal at the 1992 summer games in Barcelona: The
team around Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson was considered the greatest
collection of individual talents in the history of basketball.
Now modern
safety technology has its Dream Team as well, offering a never before
encountered number of individual talents: The new 2nd generation
Safety Monitor, introduced earlier at the 2007 Hannover Fair is now available
with integrated AS-i Profibus Gateway built according to AS-Interface
specification 3.0. This combination again offers significant advantages for the
user; advantages that can be measured in Euros and Cents as well as in
centimeters: It not only enables savings in terms of acquisition and
installation expenses, but also requires less valuable space in the
cabinet.
High Tech
Tandem building on the Safety at Work principle: A combination of bus and
safety technologies
Considering the enormous
functional diversity it might surprise AS-i newcomers taking their first look
at Safety at Work, the safety concept of AS-Interface, that it is now even
easier to use this new High-Tech-Tandem. "In the end, the only complicated job
is the one we have to do," says executive director Jochen Bihl with a smile.
"We have to make sure the user knows that everything remains very easy –
like always with AS-Interface."
However,
this task does not seem unsolvable; on the contrary. In general, the double
pack of Safety Monitor and Gateway exactly repeats what made AS-i Safety at
Work so attractive in the first place: the combination of bus and safety
technology. With Safety at Work safe and non-safe signals can be transferred
using a single network. And now the two devices that control everything are
finally also combined in a single stainless steel housing.
The second
generation AS-i Safety Monitor: The new standard of
user-friendliness
Actually, each device by itself is
a real multi-talent. The 2nd generation Safety Monitor with its
additional intelligence sets a truly new standard in terms of
user-friendliness. All safety relevant data transmitted over the network can
now be requested locally by pushing a key at the monitor. On one hand, this
supports the user when setting up the network. On the other hand, now even
non-experts are able to recognize reasons for safety shutdowns fast and
reliable without the use of laptops and asimon software.
However,
the conventional option of transmitting data via the RS232 interface and a PC
is still available. This option provides the safety expert with the possibility
to easily program the Safety Monitor and graphically display detailed safe
slaves information. Furthermore, the 2nd generation Monitor allows
the effortless replacement of the stored configurations: Simply by exchanging
the memory card. This not only noticeably simplifies the support by the machine
manufacturer, for instances when changes to the overall machine are necessary,
but also reduces the number of service calls considerably.
Other
features and advantages of the new Monitor provide additional flexibility. For
instance, in addition to evaluating messages on its own network, the Monitor
can – when necessary and desired – also generate safe messages for a
second AS-Interface network, effectively operating as a safe input slave
"during its spare time." In particular when more complex systems, expected to
be the future of the automation industry, will be designed this option will
without a doubt play an important role. It goes without saying that the
2nd generation Monitor supports the new safe AS-i outputs as
well.
AS-i Profibus
Gateway according to Specification 3.0: Perfect Management of diagnostics
data
Just as
the inclusion of safe outputs into the logical abilities of AS-Interface
resulted in significant system enhancements, so will the removal of the logical
separation of diagnostics information in the intelligent monitor allow even
more selective fault procedures and shorten shut-down times. In the future,
depending on the situation, the user can decide where he/she wants to access
the relevant data: Directly at the Monitor, through a PC – or "at the very
top," the control level of the system. Real-time and complete diagnostic
information of the entire system can always be generated here too. Tightly
integrating, the different diagnostic data is enabled by the second member of
Bihl+Wiedemann's Dream Team: The integrated AS-i Profibus Gateway designed
according to specification 3.0. Since it is as fluent in the Profibus as in the
AS-i language, the AS-i Profibus Gateway translates the status information it
receives from the monitor practically simultaneously and transmits it to the
control system. It is a well-known fact that, looking at the structure of the
entire system, Gateways have two important functions: They are masters of the
AS-i network and slaves on the Profibus level. Hence, integration of the
Gateways into the system is no more difficult than integrating a normal
standard slave.
The
superior handling of status data by the AS-i master of the current generation
is just one of its general features. Ever since the implementation of
specification 3.0, diagnostic enabled sensors and actuators permanently produce
extensive status information even in non-safety oriented AS-Interface networks
while not stressing the system excessively. Even the often-annoying problem of
duplicate address errors is not an issue anymore: The Gateway automatically
registers this condition and alarms the upper level control system enabling an
instantaneous reaction. The additional integrated early warning systems like
ground fault detection and noise monitoring recognize potential problem sources
before they lead to interruptions.
Hence, with
the bundled AS-i intelligence in a double pack Bihl+Wiedemann once again
addresses the worldwide trend towards status-based maintenance. "Intelligent
Maintenance," as shown by a study with the same title, is no longer considered
a cost factor by efficiently organized manufacturing organizations, but viewed
as a vital competitive criterion. Or, as one company taking part in the study
pointed out: "Just like a license to print money". |
