All together, the new editions include 14 enhancements to the specifications. Among these enhancements, the following are especially noteworthy:
“The right choice of physical connectivity, and the right design of physical connectivity, can have a disproportionately large effect on the total cost of ownership of machines and production units,” stated Katherine Voss, executive director of ODVA. “ODVA is defining best in class practices for auxiliary power circuits and fiber optic installations by defining a set of consistent rules for components, devices and wiring practices.”
“The automotive industry demands easy-to-assemble plug connectors for fiber optic cables, and the most difficult environmental conditions for robust data transmission can be found in the body shop where high electro-magnetic radiation caused by welding tongs, potential currents between devices and high bending and torsion forces of the tube packages on the robots do not always allow for the use of copper-based transmission methods,” stated Simon Seereiner, Portfolio Manager at Weidmüller Interface.
Bernd Horrmeyer, Product Marketing Senior Engineer at Phoenix Contact, agreed. “The easily assembled SC-RJ for polymer-optical fibers, in connection with the robust IP67 protective housing of the IEC 61076-3-106 Version 1, offers robust data transmission in demanding applications where network communications are threatened by severe environment conditions. For installations that are more than 100m apart, the SC-RJ also incorporates the ability to secure single as well as multi-mode glass fiber cables. Available in both IP20 and IP67 and in metal and plastic versions, this new connector for EtherNet/IP offers an extremely broad range of applications and can be integrated into devices where a small form factor is necessary.”
The specifications are organized as a group of publications entitled The CIP Networks Library. Each specification is made up of one or more volumes of The CIP Networks Library. The current and latest editions of the specifications are:
Comprised of The CIP Networks Library:
Volumes One (Edition 3.6), Two (Edition 1.7) and Seven (Edition 1.3)
Comprised of The CIP Networks Library:
Volumes One (Edition 3.6), Three (Edition 1.7) and Seven (Edition 1.3)
Comprised of The CIP Networks Library:
Volumes One (Edition 3.6), Four (Edition 1.3) and Seven (Edition 1.3)
Comprised of The CIP Networks Library:
Volumes One (Edition 3.6), Six (Edition 1.5) and Seven (Edition 1.3)
Comprised of The CIP Networks Library:
Volume Five (Edition 2.2)
ODVA expects that devices containing new enhancements found in the latest specifications will be available in 2009. Specifications are available on a subscription basis, subject to a Terms of Usage Agreement.
About ODVA
ODVA, founded in 1995, is an international association comprised of members from the world's leading automation companies. Collectively, ODVA and its members support network technologies based on the Common Industrial Protocol (CIP). These currently include CompoNet, ControlNet, DeviceNet, and EtherNet/IP, along with the major extensions to CIP -- CIP Safety and CIP Motion. ODVA manages the development of these open technologies, and assists manufacturers and users of CIP Networks through its activities in standards development, certification, vendor education and industry awareness. As part of its certification activities, ODVA offers conformance testing to help ensure that products built to its specifications operate in multi-vendor systems.
