Connect to PROFIBUS Networks with CompactRIO

[jboone]

Engineers often need to add new functionality and increase efficiency  in industrial plants and factory automation, both of which are ideal  situations for using tools such as NI LabVIEW software and NI CompactRIO hardware. To ensure easy connectivity with existing systems that have  standardized on industrial protocols, NI has introduced two PROFIBUS DP  interfaces – the CompactRIO PROFIBUS  master/slave and slave-only modules. These NI C Series modules connect programmable automation controllers (PACs) and  embedded devices, such as CompactRIO and NI Single-Board RIO, to  PROFIBUS industrial networks as powerful masters or slaves. As with the  PCI and PXI PROFIBUS interfaces, graphical stand-alone COMSOFT  CONFIGURATOR software is included for device and network configuration.  Additionally, the NI-PROFIBUS for CompactRIO driver provides a LabVIEW FPGA VI-based API for  creating human machine interface (HMI) and supervisory control and data  acquisition (SCADA) applications.

NI has also released the NI USB-8486,  a one-port FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1 interface commonly used in process  automation. This portable host device for Windows OS machines provides  data logging, configuration, and control in HMI and distributed control  system (DCS) applications. In addition, NI offers a pair of DeviceNet  for Control boards for PCI and PXI. These master (scanner) interfaces  provide high-level LabVIEW access to easily manage and control a network  full of DeviceNet slaves.

NI offers new PROFIBUS modules for  connectivity with LabVIEW and NI PACs.