Common industrial network protocol – PROFINET

PROFINET is an industrial Ethernet protocol designed to exchange data between devices and controllers in industrial automation. It is the most well-adopted industrial Ethernet protocol. It can operate at a higher speed than PROFIBUS because it is Ethernet-based. The connector that’s used for PROFINET is a standard RJ45 connector (Figure 13.13) and the network cable can be a standard Ethernet cable such as those you find in offices, such as twisted pair CAT 6 cables (Figure 13.9). A standard Ethernet cable can be damaged easily due to the challenging environmental conditions in the industry. For that reason, an industrial Ethernet cable is suitable for use in PROFINET. It is characterized by shielding protection and ruggedized and proper jacketing. A standard Ethernet switch (Figure 13.14) can also be used because it uses the same physical connection standard as Ethernet. PROFINET is now becoming a popular protocol that’...