A Study on the Suitability of Ethernet/IP and EtherCAT for Industrial Time Critical Applications

In modern times, industrial communication networks have become an important element for advanced control and automation systems. Various factors including high performance, low installation and maintenance costs, have become major factors while deciding the appropriate protocol standards. However, real-time capabilities are often needed in an increasing number of scenarios. Ethernet based communication solutions have become increasingly popular in recent times. With the number of installed nodes crossing over one million, it can be safely said that Ethernet technologies are here to stay. Some of the best protocols under this category include Ethernet/IP, PROFINET, Modbus TCP, EtherCAT, Sercos III, and Powerlink. In the following paper we have tried to choose a real time ethernet solution to a specific industrial problem based on their characteristics and suitability in a time critical application.