ODVA has announced that Endress+Hauser will become a principal member, joining suppliers Bosch Rexroth, Cisco Systems, Rockwell Automation, Omron and Schneider Electric.
Endress+Hauser’s increased participation in ODVA builds on its long-term support of open industrial networking technologies, including the company’s portfolio of mass flow meters designed for the EtherNet/IP network.
“ODVA is one of the world’s largest consortiums advancing open, industrial networking standards through commercially-off-the-shelf (COTS) technology and a media-independent network protocol,” said Katherine Voss, executive director, ODVA.
“We welcome Endress+Hauser in this consortium as we have a shared vision for leveraging EtherNet/IP to simplify an end user’s network architecture.”
With industrial automation suppliers as principal members, ODVA is one of the first associations which strives to support Industrial Ethernet down to the field level in process automation.
This will help provide manufacturers a complete, plant-wide network infrastructure for process, motion, safety and discrete applications and from plant-floor to IT systems.
Traditionally, devices measuring and controlling process variables rely on a field network to transfer information, while other devices within the plant use completely different networks for data communication.
By replacing this complex multi-tier networking strategy with one standard network architecture, namely EtherNet/IP, users have a simplified network structure as well as better access to plant-floor information. This enhances the ability to monitor overall performance, troubleshoot out-of-margin conditions and minimise downtime.
“Our customers demand open, interoperable solutions such as EtherNet/IP, as it enables higher-level software such as ERP systems, process historians, control loop tuning programs, and asset management systems to access data from process instrumentation,” said Raimund Sommer, managing director of Endress+Hauser Process Solutions AG.
“We look forward to continue working through ODVA to help users achieve seamless integration of our instruments into system architectures.”
Endress+Hauser made its first major commitment to ODVA technologies in 2009 when the company launched the Promass 83 – the world’s first Coriolis mass flow meter with EtherNet/IP connectivity – capable of measuring mass flow, density and temperature, featuring an integrated Web Server that allows authorised users to remotely conduct diagnostics, configure the instrument or perform process optimisation.
The company also recently launched its Promag 53 Magnetic Inductive flow meter with EtherNet/IP connectivity. By using EtherNet/IP, up to 10 measured variables can be configured and transmitted including volume flow, calculated mass flow and totalised flow.