I need to provide some temporary signal routing during a construction phase. I would like to send 10-12 discrete signals from one area of a plant to
another area. There is a good Ethernet backbone in the plant and I would like a device that would read digital inputs at one location and provide
corresponding digital outputs at another location using Ethernet. This would be a simple one-to-one relationship between input and output. I have looked at serial-to-Ethernet converters and using RTU's or PLC's but it seems expensive. I was hoping there might be a package already developed that would do this. All ideas welcomed.

Thanks,
Bill Irish

 

A pair of low cost S7-200's can be connected together via a twisted pair using the standard programming ports. (existing phone cable is good enougth for the speeds they run at).

If you want to use the ethernet, you could use a simple ASCII protocoll on the port to convinient PC's, allthougth you may be easier off here using other low cost PLC's such as OMRON or MODICON, whose built in serial ports are easily accessible via standard published protocols.

 

Try a Modicon Momentum with Ethernet and a Digital I/O base for under a $1000

Good Luck
Mark Massa
BCS
Buffalo,NY

 

Both Intelligent Instrumentation and Opto 22 make ethernet I/O modules. You would probably need a PC somewhere in the system to control the "routing" from one module to the other. I do not know of a simple multiplexor like you are asking for.

Bill Sturm

 

Bill,
How expensive is expensive? In the PLC realm try AutomationDirect's Koyo 450 series with an Ethernet Module. They are fairly inexpensive and work great.
WWW.automationdirect.com

Chris Ryan
Electrical Engineer
Bethlehem Steel Corp.
Sparrowspoint Div.
PPI - Slab Group

 

Ethernet controllers are available for the DL205 series as well......even LESS expensive ;o)

- Eric
[email protected]
Controls/Software
Packaging Associates Automation Inc. [email protected]
Rockaway, NJ, USA

 

A little late to the party, but for future reference...

Opto 22's SNAP Ethernet I/O has support for telemetry/synchronization between two Ethernet I/O systems as standard functionality.

System A would have digital or analog inputs. Systems B would have DO and AO in the same physical locations as system A, ending up with one system inverse of the other. Then go into the Web server of system A, enter the IP address of system B and the frequency, and walla, inputs mapped to outputs via Ethernet. Incidentally, this procedure uses UDP/IP and the streaming method. For more information, see www.opto22.com.

Benson