PROFInet

Technology and Application

Introduction
Due to ever shorter innovation cy- PROFInet is the innovative and The continuous further develop-
cles for new products, the field of open standard for industrial ment of PROFInet offers users a
automation is in a constant state of automation based on Industrial long-term perspective for realiza-
change. In this context, the imple- Ethernet. PROFInet supports tion of their automation projects.
mentation of fieldbus technology in easy implementation of solu-
recent years represents a major in- tions in factory automation and For plant/mechanical engineers,
novation. It enables the change- Motion Control. the use of PROFInet minimizes the
over from central to distributed cost of installation, engineering and
automation systems. As the world As well as utilization of IT technol- commissioning. For plant opera-
market leader in this field, ogy, investment protection also tors/owners, PROFInet enables
PROFIBUS has now been setting plays a key role in the PROFInet simple expansion of plants and of-
standards for 15 years. concept. PROFInet enables inte- fers high plant availability due to
gration of existing fieldbus sys- autonomous subsections.
Events in modern automation are tems, such as PROFIBUS, without
increasingly determined by infor- the need to modify existing de- Furthermore, the method of certifi-
mation technology (IT) with estab- vices. This protects existing in- cation established by PROFIBUS
lished standards, such as TCP/IP vestments of plant operators/ International ensures a high quality
and XML. The integration of infor- owners, machine/plant manufac- standard of PROFInet products.
mation technology into modern turers and device manufacturers
The document gives you a detailed
automation has produced a con- alike.
explanation of how the tried and
siderable improvement in commu-
PROFInet meets all automation tested PROFIBUS technology and
nication options between automa-
demands. PROFInet also incorpo- the established IT standards have
tion systems, as well as extensive
rates years of know-how from the been implemented in PROFInet.
configuration and diagnostic op-
tions and remote service functions. PROFIBUS and Industrial Ethernet
From the outset, these functions world. The use of open standards,
have been an integral part of the simple handling and the inte-
PROFInet. gration of existing devices deter-
mined the definition of
PROFInet from the outset. PROFI-
net is now integrated in the
IEC 61158.
 Contents

1. An overview of PROFInet........................... 1 5. Network installation ................................. 10

1.1 Distributed field devices (PROFInet IO). 1 5.1 Network topologies .............................. 10
1.2 Distributed automation (components 5.2 PROFInet cabling ................................ 11
model) .................................................... 1 5.3 Connectors........................................... 11
1.3 Communication ...................................... 1 5.4 Switches............................................... 12
1.4 Network installation ................................ 2
1.5 IT integration .......................................... 2 6. IT integration............................................. 13
1.6 Fieldbus integration................................ 2
6.1 Network management.......................... 13
6.2 Web services ....................................... 13
2. Decentralized field devices....................... 3
6.3 OPC ..................................................... 14
2.1 Scope of functions.................................. 3
2.2 Device models........................................ 3 7. Integration of fieldbus systems .............. 16
2.3 Device description.................................. 4
2.4 Configuration and data exchange .......... 4 7.1 Migration strategies ............................. 16
2.5 Diagnostics............................................. 4 7.2 Integration with proxies........................ 16
7.3 Integration of fieldbus applications ...... 16
7.4 PROFInet and other fieldbus systems. 17
3. Distributed automation .............................. 5
7.5 Example of a modular machine ........... 17
3.1 Technological modules .......................... 5
3.2 PROFInet components........................... 5 8. Services offered by PI.............................. 18
3.3 PROFInet Engineering ........................... 5
3.4 The component description (PCD)......... 6 8.1 Technology development..................... 18
3.5 The Connection Editor ........................... 6 8.2 Quality measures................................. 18
3.6 PROFInet Runtime................................. 6 8.3 Technical support ................................ 19

4. PROFInet communication.......................... 7 9. Glossary .................................................... 20

4.1 Standard communication with TCP/UDP7

4.2 Real Time communication ..................... 7
4.3 Communication with PROFInet IO........ 9
4.4 Communication between technological
modules.................................................. 9
1. An overview of
PROFInet

PROFInet is the innovative auto-

mation standard of PROFIBUS In-
ternational for the implementation
of an integrated and consistent
automation solution based on In-
dustrial Ethernet. PROFInet sup-
ports the integration of simple dis-
tributed field devices and time-
critical applications in Ethernet
communication, as well as the in-
tegration of component-based dis-
tributed automation systems. Figure 1: The architecture of PROFInet IO is similar to that of PROFIBUS DP

1.1 Distributed field devices

(PROFInet IO) PROFInet on the basis of a com-
ponent model is described via a
1.3 Communication
Distributed field devices are inte-
grated through PROFInet IO. This PCD (PROFInet Component De- PROFInet uses different perform-
uses the usual IO view of scription). It is XML-based and can ance levels for communication pur-
PROFIBUS DP, whereby the IO be created using either the Com- poses:
data of field devices are cyclically ponent Generator of a manufac-
transmitted to the process image of turer-specific configuration tool or • PROFInet transfers non-time-
the PLC. the PROFInet Component Editor. critical data, such as parame-
The engineering of distributed ters, configuration data and
PROFInet IO describes a device connection information over
model that is based on the key fea- automation plants differentiates be-
tween the programming of the con- the standard channel via
tures of PROFIBUS DP and com- TCP/UDP and IP. This meets
prises slots and channels. The trol logic of the individual techno-
logical modules (manufacturer- the requirements for the con-
characteristics of the field devices nection of automation levels to
are described via a GSD (General specific configuring tools) and the
technological configuration of the other networks (MES, ERP).
Station Description) on an XML ba-
sis. overall plant, which determines the • For transmission of time-
communication relationships be- critical process data within the
The engineering of PROFInet IO tween the technological modules. production plant, it uses the
will be familiar to all system inte- real-time channel Soft Real
grators of PROFIBUS DP, whereby Time (SRT). It is implemented
the distributed field devices are as- as software based on available
signed a controller during configu- controllers.
ration.

1.2 Distributed automation

(components model)
The PROFInet component model is
effective in distributed automation
plants. It is ideal for intelligent field
and automation devices with pro- Mechanical
grammable functionality. Filling

The component model describes

the autonomous modules of ma- Intelligent
chines or plants as technological field device
modules. A distributed automation
system developed on the basis of
technological modules simplifies Control
the modular design of plants and software
machines, thus considerably sim-
plifying the re-use of plant and ma-
chine parts. This significantly re-
Figure 2: Mechanics, electrics/electronics and software are combined to create techno-
duces engineering costs. logical modules

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 1

• For time synchronized applica- • Integration of complete field-
tions, Isochronous Real Time bus applications: A fieldbus
(IRT) communication is avail- 1.6 Fieldbus integration segment represents a self-
able which allows jitter accu- A key aspect for PROFInet is the contained component. The
racy of 1 µs at a clock rate of 1 seamless transition from existing representative of this compo-
ms. fieldbus solutions, such as PROFI- nent is the PROFInet device,
BUS DP, to Ethernet-based PRO- which at a lower level operates
FInet. As far as the device/plant/ a fieldbus such as PROFIBUS
1.4 Network installation machine manufacturer and the end DP. As such, the complete
user are concerned, this is an im- functionality of a lower-level
PROFInet network installations are portant protection of existing in- fieldbus is stored in the proxy
based on the specific requirements vestments. in the form of a component.
for Ethernet networks in an indus- This is then available on the
trial environment. They provide the Ethernet.
device manufacturer with clear PROFInet offers two methods of in-
specifications for device interfaces tegrating fieldbus systems:
and the cabling required. The
"PROFInet Installation Guideline" • Integration of fieldbus devices
provides plant manufacturers/ via so-called proxies: In this
operators with simple rules for the case the proxy represents the
installation of Ethernet networks. lower-level field devices on the
Ethernet. Using the proxy con-
cept, PROFInet offers a fully
transparent transition from ex-
1.5 IT integration isting to newly installed de-
Network management covers all vices.
functions for the administration of
PROFInet devices in Ethernet net-
works. This includes device and
network configurations and network
diagnostics.

For Web Integration, PROFInet

uses Ethernet-based technologies
and enables access to PROFInet
components by means of standard
technologies from the Internet.

To obtain an open link to other sys-

tem worlds, PROFInet uses OPC
DA and DX.

Figure 3: PROFIBUS systems can be integrated in PROFInet using a proxy

2 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

2. Decentralized field
devices

With PROFInet IO, integration of

the decentralized field devices is
implemented directly on the
Ethernet. For this purpose, the
master-slave access method, famil-
iar from PROFIBUS DP, is con-
verted to a provider-consumer
model. From a communication
point of view, all devices on the
Ethernet are treated democrati-
Figure 4: The consumer/provider model is used for communication relation-
cally. However, the configuration
ships in PROFInet IO
process is used to determine as-
signment of the field devices to a
central controller, whereby the fa- • event-controlled alarms over
miliar PROFIBUS user interface is the real-time channel
transferred to the PROFInet pe- 2.2 Device models
ripherals: the distributed peripheral • parameter assignment, con-
reads in the peripheral signals and figuration and reading of diag- A uniform device model is specified
transfers them to the controller. nostic information over stan- for the PROFInet IO-Device, which
The controller then processes the dard channel on the basis of enables the configuration of modu-
signals and transfers the outputs UDP/IP. lar and compact field devices. This
on to the distributed peripheral. is orientated to the characteristics
To start, application relations (IO- of PROFIBUS DP and, for a modu-
AR) are established between the lar field device, comprises slots for
IO-Controller and the IO-Device on the insertion of modules. These
2.1 Scope of functions the UDP/IP channel. It contains modules are fitted with IO channels
several communication relation- which serve the input and output of
PROFInet IO distinguishes be- ships (CRs) through which the con- process signals.
tween three device types: IO-Con- figuration and IO data as well as in-
troller, IO-Device and IO-Super- terrupts are transferred. The IO-
visor: Controller transfers the parame-
• IO-Controller: Controller on terization and configuration data of
which the automation program the assigned IO-Devices over the
is run "Record Data CR". Cyclic trans-
mission of the IO data is imple-
• IO-Device: remotely assigned mented over the "IO CR"; the
field device, which is assigned
to an IO-Controller acyclic events are transmitted over
the "alarm CR" to the IO controller
• IO-Supervisor: programming and acknowledged. PROFInet
device/PC with commissioning alarm types are unplug, plug in, di-
and diagnostics functions
agnostics, status, and update
Data can be transferred between alarm. Manufacturer-specific Figure 6: The PROFInet IO device model is
IO-Controller and IO-Devices over alarms are also possible. High or similar to the PROFIBUS DP device model
the following channels: low priority can be assigned to
This modular design ensures that
alarms.
• cyclic IO data over the real- the existing PROFIBUS DP range
time channel of IO modules can also be incorpo-
rated in PROFInet without requiring
any modification. This ensures in-
vestment protection for device
manufacturers and operators/
owners (e.g., spare parts inven-
tory).

Each IO-Device is assigned a glob-

ally unique device ID within the
framework of PROFInet IO. This
32-bit Device-Ident-Number is bro-
ken down into a 16-bit manufac-
turer ID and a 16-bit device ID.

Figure 5: Functional scope of PROFInet IO

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 3

The manufacturer identification is
assigned by PI. The device ID can
be individually assigned by manu-
facturers to suit their own product
development.

2.3 Device description

A PROFInet IO-Device is inte-
grated in the configuration tool in
the same manner as a PROFIBUS
DP device, i.e. via a device de-
scription. The characteristics of an Figure 7: From configuration to data exchange
IO device are described in a GSD
(General Station Description),
which contains all the information When an error occurs, the defec-
that the field device requires: tive IO-Device generates a diag-
2.4 Configuration and data nostics alarm at the IO-Controller.
• Properties of the IO-Device exchange
(e.g., communication parame- This alarm calls up a correspond-
ters) ing program routine in the PLC pro-
The description files of the IO-
gram that enables a reaction to the
Devices are imported to the con-
• Plug-in modules (quantity and fault. If a device or module fault
figuration tool. The individual IO
type) means that it needs to be com-
channels of the field devices are
pletely replaced, the IO-Controller
• Configuration data of the indi- assigned peripheral addresses.
automatically carries out the
vidual modules (e.g., analog The peripheral input addresses
parameterization and configuration
input modules) contain the received process val-
of the new device or module.
ues. The application program
• Parameters of the modules evaluates these and processes
(e.g., 4...20mA) The diagnostic information is hier-
them. The application program
archically structured:
• Error texts for diagnostics creates the peripheral output val-
(e.g., wire break, short-circuit) ues and transmits them to the • Slot number (module)
process. In addition, the parame-
The GSD is XML-based. The fact terization of the individual IO mod- • Channel number
that XML is an open, widespread ules or channels is implemented in
• Channel type (input/output)
and accepted standard for describ- the configuration tool, e.g.,
ing data means availability of pow- 4...20mA current range of an ana- • Coded cause of failure (e.g.,
erful tools and derived properties: log channel. wire break, short-circuit)
• Creation and validation On completion of configuration, the • Additional manufacturer-speci-
through implementation of configuration data are downloaded fic information
standard tools to the IO-Controller. The IO-De-
vices are automatically parameter- When an error occurs at a channel,
• Integration of foreign lan- ized and configured by the IO- the defective IO device generates a
guages Controller and then enter the cyclic diagnostics alarm at the IO control-
data exchange. ler. This alarm invokes the call-up
• Hierarchical structuring of a corresponding error routine in
The structure of the GSD corre- the control program. Once the error
sponds to ISO 15745, comprising a routine has been implemented, the
2.5 Diagnostics IO-Controller acknowledges the er-
device-specific part with the con-
figuration data and parameters of ror at the IO-Device. This acknowl-
PROFInet IO supports a multi-layer
the modules as well as a commu- edgement mechanism ensures the
diagnostics concept that enables
nication-specific part with transmis- sequential processing of the error
efficient error location and elimina-
sion speed and connection system. in the IO-Controller.
tion.

4 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

3. Distributed automa- Vendor independent

tion PROFInet Connection Editor

Vendor specific Vendor specific
Vendor specific

Developments in the field of auto- Programming Programming Programming

mation have seen the creation of
Configuration Configuration Configuration
modular plant or machines. This
structuring gave impetus to the fur- Parametrization
Parameterization Parameterization
Parametrization Parametrization
Parameterization
ther development of automation to Vendor A
Vendor B
distributed automation systems. Vendor C

PROFInet also has a solution for PROFIBUS PROFIBUS

Fieldbus X

this purpose, which is to break de-

vices down into technological mod-
ules.
Figure 8: PROFInet is based on a multi-vendor engineering concept

3.1 Technological modules

In the goods manufacturing proc- The components can be flexibly a component, the granularity may
ess, the function of an automatic combined like building blocks and stretch from an individual device
plant or machine is performed are easy to re-use, regardless of through to a complete machine
through the defined interaction of their internal implementation. The with a multitude of devices.
mechanical, electrical/electronics mechanisms for accessing the
and control logic/software. Working component interfaces are uniformly
on this principle, PROFInet defines defined in PROFInet. 3.3 PROFInet Engineering
the mechanical, electrical/elec-
tronics and control logic/software Granularity of the techno- A vendor-independent engineering
parts in functional terms to form a logical modules concept was created for the user-
technological module (see Figure When specifying the granularity of friendly configuration of a PROFI-
2). modules it is important to consider net system. On the one hand the
their re-usability in various systems engineering concept can be used
in the light of costs and availability. to develop configuration tools able
The objective is to combine indi- to use multi-vendor components,
3.2 PROFInet components vidual components as flexibly as on the other hand it permits the
possible using the modular princi- vendor- or user-specific expansion
The representative of a technologi-
ple in order to create a complete of functions.
cal module in the plant engineering
system. On the one hand, too fine
is the so-called PROFInet compo-
a granularity produces a techno- The engineering model distin-
nent. Each PROFInet component
logical view of the installation that guishes between programming the
has an interface, which contains
is more complex. This results in control logic of the individual tech-
the technological variables that are
higher engineering costs. On the nological modules and the techno-
exchanged with other components.
other hand, an all-too coarse of logical configuration of the com-
The PROFInet components are granularity reduces the degree of plete system. A system-wide appli-
modeled with standardized COM re-usability. This results in higher cation is created in three stages.
technology. COM is a further de- costs for implementation.
velopment of the object orientation Creating the components
The software components are cre- The components are created as an
concept and enables the develop-
ated by the manufacturer of the image of the technological modules
ment of applications based on pre-
machine or plant. The component by the builder of the plant or instal-
fabricated components. A feature
design has had a major impact on lation. Programming and configura-
of the components is that they form
the lowering of engineering and tion of the devices is implemented
autonomous units and can form re-
hardware costs and on the time- as before with the respective
lations with other components.
related characteristics of the auto- manufacturer-specific tools. This
mation system. During definition of

Figure 9: Component generation is standardized with PROFInet Figure 10: The connection information is downloaded to
the field devices after configuration

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 5

allows continued use of existing ables, such as their techno-
application programs and utilization logical name, data type, and
of programmer and service per- direction (input or output)
sonnel expertise.
• buffer for component project
Finally, the application software is
encapsulated in the form of a Component libraries are formed to
PROFInet component, whereby a support re-usability.
component description PCD
(PROFInet Component Descrip- Figure 11: Communication is config-
ured using the Connection Editor
tion) is created and imported to the 3.5 Connection Editor
library of the Connection Editor.
downloaded to the PROFInet de- A Connection Editor usually offers
Connecting the components vices with a simple mouse-click. two views: the system and the net-
Using the PROFInet Connection Thus, each device knows all its work view.
Editor, the created PROFInet com- communication partners, commu-
ponents are taken from a library nication relationships and ex- In the system view, the necessary
and connected to form an applica- changeable information. The dis- components are imported from the
tion with simple clicks of the tributed application can be imple- library and placed on the screen,
mouse. mented. and the various connections are
established. This creates the tech-
This connection with simple nological structure and its logical
graphical configuration replaces 3.4 Component description relations within the system.
the previous, labor-intensive pro-
(PCD) The topological structure of the
gramming of communication rela-
tionships. Programming requires The PROFInet Component De- automation system is created in the
detailed knowledge of the integra- scription (PCD) is an XML file. It is network view. In this case, the field
tion and sequencing of communi- created using vendor-specific tools devices and programmable control-
cation functions in the device. assuming that these have a Com- lers are assigned to a bus system
When programming, it must al- ponent Generator. Alternatively, and the device addresses are fixed
ready be clear which devices will you can create the PCD file using a in accordance with the rules of the
communicate with each other, multi-vendor PROFInet Component underlying bus system.
when communication will take Editor, which can be downloaded
place and over which bus system. from the PROFIBUS website
However, no knowledge of the www.profibus.com 3.6 PROFInet Runtime
communication functions is neces-
sary during configuration as these The PCD file contains information The PROFInet runtime model de-
are run automatically in the de- about the function and objects of fines functions and utilities that re-
vices. the PROFInet components. These quire cooperating automation com-
include the following: ponents to fulfill an automation
The connection editor draws to- task. It establishes and monitors
gether the individual applications • description of components as the connections between the PRO-
that are distributed throughout the library elements: component FInet components configured by
system. It works independently of ID, component name the engineering tool. It sets up a
manufacturer, i.e. it configures provider-consumer model in which
PROFInet components from differ- • description of hardware: IP the provider generates and sends
ent vendors. address, access to diagnostic data that the consumer receives
data, download of connections and processes.
Download
After connection of the compo- • description of software func-
nents, the connection information tionality: assignment of soft-
and the code and configuration ware to hardware, component
data of the components are interface, properties of vari-

Figure 12: The system view in the Connection Editor dis- Figure 13: The network view in the Connection Editor
plays the connected components shows the connected field devices

6 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

4. PROFInet
communication

The Ethernet-based communica-

tion at PROFInet can be scaled. It
has three performance levels:

1. TCP, UDP and IP for non-time-

critical data, such as parameter as-
signment and configuration,

2. Soft Real Time (SRT) for time-

critical process data used in the Figure 14: The Ethernet-based communication for PROFInet can be scaled.
field of factory automation and
of 5-10ms. The update time is the
3. Isochronous Real Time (IRT) for time which passes when a variable
particularly sophisticated demands, 4.1 Standard communication is created in a device application,
as for Motion Control applications. with TCP/UDP then sent to a partner device
through the communication sys-
These three performance levels of PROFInet uses Ethernet and tems, and is subsequently made
PROFInet communication cover TCP/IP as its basis for communica- available to the application again at
the entire spectrum of automation tion. As far as communication pro- this partner device.
applications. Key features of the tocols are concerned, TCP/IP is a
PROFInet communication standard de-facto standard in the IT land- Implementation of real-time com-
include the following: scape. However, with regard to the munication should result in only
interoperability of different applica- minimal loading of the processor
• Coexistent use of real-time tions, it is not enough to establish a for the devices in order to ensure
and TCP-based IT communi- common TCP or UDP based com- that the processing of the applica-
cation on a single line munication channel (Layer 4) on tion program continues to have pri-
the field devices. The fact is, that ority.
• Standardized real-time proto-
TCP/IP only provides the basis for
col for all applications, for Experience has shown that the
enabling Ethernet devices to ex-
communication between com- transmission time along the line
change data through a transport
ponents in distributed systems with Fast Ethernet (100 Mbps
channel in local and distributed
as well as between the control- Ethernet) or higher is negligible in
networks. Additional specifications
ler and the decentralized field comparison to the execution time in
and protocols, so-called application
devices the devices. The time taken to
protocols, are therefore required at
a higher level than TCP or UDP. In- make the data available in the pro-
• Scaleable real-time communi- vider's application is not affected
cation from performant to high- teroperability is only ensured if the
same application protocol is used by the communication. This also
performant and time synchro- applies to the processing of the re-
nized for all devices. Typical application
protocols are, for example, SMTP ceived data in the consumer. This
The characteristics of the scaleable (used for e-mail), FTP (used for file means that any notable improve-
and standardized communication transfer) and HTTP (used on the ments in the update time, and
basis are one of the key strengths Internet). hence in the real-time response,
of PROFInet. They ensure consis- are to be achieved primarily
tency right through to corporate through suitable optimization of the
management level and fast re- communication stack in the pro-
4.2 Real Time communica- vider and the consumer.
sponse times in the automation tion
process.
In the field of factory automation,
real-time applications require up-
date/response times within a range

Ethernet
Ethernet is standardized in IEEE 802.3. Specifications include access
technology, transmission procedures and transmission media for
Ethernet (10 Mbps), for Fast Ethernet (100 Mbps) and for Gigabit
Ethernet (1Gbps). PROFInet uses Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet.

Fast Ethernet for 100 Mbps is a compatible expansion of the 10 Mbps

Ethernet. Full duplex mode and switching are integrated and standard-
ized in Fast Ethernet.
Figure 15: Communication channels with
PROFInet

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 7

 IP
Data transmission with the In-
ternet Protocol (IP) represents a
non-secure package transmis-
sion (datagrams) between an IP
source and an IP destination.
Datagrams may be lost due to
interference on the transmission
channel or overloading of the
network, and they may arrive
several times or in a different
order than the one in which they
were sent. It can be assumed,
however, that any datagram re-
Figure 16: Scheduling of communication system for IRT ceived is correct. Due to the 32-
bit checksum of the Ethernet
packet, it is highly unlikely for
Optimized data transmission errors in the packet to go unde-
through prioritization tected.
Soft Real Time (SRT) In PROFInet there is not only a mi-
In order to satisfy real-time re- nimized communication stack in
quirements in automation, PROFI- the programmable controllers; the
net has an optimized real-time transmission of data in the network
communication channel – the Soft cycles of 1µs for up to 100 nodes.
is also optimized. In order to opti-
Real Time channel. To meet these demands, PROFI-
mize results in these cases too, the
net has defined the time-slot-
packets are prioritized in PROFInet
This channel is Ethernet-based controlled transmission method IRT
in accordance with IEEE 802.1Q.
(Layer 2). This solution minimizes on the Layer 2 Protocol for Fast
Data flow between the devices is
run times in the communication Ethernet.
then controlled by the network
stack appreciably and increases
components on the basis of this Through the time synchronization
performance with regard to the up-
prioritization. Priority 6 is the stan- of participating devices (network
date rate of process data. Firstly,
dard priority for real-time data. This components and PROFInet de-
the elimination of several protocol
ensures priority handling over other vices) with the aforementioned ac-
levels reduces the message length,
applications, such as Internet te- curacy, a time slot can be specified
and secondly, it takes less time be-
lephony with Priority 5. in the network during which the key
fore the transmission data are rea-
dy for sending i.e. are ready for data needed for the automation
Isochronous Real Time (IRT) task are transmitted. The commu-
processing by the application. At However, the aforementioned solu-
the same time the processor power nication cycle is broken down into a
tions are not sufficient for Motion deterministic part and an open part.
needed in the device for communi- Control applications. These require
cation is greatly reduced. The cyclic real-time telegrams are
update rates of around 1 ms with a transported in the deterministic
jitter accuracy for the consecutive channel, while the TCP/IP tele-
grams are transported in the open
channel. The process is compara-
ble with the traffic on a freeway, of
TCP which the left lane is reserved for
TCP ensures that data transmission from sender to receiver is error- time-critical traffic (real-time traffic)
free, in the correct sequence and complete. TCP is connection- and prevents the other road users
orientated, i.e. a connection is established between two stations prior (TCP/IP traffic) from switching to
to transmission of the data blocks and is disconnected again after this lane. Even congestion in the
transmission. TCP has mechanisms for continuous monitoring of the right lane does not affect the time-
established connection. critical traffic.

UDP
Like TCP, UDP ensures that data transmission from sender to receiver
is error-free, in the correct sequence and complete. However, in con-
trast to TCP, UDP is connectionless, i.e. each data packet is treated
as a single message and there is no transport acknowledgement. Be-
cause there is no timeout monitoring or connection buildup/cleardown,
UDP is better suited to time-critical applications than TCP. With UDP,
the data blocking and communication monitoring, which is implicit with
TCP, can be carried out at the application level e.g. over RPC (Re-
mote Procedure Call).

8 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

Implementation of the isochronous The data transmission layer of user configures whether user data
data transmission is hardware- PROFInet is defined in IEEE 802.3, is exchanged over DCOM or the
based. An ASIC with this function- which describes the configuration real-time channel in the engineer-
ality covers the cycle synchroniza- of the protocols and fault monitor- ing system. While devices are set-
tion and time slot reservation func- ing. A user data telegram com- ting up a communication they can
tion for real-time data. The hard- prises a minimum of 64 bytes and then agree if necessary to use a
ware-based implementation en- a maximum of 1500 bytes. The real-time-capable protocol, be-
ables the required accuracy in the overall protocol overhead for real- cause communication between
required order of magnitude and time data is 28 bytes. such plant/machine modules may
also relieves the processor in the require real-time conditions which
PROFInet device of communication cannot be satisfied by TCP/IP and
tasks. This frees up computing time 4.4 Communication between UDP.
that can be made available for
automation task solutions.
components TCP/IP and DCOM form the com-
mon "language" that can definitely
In the PROFInet component view,
be used to start communication be-
DCOM (Distributed COM) is speci-
tween the devices. The PROFInet
4.3 Communication fied as the shared TCP/IP-based
real-time channel is then used for
with PROFInet IO application protocol between PRO-
real-time communication between
FInet components. DCOM is the
the individual nodes in time-critical
With PROFInet IO the UDP/IP- expansion of COM (Component
applications. In the configuring tool,
based RPC is used at startup for Object Model) for the distribution of
the user can decide the quality of
the initiation of data exchange be- objects and their interoperability in
service by setting the change rate,
tween the devices, parameter as- a network. DCOM is based on the
i.e. whether the values are trans-
signment of the distributed field de- standardized protocol RPC. As well
mitted between the components
vices and diagnostics. Due to the as accessing the engineering sys-
cyclically during runtime or only in
open and standardized RPC proto- tem, e.g. loading connections,
the case of change. Cyclic trans-
col, HMI stations and engineering reading diagnostic data, device pa-
mission is better in the case of high
systems (IO-Supervisors) can also rameterization and configuration,
change rates because the checks
access PROFInet IO-Ddevices. PROFInet also uses DCOM to es-
for change and acknowledgment
The PROFInet real-time channel is tablish connections and exchange
result in a higher processor load
then used for the transmission of user data.
than sending in cyclic mode.
IO and alarms.
However, it is not necessary to use
In a typical IO configuration, an IO- DCOM for user data exchange be-
Controller exchanges cyclic IO with tween PROFInet components. The
several decentralized field devices
(IO-Devices) via communication re-
lationships. In each scan cycle, the
input data are sent from the as-
signed field devices to the IO-
Controller and, in reaction to this,
the output data are sent back to the
corresponding field devices. The
communication relationships are
monitored through the monitoring
of received cyclic messages. For
example, if the input frames fail to
arrive for 3 cycles, the IO-
Controller detects that the respec-
tive IO-Device has failed.

Figure 17: PROFInet communication between PROFInet components and

PROFInet IO-Devices

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 9

5. Network installation

The international standard ISO/IEC

11801 and its European equivalent
EN 50173 define an application-
neutral, standard IT network for a
building complex. The two stan-
dards are largely identical in con-
tent. Both assume that the build-
ings are put to office-like use and
claim to be application-neutral.

Neither standard takes account of

the specific requirements that need
to be met by Ethernet networks in
an industrial environment, e.g.,

• Installation-specific cable rout-

ing Figure 18: Ethernet networks in the office world usually use a tree topology

• An individual level of network-

plications for star-shaped network
ing for each machine/plant
structures are areas of high device
5.1 Network topologies density and short radius of expan-
• Line network topologies
Network topologies are orientated sion, e.g., small manufacturing
• Rugged, industry-compatible to the requirements of the units to cells or a single production ma-
cables and connectors de- be networked. The most frequently chine.
signed to meet special re- used network topologies are star,
quirements with regard to Tree
line, tree and ring structures. In
EMC, temperature, moisture, The tree topology results from join-
practice, a system tends to consist
dust and vibration ing together several stars to form a
of a mixture of these structures,
network; a mixture of fiber-optic
which are described below in
For this reason, the "PROFInet In- and twisted pair cabling is possible
greater detail. These structures can
stallation Guideline" defines indus- where necessary. It is used for di-
be implemented with either copper
try-standard cabling for Fast viding complex installations into
or fiber-optic cables and can also
Ethernet based on the specifica- sub-installations.
be used with PROFInet.
tions of IEC 11801.
Line
Star The line structure is implemented
The star structure is characterized
by means of a switch near the con-
by a central signal distributor
necting terminal or a switch inte-
(switch) with individual connections
grated in the terminal.
to all the network's terminals. Ap-
It is primarily used in systems with
Bürobereich
Office sector Fertigungs -and
Production undfieldsector
Feldbereich extensive structures, e.g., conveyor
feste basic
fixed Grundinstallation
installation in
imthe
Gebäude
building stark anlagenabhängige
cabling extremely dependent
Verkabelung
on plant systems, and for joining together
Verlegung
Cable laid in
in false
Zwischenböden
floors anlagenspezifische
plant-specific cable Kabelführung
routing
manufacturing cells.
variablerdevice
variable Geräteanschluss
connection am
at the
Arbeitsplatz
workplace connection points are rarely changed Ring (redundancy)
Vorkonfektionierte
Pre-assembled device
Geräteanschlusskabel
connection cables device connections are assembled locally Closing the ends of a line with an
baumförmige
Networks use Netzstrukturen
tree topology networks
häufig linienförmige
usually useNetzstrukturen
line topologies additional connection produces a
und (redundant)
and (redundante)ringRingstrukturen
topologies ring structure.
großedata
large Datenpakete
packages(z.B.
(e.g.Bilder)
images) kleinedata
small Datenpakete
packages(Messwerte)
(measured values) Ring topologies are used in sys-
mittlere Netzverfügbarkeit
medium network availability sehr hohe high
extremely Netzverfügbarkeit
network availability tems with high availability require-
moderate Temperaturen
temperatures extreme temperatures
Temperaturen ments in order to protect against
broken lines or faulty network com-
keine
no moisture
Feuchtigkeit Feuchtigkeit
possible moisture
möglich
(IP65)
(IP65)
ponents.
kaum Erschütterungen
virtually no vibration vibrierende
vibrating machines
Maschinen
geringe
low EMCEMV
load-Belastung hoheEMC
high EMVload
-Belastung
geringe
low mechanical
mechanische
risk Gefährdung risk of mechanical damage
kaum chemische
virtually no chemical
Gefährdung
hazards chemical load
chemische Belastungen
due to durch
öligeoroder
oily aggressive
aggressive
atmospheres
Atmosphären

Table 1: Differences between office and automation technology

10 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

 All the devices are connected
through an active network compo-
nent. PROFInet uses switched net-
work components. The specifica-
tion of the network components
ensures simple installation. Trans-
mission cables are equipped with
the same connectors at both ends
and are pre-assembled with the
same assignments. The maximum
segment length is 100m.

PROFInet cabling with

fiber-optic conductors
PROFInet can be operated using
multimode or single mode fiber-
optic conductor lines. Signal
transmission is performed over
2 fiber-optic conductors in accor-
dance with 100BASE-FX at a
Figure 19: Ethernet networks in an industrial environment usually transmission rate of 100 Mbps. The
use a line topology
optical interfaces are compliant
PROFInet cabling with sym- with the specifications
5.2 PROFInet cabling metrical copper cables ISO/IEC 9314-3 (multimode) and
Signal transmission over symmetri- ISO/IEC 9314-4 (single mode).
Industry-standard cables can be cal copper cables (twisted pairs) is
performed in accordance with For applications outside the
subject to extreme mechanical
100BASE-TX at a transmission switchgear cabinet, the outer
stress and are specially manufac-
speed of 100 Mbps (Fast- sheath has to meet the require-
tured to meet these demands. PI
Ethernet). Two shielded copper ments (mechanical, chemical,
has defined a range of different ca-
cables twisted in pairs (STP= thermal) imposed at the specific
ble types that are optimally de-
Shielded Twisted Pair) are defined point of use.
signed to suit the respective indus-
trial boundary conditions. Thanks as the transmission medium.
For multimode lines the maximum
to sufficient system reserves, the segment length is 2 km, for single
Only shielded cables and connect-
transmission length of an industry- mode lines it is 14 km.
ing elements are allowed. The indi-
standard installation can be cre-
vidual components have to satisfy
ated without restrictions.
the requirements of Category 5 in
Connectors and cables form a per- accordance with IEC 11801. The 5.3 Connectors
fectly coordinated system. Only entire transmission path has to
components whose compatibility meet the requirements of Class D A major criterion for use in industry
has been tried and tested receive in accordance with IEC 11801. Fur- is the handling of local connection
the designation PROFInet compo- thermore, PROFInet cables have a systems. Connectors for M12 as
nent. cable cross-section of AWG 22 in well as RJ 45 are available for this
order to enable even complex ca- purpose. Local assembly of these
The requirements to be met by ca- bling structures through minimum connectors is easy using standard
bling at field level are similar to damping. For this reason, the tools.
those in PROFIBUS. Because sta- specification of the PROFInet ca-
tions are supplied not only with bles supports a modular setup, With PROFInet, the RJ45 with IP20
data but also with 24 V, a hybrid which ensures an IEC 11801- is used in switchgear cabinets. It is
cabling structure is ideal. Hybrid compliant structure on adherence compatible with the office connec-
cables contain conductors for the to simple installation rules. tor. Connectors outside the switch-
transmission of both signals and gear cabinet need to take special
power. Hybrid cables are available Detachable connections are made account of industrial requirements.
as: Cu/FOC cable (2 optical fibers using an RJ45 or M12 connector Types RJ45 with IP65 or IP67 or
for data transmission / 4 wires for system. Device connections take type M12 are used in these cases.
power transmission) as well as the form of jacks. The connecting
Cu/Cu cable (4 wires for data cables (device connection cables,
transmission / 4 wires for power terminal cables) are equipped ac-
transmission). cordingly with connectors at both
ends, which can be pre-assembled
Fiber-optic conductors are insensi- with the specified AWG 22 cable.
tive to electromagnetic interference
and usually permit more extensive
networks than symmetric copper
cables.
Figure 20: Example of a RJ45 con-
nector for IP20

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 11

The RJ45 with IP65 / IP67 is en- The hybrid connector is used whe- Switches suitable for PROFInet are
closed in a rugged case with a re distributed field modules are designed for Fast-Ethernet
push-pull lock. Special models also connected through a combined (100 Mbps, IEEE 802.3u) and full
offer up to IP68 protection rating. connector with data and supply vol- duplex transmission. A switch
tage. The RJ45 with IP67 has a working in full duplex mode re-
2-pair, shielded data line for com- ceives and sends data simultane-
munication and 4 copper conduc- ously at the same port. The use of
tors for the voltage supply. switches prevents collisions during
A fully shock-hazard-protected transmission. Hence there is no
connector enables the use of iden- loss of bandwidth due to the
tical connectors at both ends as the Ethernet collision procedure. Net-
pin-socket changeover is no longer work configuration is greatly simpli-
necessary due to the integrated fied because there is no checking
protection. of section lengths within a collision
domain.

10BASE-TX (10 Mbps, CSMA/CD)

Figure 21: Example of a RJ45 con- is also supported in order to ensure
nector for IP 67 compatibility with old systems or
single, old terminals or hubs.
The RJ 45 connectors for PROFI- Switches suitable for PROFInet
net are versions 4 and 5 specified also support prioritized telegrams
in the draft of IEC 61076-3-106. according to IEEE 802.1Q, stan-
dardized diagnostic paths as well
The M12 connector used for PRO- as Auto Polarity Exchange, Auto-
FInet is the shielded D-coded ver- negotiation Mode and Auto-Cross-
sion specified in the draft IEC Over-Function. Port mirroring for
61076-2-101. diagnostic purposes is optional.

The duplex DC connector system Figure 22: Example of a RJ45 hybrid Even if they comply with the afo-
in accordance with ISO/IEC 11801 connector for IP 67 rementioned functionality, it is usu-
is primarily used in the field of fiber- ally not possible to use switches
optics. The latter is described in from the office sector. Special
IEC 60874-14. Devices are equip- switches are used for applications
5.4 Switches
ped with the socket and the con- in industrial environments. This is
nection cable with the plug. It is PROFInet always uses switches as firstly due to the fact that their de-
also possible to use BFOC/2.5 fi- network components. Switches are sign, both mechanical (IP degree of
ber-optic connectors in accordance devices positioned along the protection, …) and electrical (24
with IEC 60874-10. transmission path between the Volt power supply, …), has been
terminals to regenerate and selec- specially developed for rugged in-
tively relay incoming signals. They dustrial use. And secondly, they
serve the structuring of networks. need to meet the EMC demands of
They are based on the specifica- machines in an industrial environ-
tions of the ISO/IEC 15802-3. ment in order to ensure safe opera-
tion.

12 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

6. IT integration for PROFInet. It enables as- 6.2 Web services
signment of IP parameters with
manufacturer-specific configu- PROFInet does not just support the
By using Ethernet as the communi- ration/programming tools or in use of modern Ethernet-based
cation medium, IT functions can al- cross-system engineering, e.g., technologies. PROFInet compo-
so be integrated in PROFInet as in the PROFInet Connection nents can also be accessed by
well as the automation functional- Editor. DCP is mandatory for web clients based on standard In-
ities described. PROFInet devices, thus ensur- ternet technologies, such as HTTP,
ing the uniform behavior of all XML, HTML or scripting.
In conjunction with TCP/UDP and PROFInet devices.
IP, with Ethernet and Switching In this case, data are transmitted in
technology comes an increased • Automatic address assignment a standardized form (HTML, XML)
demand for network management with DHCP: the Dynamic Host and visualized using standardized
than is the case in the fieldbus Configuration Protocol (DHCP) front ends (browsers such as Net-
world. A concept was therefore is today the de-facto standard scape, MS Internet Explorer, Op-
specified for network management for the assignment and man- era, etc.). This enables integration
in PROFInet in order to regulate all agement of IP addresses in of data from PROFInet compo-
technical aspects of the integration networks with network man- nents in modern, multimedia-
of PROFInet devices in such net- agement systems in an office supported information systems,
works. This concept covers the fol- environment. PROFInet has thus allowing PROFInet compo-
lowing main subject fields: network elected to use these standards nents to reap the benefits of Web
infrastructure, IP management, and describes optimum use of Integration in an IT landscape, e.g.,
network diagnosis and time syn- DHCP in a PROFInet environ- the use of browsers as a uniform
chronization. The network man- ment. The implementation of user interface, flexible access to in-
agement simplifies the administra- DHCP in PROFInet devices is formation from any number of cli-
tion and management of Ethernet optional. ents, platform-independence of cli-
by using standard protocols from ents and reduced outlay for the in-
the IT sector. Diagnostics management stallation and maintenance of client
The reliability of network operations software.
A further aspect is the use of Inter- takes very high priority in the net-
net technologies in automation work management. In existing net- Functional properties
technology. Within the framework works, the Simple Network Man- The design of PROFInet Web Inte-
of Web Integration, PROFInet agement Protocol (SNMP) is now gration focuses on commissioning
specifies a concept that enables the de-facto standard for the main- and diagnostics. Web-based con-
access to PROFInet components. tenance and monitoring of network cepts can be used particularly ef-
This is implemented via web ser- components and their functions. fectively within these fields of ap-
vices based on standard Internet SNMP is also ideal for monitoring plication:
technologies, such as HTTP, XML PROFInet devices with established
and HTML. management systems. SNMP pro- • No special tools are necessary
vides for both reading access to access the components; es-
(monitoring, diagnostics) and writ- tablished standard tools can be
ing access (administration) to a de- used.
6.1 Network management
vice.
• Global access makes it easy
Network management covers all for component manufacturers
the functions required for the ad- Initially, only reading access of
device parameters was specified in to support users during com-
ministration of a network, such as missioning.
configuration (assignment of IP ad- PROFInet. As with the IP man-
dresses), error monitoring (diag- agement functions, SNMP is op-
• The self-description of compo-
nostics) or performance optimiza- tional. When SNMP is implemented
nents enables access using
tion. in components, only standard
standard tools; no need for
SNMP data is accessed
configuration information.
IP management (MIB 2).
PROFInet's use of TCP/UDP and Possible scenarios for Web Inte-
Specific diagnosis of PROFInet
IP means it is necessary to assign gration in the commissioning and
components is possible through the
an IP address to network users, maintenance sector include: testing
mechanisms described in the
i.e., PROFInet devices. and commissioning, overview of
PROFInet specification. SNMP is
device master data, device diag-
• Address assignment with not intended to open up any further
nostics, and system and device
manufacturer-specific configu- diagnostic route in this connection
documentation.
ration systems: This alternative but should enable integration in
is required in case there is no network management systems
network management system which normally do not process
available. The DCP protocol PROFInet-specific data.
(Discovery and Basic Configu-
ration) is specified

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 13

Information should be made avail-
able in both man-readable form
(e.g. with a browser) and machine-
Daten
Data
readable form (e.g. as an XML file). in HTML
HTML-Seiten
pages
With PROFInet Web Integration, and
und over
über applets
Applets
both options are consistently avail-
able. PROFInet Web Integration Komponente: Füllen

also makes standardized XML

schemes available for certain in- Komponente: rinsing
Components: Spülen

formation.

Technical properties
The basic component of Web Inte-
gration is the web server. It forms
the interface between the PROFI-
net object model and the basic Figure 23: Web integration enables web access to PROFInet components
technologies for Web Integration.

Using PROFInet, Web Integration As far as the system architecture of The best practice suggestions of
can be scaled through the per- an automation system with PROFI- PROFInet Web Integration contain
formance level and properties of net is concerned, it supports all ar- scenarios and examples showing
the web server. This means that chitectural forms, particularly the how demand-dependent security
even simple PROFInet devices, use of proxies for linking to any mechanisms can be implemented
with only an "embedded web fieldbuses. The specification in- for all PROFInet devices.
server", can participate in the Web cludes corresponding models that
Integration alongside a PROFInet describe the relationships between For example, it is possible to im-
device via an "MS Internet Informa- the PROFInet components, exist- plement security mechanisms in
tion Server" or "Apache Web ing web components and the ele- the transport protocols (TCP/UDP
Server". ments of PROFInet Web Integra- and HTTP). The encoding, authen-
tion. tication and access management of
Web integration for PROFInet is the web servers used are also sca-
designed so that it can be made Security lable. Further-reaching security
optionally available on each device. The specification of PROFInet Web elements such as application
Certain functions are optional and Integration is designed so that ac- gateways can be added for web
can be added depending on the cess to the PROFInet devices is services if required.
performance level of the device. It identical from the Intranet or Inter-
is thus possible to implement net. This enables utilization of all
scaleable solutions that are opti- the advantages of Web Integration,
mized for the particular application. 6.3 OPC
even if the device itself is not net-
The PROFInet-specific elements worked to the Internet. With this The PROFInet component model
can be seamlessly integrated in a
type of local access, the risk of un- and OPC have the same techno-
component's web implementation. authorized access is extremely logical basis in DCOM. This offers
Using uniform interfaces and ac- small and comparable with modern user-friendly options for data com-
cess mechanisms, creators of HMI systems. munication between various parts
technological components make of the system.
For networking within larger factory
their technological data available premises or over the Internet, OPC is a widely used interface for
over the web. The namespace and PROFInet Web Integration relies exchanging data between applica-
addressing concept specified in on a graded security concept. It tions in automation technology.
PROFInet Web Integration enables recommends a security concept OPC supports the flexible selection
the addressing of PROFInet com- optimized for concrete applications of multi-vendor devices and data
ponent model elements over the with one or more upstream security exchange between devices without
web server. This supports creation zones. This means that no struc- the need for programming.
of dynamic web pages using cur- tural restrictions are made to the
rent data from the component. OPC DX is not object-oriented like
Web Integration concept, as the
security measures are always lo- PROFInet but tag-oriented, i.e. the
Scope automation objects are not
cated externally to the PROFInet
Web Integration is optional with COM objects but names (tags).
devices. This not only relieves the
PROFInet, as it is arranged as an
PROFInet devices, but also allows
independent element alongside the
the security concept to be optimally
PROFInet object model and neither
modified to meet changing safety
interferes with the other.
demands while offering a constant
automation solution.

14 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

OPC DA (Data Access)
OPC DA (Data Access) is an in- PROFInet
dustrial standard that defines a set is an open system which specifies the runtime communication and en-
of application interfaces. This stan- gineering worlds within a PROFInet system and to lower-level PROFI-
dardizes access to the data of BUS systems and other fieldbus systems. PROFInet offers the neces-
measuring and control devices, the sary real-time capability for automation applications through to high-
locating of OPC servers and simple performance and time synchronized Motion Control applications.
browsing in the name spaces of the
OPC server. OPC DX
enables an additional, open data transfer between PROFInet and other
OPC DX (Data Exchange) Ethernet-based communication systems, whereby OPC DX places low
OPC DX defines a communication demands on real-time communication.
standard for the higher-level ex-
change of non-time-critical user
data at system levels between dif-
ferent makes and types of control •
OPC DX and PROFInet Each OPC server can be op-
systems, e.g., between PROFInet erated as a PROFInet node
OPC DX was developed with the
and Ethernet/IP. However, OPC through a standard adapter.
aim of enabling at least a minimum
DX does not permit direct access This is achieved through the
of interoperability between different
to the field level of a different sys- OPC Objectizer, a software
fieldbus systems and Ethernet-
tem. component that implements a
based communication protocols
OPC DX is an extension of the without compromising the integrity PROFInet device on the basis
OPC DA specification and defines of the various technologies. of an OPC server in a PC. This
a set of standard interfaces for the software component need only
OPC DX was integrated in PROFI- be implemented once and can
interoperable exchange of data and
net in order to obtain an open link then be used for all OPC serv-
server-to-server communication in
to other system worlds. Integration ers.
Ethernet networks.
is achieved as follows:
OPC DX is extremely useful for: The functionality and performance
• Each PROFInet node can be of PROFInet is far greater than that
• Users and system integrators addressed as an OPC server of OPC. In addition, PROFInet of-
who want to integrate manu- because the basic capabilities fers the required real-time capabil-
facturer-independent devices, already exist in the form of the ity for automation solutions. On the
control systems and software PROFInet Runtime implemen- other hand, OPC provides a higher
and implement access to tation. degree of interoperability.
shared data in multi-vendor
systems, and

• Manufacturers who want to of-

fer products that build on an
open industry standard for in-
teroperability and data ex-
change.

Figure 24: Cross-system data exchange with OPC DA and OPC DX

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 15

7. Integration of field-
bus systems Engineering, HMI

PROFInet offers a model for incor-

Ethernet
porating existing PROFIBUS and
other fieldbus systems in PROFI-
net. This means you can build up a Proxy Intelligent Controller
Field Device
system consisting of a random mix-
ture of fieldbus and Ethernet-based
subsystems. This enables the con- Fieldbus X PROFIBUS
tinuous transfer of technology from
fieldbus-based systems to PROFI-
net.

Engineering, Field Device Drive

HMI
7.1 Migration strategies
Figure 25: PROFIBUS and other fieldbus systems can be integrated in an au-
The high number of existing PRO- tomation device via a proxy or as a fieldbus application
FIBUS systems means that for
reasons of investment protection it On Ethernet, the proxy is the rep- Within the framework of PROFInet
is essential to support simple inte- resentative for one or more fieldbus IO, the DP slaves on PROFIBUS
gration of these systems in PRO- devices (e.g., on PROFIBUS). This are treated as IO devices. In the
FInet (migration), whereby the fol- representative ensures transparent component view, the intelligent DP
lowing distinctions can be made: communication between networks slaves are used as autonomous
(no tunneling of protocols). For ex- PROFInet components. Within the
• User-owners want simple inte-
ample, it ensures transparent for- PROFInet connection editor, such
gration of their existing installa-
warding of cyclic data to the field- components cannot be distin-
tions in a new PROFInet sys-
bus devices. guished from components directly
tem.
on Ethernet. The proxies support
• Plant and machine manufac- transparent communication be-
turers want to be able to use tween devices on different bus sys-
their field-tested and docu- tems.
mented device range in PRO-
FInet automation projects
without the need for modifica- 7.3 Integration of fieldbus
tion. applications
• Device manufacturers want to An entire fieldbus application can
be able to integrate their field be mapped as a PROFInet com-
devices in PROFInet systems ponent within the framework of the
without any further outlay for component model. This is impor-
modifications. tant if an existing running plant is to
be expanded with PROFInet, whe-
PROFInet offers two methods for Figure 26: The principle of integrating reby it does not matter which field-
connecting fieldbus systems: individual fieldbus devices using a bus is used to automate the plant
proxy section.
• Integration of fieldbus devices
through proxies In the case of PROFIBUS DP, the
proxy on the one side is the
• Integration of fieldbus applica- PROFIBUS master, which coordi-
tions nates the data exchange of the
PROFIBUS nodes and is the
Ethernet device with PROFInet
7.2 Integration with proxies communication on the other. Prox-
ies can be implemented, e.g., as
The PROFInet proxy concept sup- PLC, as PC-based control or as a
ports integration of existing fieldbus simple gateway.
systems that is simple and offers a
high degree of transparency.

Figure 27: The principle of integra-

tion of fieldbus applications

16 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

In order for the existing plant to be The independence of communica-
able to communicate with PROFI- tion procedures and the use of
net, it is necessary for the fieldbus 7.5 Example of a modular proxy technology enable the exist-
master in the PROFInet component machine ing PROFIBUS system to remain in
to be PROFInet-capable. This use fully unchanged. It is only nec-
Figure 28 shows an example of a
means that existing fieldbus me- essary to connect the communica-
modular machine from the food in-
chanisms (e.g., PROFIBUS DP) tion relationships between the
dustry. The bottle-filling machine
are used within the component and components in the engineering of
consists of four modules. All essen-
PROFInet mechanisms are used the new machine configuration.
tial steps of the overall application,
outside the component. The controller responsible for the
i.e., rinsing, filling, capping and
PROFIBUS system only needs to
This migration option protects any packaging are accommodated by
be extended by an Ethernet mod-
user investment in existing systems these four modules. On the one
ule (hardware and software) and
and wiring (this may be the plant hand this example demonstrates
the proxy functionality (software).
operator/owner or plant manufac- the independent coexistence of
turer). It also safeguards any ex- PROFIBUS and PROFInet in the The proxy function ensures that the
pertise already in user programs. overall system. On the other hand PROFInet-specific view remains
Thus PROFInet enables a smooth it highlights the simple integration encapsulated in the control system
transition to new system sections. of existing machine sections. as a technological module. All op-
erations upstream from PROFIBUS
In this example it is assumed that
continue to run as before.
the PROFIBUS system (rinsing and
7.4 PROFInet and other field- filling) continues to be used, whe-
bus systems reas the capping and packaging
units are to be renewed and ex-
Using the aforementioned integra- tended on the basis of PROFInet.
tion methods, PROFInet therefore
supports integration of not only
PROFIBUS, but also of other field-
bus systems such as Foundation
Fieldbus, DeviceNet, Interbus, CC-
Link, etc. This is done by defining a
bus-specific image of the compo-
nent interfaces for the data trans-
mission options of the respective
bus and by saving it in the proxy.
This allows connection of any field-
bus to PROFInet in one fell swoop.

Figure 28: PROFIBUS DP can be integrated in PROFInet using proxy technology.

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 17

8. Services offered by
PI

Optimum support from PROFIBUS

International is important if PROFI-
net is to become established on the
market as quickly as possible. A
powerful package of services and
products has been established to
achieve this goal.

8.1 Technology development

PROFInet IO
A specification is available for
PROFInet IO. This specification
Figure 29: The PROFIBUS International range of services
contains a detailed description of
the device model and the behavior
of a field device in the form of pro-
tocols and communication opera- The PROFInet Runtime software is QM of the specification and
tions (so-called state machines). configured so that it supports the implementation process
This type of description has already simple integration of existing appli- The PROFInet specification and
proven effective with PROFIBUS cation software in the runtime ob- software are developed in a cross-
DP. The degree of detail in the ject model. company working group, the
PROFInet IO specification enables "PROFInet Core Team". The entire
the software creation of a standard PROFInet already offers sample
development process from the first
stack of different stack suppliers. portings for Win32, Linux, and registering of demands through to
VxWorks. the release of the PROFInet Run-
It must be assumed that different
time software is covered by a qual-
implementations will be offered by The PROFInet Runtime software is
ity management system (QM).
a number of firms. For example, of modular design and consists of
Siemens offers an implementation various layers, each of which has The quality measures are set out in
in the form of a development pack- to be adapted to the system envi- a Quality Manual which is adapted
age. ronment. The adaptations are lim- to the boundary conditions of the
ited to the porting interfaces lead- cross-company development team.
Component model ing to the various functional parts This ensures that the source code
As with PROFInet IO, the PROFI- of the environment, to the operat- complies with the currently valid
net component technology is avail- ing system (e.g., Win32) and to the rules of Quality Management.
able as a detailed specification. device application (e.g. PLC). A
The specification covers the as- porting manual is available to sup- The Quality Manual describes the
pects communication, device port porting operations. It is then process model to be used and de-
model, engineering, network man- easier for the device developer to fines the terms, methods and tools
agement, Web Integration and understand the various steps re- to be employed in the quality
fieldbus connection. quired for porting. measures. It also specifies the as-
signed areas of responsibility
In addition to the specification,
throughout the quality process. An
PROFIBUS International also of-
8.2 Quality measures important element in this respect is
fers PROFInet software for the
Error Management. It includes an
component technology in the form
In the development of PROFInet, unequivocal classification of errors
of source code.
PROFIBUS International has en- and a traceable error information
The PROFInet software covers all sured from the outset that the en- system.
runtime communications. This tire life cycle – from the specifica-
combination of specification and tion of PROFInet to the systems
operating system-independent engineering stage – is supported
software as source code enables by measures which guarantee a
the simple and low-cost integration high level of quality in the various
of PROFInet in the broadest range phases.
of device operating system envi-
ronments.

18 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

 Figure 30: PROFInet Component Editor Figure 31: The PROFInet Test Tool

Testing and certification

In order to ensure the correct inter-
action of all PROFInet devices and
8.3 Technical support Other services offered by the
a high product-quality, a certifica- PROFInet Competence Centers in-
For PROFInet to be successful, it is clude a telephone hotline and the
tion system has been set up along important to ensure rapid market
the lines of the proven system for organization of target-group-
availability of a sufficient number of orientated workshops.
PROFIBUS products from the out- PROFInet products from various
set. At the heart of this process are manufacturers.
certification tests carried out by test
Tools
Device manufacturers need a tool
laboratories authorized by Competence Centers for creating a component descrip-
PROFIBUS International. The test PROFInet Competence Centers tion of Ethernet devices in the form
for obtaining a certificate from one were established to support the of an XML file. PROFIBUS Interna-
of these test laboratories ensures product development process. This tional offers the PROFInet Compo-
that the products comply with ensures optimum implementation nent Editor – similar to the GSD
specifications and are error-free. of the porting to the different oper- Editor for PROFIBUS DP – on its
ating systems and adaptation to website www.profibus.com ready
product-specific boundary condi- to download.
Error information book tions. The Competence Centers
An error information book has been help all interested companies to To prepare newly developed prod-
set up at PROFIBUS International build up know-how so that further ucts for certification, PROFIBUS In-
so that errors and requests from product developments can be ex- ternational also offers a PROFInet
end-users and device manufactur- pertly tackled in their own devel- Test Tool that can be downloaded
ers are systematically treated in the opment departments without addi- from its website. The device manu-
runtime software. An error data- tional support. facturer can use the PROFInet
base for recording all errors and
Test Tool to carry out static tests
their status has been made avail- prior to certification.
able for this purpose. The data
base entries are made in accor-
dance with the rules of the quality
process.

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 19

9. Glossary

The network user that establishes a connection is called the

Principle of establishing
Client/Server client. The user to which the connection is established is
connections
called the server.
Component Object Model/ COM is a basic object model. It allows objects to make their
COM/DCOM Distributed Component Object functionality available to other components. DCOM is an
Model extension of COM for communicating through a network.
Functional extension of a vendor-specific configuration tool
Component
to generate an XML based PROFInet Component Description
Generator
(PCD).
Vendor-independent enginnering tool to configure plant wide
Connection
applications. The connection editor draws together the indi-
Editor
vidual applications that are distributed throughout the system.
Carrier Sense Multiple A procedure for controlling access to the bus by various
CSMA/CD
Access/Collision Detection users
Defines the assignment of IP parameters using vendor-
specific configuration/programming tools or a by means of
DCP Discovery and Basic Configuration
plant-wide Engineering, e.g. of a PROFInet Connection Edi-
tor.
Dynamic Host Configuration De-facto standard for the dynamic issuing and management
DHCP
Protocol of IP addresses from a pre-defined area
ERP Enterprise Resource Planning
Protected trade mark of the Xerox Ethernet is standardized and serves to describe the physical
Ethernet
company (introduced in 1975) and Data Link level of a network.
FTP File Transfer Protocol Protocol for the transmission of files; based on TCP/IP
Interconnects two or more networks with even different
Gateway physical layers. Provides the necessary translation, both in
terms of hardware and software.
A GSD (General Station Description) contains an XML-based
description of IO-Device’ properties like communication pa-
GSD General Station Description
rameter as well as number, type, configurations data, pa-
rameter and diagnostic information of modules.
The visible face of a system on the control and monitoring
HMI Human Machine Interface
platform
HTML Hypertext Markup Language Document description language
HTTP Hypertext Transfer Protocol Application protocol that is used in Internet.
Controller at PROFInet IO on which the automation program
IO-Controller
is run.
Remotely assigned field device, which is assigned to an IO-
IO-Device
Controller.
Programming device/PC with commissioning and diagnostics
IO-Supervisor
functions at PROFInet IO
Connectionless protocol for the transmission of data
IP Internet Protocol messages; IP is often used in conjunction with TCP in order
to ensure safe data transmission.
Isochronous Real Time channel for particularly sophisticated
demands, as for Motion Control applications (time synchro-
IRT Isochronous Real Time
nized applications). The realization as hardware allows clock
rates of 1 ms and lower at a jitter accuracy of 1 µs.
MES Manufacturing Execution System
A data carrier that has a time-variable status and whose
Object
responses to incoming messages are defined
A mechanism for the creation and editing of documents
OLE Object Linking and Embedding containing objects which were created by various
applications.
Introduced in 1996; the generally recognized interface for
OPC OLE for Process Control exchanging data between Windows-based applications in
automation technology.
Industrial standard that defines access to the data of
measuring and control devices, the locating of OPC servers
OPC DA OPS Data Access
and simple browsing in the name spaces of OPC servers
based on client/server communication.

20 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

 Standard for the Ethernet-based exchange of non-time-
OPC-DX OPC Data Exchange critical user data between multi-vendor automation systems
based on server-to-server communication
XML-based file containing information about functions and
PCD PROFInet Component Description
objects of PROFInet components.
PROFInet Stand alone tool to generate XML-based PROFInet Compo-
Component nent Description (PCD) files; available for download from the
Editor website www.profibus.com.
Representative of an object in the object model; it makes the
PROFInet view available on a field device or field device
Proxy
group. On Ethernet, the proxy is the representative for one or
more PROFIBUS devices.
Defined call interface for calling up programs in remote
RPC Remote Procedure Call
devices.
Designation for the status of a system "operation mode" as
Runtime Runtime
opposed to the system status "in the engineering phase"
Simple Network Management A TCP/IP based communications protocol for the
SNMP
Protocol maintenance and monitoring of networking components
Real-time channel for time-critical process data used in the
SRT Soft Real Time field of factory automation. It is implemented as software
based on available controllers.
Technology for dividing an Ethernet network into different
Switch Tech-
sub-networks; serves to prevent collisions and improve
nology
utilization of the bandwidth.
Communications protocols for transferring data between local
Transmission Control Proto- networks. TCP is connection-orientated and is used for
TCP
col/Internet Protocol communication on the Internet. TCP is usually used in
conjunction with IP (TCP/IP)
Transport protocol with broadcast properties. Ideal for the
UDP User Datagram Protocol
transmission of time-critical I/O data
XML Extensible Markup Language Definition of a structured data description

More information as well as PROFIBUS and PROFInet guidelines, profiles and the PROFInet
Runtime Software are available on www.profibus.com

PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003 21

PROFInet
System Description
Version November 2003

Order number 4.132

Publisher
PROFIBUS Nutzerorganisation e. V. PROFIBUS Trade Organization PTO
Haid-und-Neu-Str. 7 16101 N. 82nd Street, Suite 3B
D-76313 Karlsruhe AZ 85260 Scottsdale
Germany USA
Tel. : +49 (0) 721 / 96 58 590 Tel. : ++1 480 483 2456
Fax : +49 (0) 721 / 96 58 589 Fax : ++1 480 483 7202
germany@profibus.com usa@profibus.com

Liability exclusion
PNO / PTO has elaborated the contents of this brochure carefully. Nevertheless, errors can not be excluded. Li-
ability of PNO / PTO is excluded, regardless of its reason. The data in this brochure is checked periodically, how-
ever. Necessary corrections will be contained in subsequent versions. We gratefully accept suggestions for im-
provement.

Terms used in this brochure may be trademarks, their use by third parties for any purposes may violate the rights
of the owner.

This brochure is not a substitute for standards IEC 61158 and IEC 61784 and the PROFIBUS and PROFInet
guidelines, profiles as well as the PROFInet Runtime Software. In case of doubt, please refer to these publica-
tions which take precedence.

Copyright by PROFIBUS Nutzerorganisation e.V. 2003. All rights reserved.

22 PROFInet Technology and Application, November 2003

PROFIBUS International
Support Center
Haid-und Neu-Straße 7
D-76131 Karlsruhe
Phone ++49 721 96 58 590
Fax ++49 721 96 58 589
Email: info@profibus.com
www.profibus.com

© Copyright by PNO 11/03

all rights reserved