12/14/2015

TheAdvantagesofSafetyNetworkingoverPointtoPointWiringforIntegratingMultipleSafetyComponents

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Machine&ProcessSafeGuarding

TheAdvantagesofSafetyNetworking

The Advantages of Safety Networking over Pointto-Point Wiring for Integrating Multiple Safety
Components
Makingsafetyaprioritywhenemployingtoolexchange
systems

Byifmefector
Abstract
Traditionally,pointtopointwiringhasbeenthestandardforwiring
safetyswitchingcomponents.Today,anewnetworkingproduct
integratessafetydevicesintostandardPLCsandotherhigherlevel
networksandprovidesasystemforplantstooperatemoreefficiently
whilesimplifyingcomplexwiringandtroubleshooting.Thisarticle
examineshowthisnewnetworkingmethodcomparestotraditional
wiringandtheadvantagesofimplementingsafetynetworking.The
articlecovers:
Therolesafetysystemsplayintodaysindustrialautomation
facilities
Thekeyadvantagesnetworkingsystemsofferoverpointto
pointwiring
TheproductbreakthroughforsafetynetworkingSafetyat
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Work,illustratingthesysteminaconveyingapplication
Howtechnologyhasinfluencedtheneedforintegrationof
safetycontrols
SafetyinIndustry
Inthepast,safetystandardsacrosstheboardallowedonlyforhard
wiredsafetycomponents.TodaynewapprovalssuchasIEC615081
andrevisedstandardslikeNFPA792(2002edition)areinplaceto
accommodatesafetynetworksandprovidenewstandardsfor
protectionoflifeandlimb.Thesenewstandardshaveledtoan
upsurgeofinterestinsafetynetworksnotonlyfortheirimproved
safetyfunctions,butalsofortheROItheypromisetoofferwhen
implementedwithothernetworksthroughoutanindustrialenterprise.
Withgovernmentregulations,consumerdemand,andglobal
competitionontherise,companiesareforcedtoutilizethemost
costeffective,efficientmeansofoperatingtheirproductionfacilities.
Whileoperationalefficiencyisaconcernforanybusiness,
manufacturingandprocesscontrolsystemsalsorequiretheaccurate
andreliabletransmissionofdatafromsensorsandcontroldeviceson
theplantfloortoprocessesacrosstheentiremanufacturing
enterprise.Thisreliabilityismostimportantwhenthesafetyof
humanlifeisatstake.Safetyisandwillcontinuetobeatopicfirst
andforemostforoperationalengineersandplantmanagers
throughouttheworld.
TraditionalWiring
Despitethelevelofimportancesafetysystemscarry,thereisan
everpresentdifficultyforsafetytobecosteffectivewhile
maintainingthehighlevelofreliabilityandaccuracythesystems
require.Traditionally,safetysystemsareconstructedusingpointto
pointhardwirelogicandsafetyrelaysthatareconnectedto
switchingcomponentsandemergencystopbuttonslocatedinthe
field.Multiplewiresfromeachdevice,fedthroughcontrolcabinets,
oftenresultinlargewirebundlesrunningthroughthesystem.Dueto
thesheervolumeofwires,installationtimeisconsiderableand
troubleshootingiscomplex.Belowisalistofthefivebiggest
challengesplantsfacewhenusingpointtopointwiring.Whilethese
maycurrentlybethenormforsafetysystems,otherindustrial
controlapplicationsaremeetingthesechallengesbymovingfrom
hardwirebasedcontrolstoindustrialnetworks.
Challengesofconventionalpointtopointwiring
WiringHardwiringeachsafetydevicetothemaincontrol
cabinetcanbeverycostlyandtimeconsuming.
TroubleshootingWhentroubleshootingasafetysystem,
conventionalwiringmakesitdifficulttodeterminewherethe
pointoffailurehasoccurred.
AdditionalEquipmentWithconventionalpointtopointwiring,
additionalinputcardsareneededfordevicestatusnotification.
ComplexdisassemblyandassemblyWhenshippingand
transportingasafetysystem,thedisassemblyandreassembly
ofeachcontactinthesystemcanbeverytimeconsuming.
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MultiplesafetyzonesAdditionalrelaysarerequiredforeach
safetyzone
IndustrialNetworks
Today,therearemanydifferenttypesofindustrialnetworkingor
fieldbustechnologiesonthemarket.ASi,DeviceNet,Profibus,and
Ethernetarejustsomeofthesystemsgainingpopularityasplant
engineerssearchforwaystostreamlinecontrolswithintheirplant.In
thepast,pointtopointwiringhaslimitedtheinformationthatcanbe
transferredandreceivedfromthefield.Oftentimes,additional
wiring,inputcards,andothercompatibleequipmentisneededto
provideaccuratediagnosticsandprocessfeedback.Thisincreasein
cost,aswellastheincreasedlevelofdatatransmission,openedthe
doorforindustrialnetworks.Industrialnetworkingtechnologies
offeredthemarketanindustrystandardmethodofconnecting
devicestogetherforthetransferofdatabacktoacontrollerand
allowedformoreflexibleapplicationsandsystemexpansion.
Industrialnetworksuseahighspeedcommunicationbackbonethat
integratesPCsorworkstationswithdevicesinthefieldtogivethe
operatorauserfriendlyinterfaceforcommunicationwitheachdevice
locationinthefield.
SafetyatWork
Asindustrialcontrolsmaketheprogressionfromhardwirebased
controlstoindustrialnetworks,companieshavebeguntodevelop
safetynetworkingsystemsthatfunctiondirectlywiththesenetworks.
ThemostpopularoftheseinthemarkettodayisSafetyatWork.
Developedbyaconsortiumoftheworldsforemostexpertson
industrialcontrols,SafetyatWorkwasdesignedtosimplifywiring
andovercomethechallengesfacingsafetysystemsthatoperatewith
pointtopointrelaylogic.
TheSafetyatWorksystemisoneofthefirstfullyapprovedindustrial
safetynetworkingsystems.ItcarriesTUVapprovalforapplicationup
tocontrolcategory4accordingtoEN95413andSIL3accordingto
IEC61508.Thesystemusesonetwowireflatcablethatintegrates
directlywithmoststandardPLCsincludingAllenBradleyandSiemens
aswellasmostbussystems.Thesystemreplaceshardwirelogic
witheasilyconfigurabledraganddropsoftwarebymeansofaPC.
ThefollowingillustrationshowsthebasicdesignofaSafetyatWork
networkcomparedtothesamecomponentswiredinatraditional
pointtopointmethod.Theillustrationshowsasignificantreductionin
wiresandmaterialswhenusingSafetyatWork.
Figure3PointtoPointWiringvs.SafetyatWork

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SafetyatWorkiscomprisedofthreemaincomponents.(1)ASafety
Monitorresidesinthemaincontrolcabinetandisresponsibleforthe
translationofsafetymessagesthroughoutthenetwork.(2)AnASi
fieldbusnetworkprovidesthecommunicationinfrastructure
throughoutthesystem.(3)SafetyInputmodulesareusedto
interfacedirectlywithstandardsafetyswitchingcomponentsand
integratedSafetyatWorkEstopbuttons.
UtilizingtheActuatorSensorinterfaceprotocol(ASi)asthe
backboneforthetransmissionofsafetyrelatedinformation,8x4bit
datasequencesarestoredinsafetymodulesinthefield.During
installationandstartup,thesafetymonitormustlearnthesecode
sequences.Whileinoperationthesafetymonitorconstantly
comparesthetargetsequencewiththecurrentsequenceofthesafety
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module.Ifasafetymoduleprovidesawrongcodesequence(e.g.
4x0bit),thesafetymonitorswitchestothesafestate.
TheASipoweredSafetyatWorksystemusesaControlPlatform
InterfacetoconnectwithmoststandardPLCsandhigherlevel
networks.Thesystemhastheabilitytohandlemultiplesafetyzones
ononesystemandcanbeconfiguredinalmostanytopology
includingring,star,andtrunkanddrop.

Whymakethemovetosafetynetworking?
Withnewtechnologysupplyingplantengineerswithproductsthat
continuallyimprovethespeedandefficiencyoftheirequipment,the
safetyliabilitiestooperatethesenewtechnologiesareincreasingas
well.Thesafetyaspectofthejobwillonlycontinuetogrowas
equipmentbecomesmoreandmorecomplex.Thisiswhynew
standardsandapprovalshavebeenputinplacetoinsurethatsafety
technologygrowswiththeequipmentitmonitors.Thekeytothe
successofanysystemreliesheavilyonthesystemsseamless
implementationandsimplicityofoperation.Inmanufacturingplants
throughouttheworld,theintegrationofmultiplemachinesand
applicationsproducesthehighestqualityproductsinthehighest
quantitiespossible.Networks,putinplacetoachievethisintegration,
providebettercontrolandmonitoringofnewandexistingequipment.
Withthistechnologynowavailabletoofferthissamecontroloverlife
andlimb,itseemsonlylogicalthatsafetynetworkingbe
implementednotonlytoprotecttheproductionprocessbutto
safeguardthemostimportantcomponentofanyplantitspeople.
Footnotes
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1IEC61508isconcernedwithfunctionalsafety,achievedbysafety
relatedsystemsthatareprimarilyimplementedinelectricaland/or
electronicand/orprogrammableelectronic(E/E/PE)technologies,i.e.
E/E/PEsafetyrelatedsystems.
2NFPA79istheElectricalStandardforIndustrialMachineryfrom
theNationalFireProtectionAgency
3EN9541categoriesrepresentaclassificationofthesafetyrelated
partsofacontrolsystemwithrespecttotheirabilitytowithstand
faultsandtheirbehaviorintheeventoffaults.
***
Thisarticlewaswrittenandprovidedbyifmefector.ifmefectoris
oneoftheworld'slargestmanufacturersofsensorsandcontrol
productsforindustrialcontrolapplications.Productsincludeproximity
switches,photoelectricsensors,fiberopticsandcontrollers,speed
monitors,pressuresensors,flowsensors,temperaturesensors,level
sensors,valvepositionsensors,mobilecontrolsandacompleteline
ofASInetworkingandcontrolproducts.Formoreinformation,
Contactifmefectororvisittheirwebsiteatwww.ifmefector.com.

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