Issue link: https://resources.mouser.com/i/1437657
7 Industry 4.0 and Beyond | ADI specification. As the name implies, TSN is focused on time. This standard transforms standard Ethernet communication into one that provides timing guarantees for mission- critical applications. It is designed to ensure information can move from one point to another in a fixed and predictable amount of time. In this way, TSN provides guarantees of timely delivery. For the communication to be predictable, devices on the network must have a shared concept of time. The standard defines a means to transmit certain TSN Ethernet frames on a schedule while allowing non-TSN frames to be transmitted on a best- effort basis (Figure 4). In this way, TSN enables the coexistence of real-time and non-real-time traffic on the same network. Because all devices share the same time, important data can be transmitted with low latency and jitter at up to gigabit speeds. The goal is a converged network, where protocols can share the wire in a deterministic and reliable method. TSN is the toolbox of standards that provides the required determinism. It represents the transition to a reliable and standardized connectivity architecture, removing data isolation through proprietary fieldbuses. This convergence of networks will drive the generation of more data through the increased scalability of the network itself, across bandwidths ranging from 10Mbps to 1Gbps and beyond. The likely scenario is that TSN will be adopted throughout new installations but incrementally in cells or segments within existing facilities. For the manufacturers of field devices, this means that the classic Industrial Ethernet solutions and TSN will have to be supported for the foreseeable future. Extending to the Process Edge Our last and perhaps most impactful change is the ability to enable seamless connectivity from the edge node to the enterprise cloud in process control applications (Figure 5). To date, connectivity to the edge has been limited by the existing 4mA to 20mA or fieldbus technologies available. These are hardwired point-to-point connections in many implementations, restricting the flexibility of the network to evolve and grow over time. These non-Ethernet-based communications to the field encounter several challenges. Very limited bandwidth (for example, 1.2kbps for HART® on 4mA to 20mA) limits the amount and speed of the information flow. Limited power delivery to the instrument itself restricts the functionality of the instrument. The gateways that exist at the control and IT level are an unsustainable overhead. Another challenge is operating in an intrinsically safe environment of Zone 0 and trying to leverage the existing cabling network to support faster, cheaper commissioning. These challenges have necessitated the development of the IEEE 802.3cg-2019™ standard for 10BASE-T1L, full-duplex communication. This standard has recently been approved and specifies 10Mbps full-duplex communication with power over a single twisted-pair cable up to 1km in length. Data will now start life in the sensor as an Ethernet packet and traverses the OT and IT infrastructure as an Ethernet packet. Translation, which creates delays, consumes power, and creates a cost overhead, is not needed. Existing network architectures will change (Figure 5), with remote I/O units transitioning to Ethernet field switches. An Ethernet instruction can now be communicated from the controller through 10BASE- T1L multiport field switches to and from the field instruments. Insight generated at the field node can now be communicated via Ethernet packets (with higher bandwidth) through the field-switch network to the PLC/DCS controller and ultimately to the cloud. Figure 5: Seamless connectivity from the edge to the cloud. (Source: Analog Devices, Inc.) 5