Smart IO-Link Links Up Smart Plants

Piab Smart IO-Link offers to link up smart plants

Date 6/29/2016

Vacuum ejector piCOMPACT®23 is now available with the generic IO-Link for smart communication.

Taby, Sweden – Entering the arena of smart sensor and actuator communication, Piab is proud to introduce the option to include generic input/output (IO) technology in the company's premium all-in-one vacuum ejector platform piCOMPACT®23. Offered as an optional added feature, IO-Link is a generic communication technology that can be used with any type of fieldbus, enabling users to easily link together different systems within a plant.

The first worldwide standard (IEC 61131-9) for point-to-point communication between sensors and actuators, IO-Link is based on the already established 3-wire connection for sensors and actuators, making easy wiring one of its main advantages. Originally developed in Germany, it is gaining popularity in the rest of the world, most notably in the US.

”IO-Link is not exclusive to Piab, and that is actually the whole point of using a generic standardized IO technology. It is precisely because it is generic and fieldbus-independent that it can be used as a gateway to other bus systems used in different parts of the world or within certain industry segments,” says Joseph Karbassi, Vice President of Piab's Automation Division.
However, unique to Piab are the company's specially developed and particularly user-friendly software tools for IO-Link. Devices using IO-Link have to have individual IO Device Descriptions (IODDs) to enable configuration by operators. To help customers take full advantage of the new IO-Link feature, Piab has focused on making an IODD for piCOMPACT®23 that is both intuitive and very easy to understand and use.

Initially offered for inclusion in piCOMPACT®23, IO-Link will be offered as an option also in other electronically controlled products from Piab. The IODD, along with other user information, can be downloaded from the company's website.

About Piab

Established in 1951, Piab designs innovative vacuum solutions that improve the energy-efficiency, productivity, and working environments of vacuum users around the world. As a reliable partner to many of the world's largest manufacturers, Piab develops and manufactures a complete line of vacuum pumps, vacuum accessories, vacuum conveyors and suction cups for a variety of automated material handling and factory automation processes. Piab utilizes COAX®, a completely new dimension in vacuum technology, in many of its original products and solutions. COAX® cartridges are smaller, more energy efficient and more reliable than conventional ejectors, and can be integrated directly into machinery. This allows for the design of a flexible, modular vacuum system. Piab is a worldwide organization with subsidiaries and distributors in almost 70 countries. Its headquarters are in Sweden.

 

piCOMPACT®23 – Innovative vacuum generators for smart manufacturing