PHOENIX CONTACT CREATES INNOVATIVE COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
23 November 2004 - Phoenix Contact

At the onset of the information era, Phoenix Contact, drawing on core competence in connection technology, which had initially focused on transferring signals and power, has moved into the field of serial data transfer and communication technology. Here as well, Phoenix Contact is actively shaping the future: in the form of vertical integration with Industrial Ethernet; in the form of distributed control technology with safety technology; integrated and wireless thanks to wireless technologies. As a result of so many innovations, connection technology has pushed back borders, left behind solid connection media and moved out into virgin territory.

Phoenix Contact is active on all of the world’s major industrial markets, currently maintaining 35 subsidiaries and numerous representations in smaller markets. These international activities were further expanded in 2004. The main focus was on the development of the Eastern European markets. After a subsidiary was established in Moscow, work began on expanding the local sales offices in important centers of industries. Other vital steps for opening up the vast potential of Eastern Europe included the establishment this year of subsidiaries in Lithuania, Romania, and the Ukraine.

The expansion of the core competencies in all development and production processes is taking place in many forms. This is the only way to compete successfully on the global market. Phoenix Contact is continuing to expand its network of production sites in 2004. This does not signify a wholesale shift in production activities to low-wage areas such as Eastern Europe or Southeast Asia, as is the case with other companies. 10,000 m² of production space is currently being added to the electronics plant in Bad Pyrmont, Germany. New production halls in Nowy Tomysl, Poland, and Nanjing, China, are to go into operation later this year to deal with rising cost pressures, especially in labor-intensive activities, and to continue the development of international markets by having a local presence. Production at our location in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, will also be expanded.

For Phoenix Contact, innovation – building bridges that lead to the future – is as important as ever. This focus has led to 30 innovations this year and an Innovations Catalog containing around 1600 items. Building on this, we were successful in continuing our growth strategy in 2004, introducing new products in new markets and, following a turnover of EUR 660 million in 2003, we will exceed the EUR 700 million mark this year.

Since its founding in 1923, Phoenix Contact has been engaged in intensive exploration of all forms of connection technology. Consequently, many innovations draw on this core area of expertise. This began with the invention of the modular terminal block in 1928, which would become the cornerstone for device connection technology and the entire range of electrical connection technologies used in industrial applications. Thanks to our strong innovative spirit and our ability to reinvent these technologies over and over, we have become the global market leader in this area, offering what is probably the most comprehensive product range on the market.

While at the start connection technology was a matter of transferring all forms of power and signals, in the mid-1980s the transfer of information started to become a requirement as well. This was the dawn of the information era; it was also a time when the number of information points in machines increased dramatically owing to sensor and actuator technology.

The cables to be laid grew in thickness and it soon became fairly clear that the method of parallel signal transmission would no longer be practical in the not too distant future. Then, information technology gave the idea of transmitting the signal serially. The shift toward the Interbus sensor/actuator bus system was then complete. Interbus was the first fieldbus for industrial applications; today it is the international IEC standard and used in over 6 million applications worldwide. From these early days, connection technology has been synonymous with communication technology at Phoenix Contact. The goal of shaping future technological development also continues to ring true here.

Ethernet

After the worldwide introduction of fieldbuses – and here the market is now clearly segmented, with each bus having its own group of users – demand for integrative structures grew, and, in the automation technology sector just as in the IT sector, one began to think in terms of networks. Ethernet-based communication systems are predestined to meet this challenge. Consequently, Phoenix Contact has been investing in this technology since the late 1990s.

When Phoenix Contact publicly announced in late 2003 its intent to rely solely on Profinet for Ethernet-based technology and to create a migration path between existing Interbus systems and future Profinet systems, it sent a clear signal regarding the standardization of communication standards. Today, one year on, it has become very clear that the decision to go this route was of great importance and indeed the right one. International standardization is now coming into question, with eleven different real-time Ethernet applications currently being established. This undermines the requirement for standardization, which can only in fact be determined by the market, and not by establishing specific standards.

Phoenix Contact’s decision to select Profinet was based on the fact that it would be highly counterproductive in today’s world to develop a completely new communication system simply to satisfy one’s own ego. It makes more sense, also in respect to the customer, to adapt a system that would be acceptable worldwide and to actively take part in its continued development and optimization. The development of Profinet into the future world standard was begun in earnest this year by Phoenix Contact.

The “Profinet Integration” working group was established in the Interbus Club, with the goal of providing support for the migration of Interbus fieldbus system in the Profinet arena. This working group has its mirror committee within the Profibus User Organization in a joint working group on “Interbus Integration in Profinet”. The working group is active and plans to present its first white paper at this year’s PLC/IPC/Drives trade fair. It will contain the specifications and descriptions of the integration of the Interbus world into Profinet.

Phoenix Contact is also a member of several other working groups in the Profibus User Organization and is actively involved in the design of the Profinet system. Profinet considers “networking fibre-optic cables” to be one of the main focuses. Thanks to its innovations in the area of diagnostic capability and self-monitoring as well as its quick-to-assemble connection technology, Phoenix Contact is an important driving force behind the use of this technology, particularly in the automotive industry. The expertise gained in this field during the implementation of several thousand Interbus applications is now being utilized in the development, in conjunction with optical electronics specialist Agilent, of an innovative fibre-optic technology for Profinet.

In the area of Profinet protocol stacks, Phoenix Contact has since developed its own new software solutions. This software is fully compatible with the Profinet specifications. It is currently in use in the ILC 350 distributed 'Profinet Control System', with plans calling for its use in the near future in a Profinet Interbus coupler. The coupler serves as a proxy for implementing the specifications of the integration working group. Both products will go into serial production at the beginning of 2005, putting into the spotlight Phoenix Contact’s independent approach to technology with its Profinet solutions.

Phoenix Contact’s decision to use Profinet supports German technology in the international systems competition in two strategic ways: first, by placing a second active designer for this technology onto the stage with Siemens. This clearly demonstrates Profinet’s neutrality toward manufacturers. Second, with Profibus and now Interbus as well, Profinet is developing the world’s largest installed fieldbus standard with over 16 million fieldbus devices. DeviceNet, the next system being released, will “carry” the Ethernet-based approach “Ethernet IP” with just 2.5 million nodes. This is a good opportunity for Profinet to establish itself as the industry standard worldwide.

Control Technology – Safety

The growing performance capacity of industrial communications, especially in complex networks, calls for the distribution of control tasks and their relocation to the periphery. Consequently, we have developed solutions and systems that make it easy for the user to integrate intelligent network nodes, whether it is in the form of control systems or human-machine interfaces, or simply in the form of converters such as gateways or switches. Control technology plays an important role in this context. A few years ago, Phoenix Contact responded to this trend with its own control technology. It is based on the IEC 6-1131 platform of KW Software, a Phoenix Contact subsidiary.

Today the IEC 6-1131 is widely accepted in Europe and Asia. In the USA, the situation is different. Next to classic PLC programming, “Flow Chart” is the dominant programming language. In July 2004, this gap in the range of services was closed through the acquisition of Entivity, the market leader for this technology in the US. Located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Entivity and its 20 employees have generated approx. 4 million USD in sales.

Phoenix Contact has strengthened its position in the Asian market by introducing a Chinese-language version of their PC Worx control software and its underlying basic technology from KW Software. As the first Chinese IEC programming software of an international automation supplier, it celebrated its premiere at the “Factory Automation Asia” trade fair in Shanghai in October.

In the same way that Ethernet supports vertical integration, control technology provides possibilities for horizontal integration. In particular, safety and motion control will in the future be part of any control solution. Phoenix Contact began early on to develop its own safety technology and to build up the necessary expertise, which then had to be adjusted to changes in norms several times. The recent approval by the TÜV (technical inspection authority) and the BIA (BG-Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) of the Interbus Safety System was a decisive step. Interbus Safety is thus suited for applications up to and including SIL 3 and will be implemented in its first applications in early 2005. Parallel to the Interbus safety solution, Phoenix Contact has also started working on a safety solution for Profinet.

The topic of motion control is equally important, and here Phoenix Contact is concentrating on the expansion of control technology. The availability of hard real time with Ethernet – which here means Profinet IRT – offers users many new options. Many producers of drives will in the future place their trust in Profinet. Phoenix Contact control technology will fit in well as regards drive integration, and, with both safety and motion control, will boast good performance features.

Wireless

Phoenix Contact has developed from an expert in connection technology to a specialist for industrial communications. Here as well, the question arises of which innovations the future will hold. In the area of industrial communications, these will clearly be in wireless technology. The fact that mainstream technology from the IT sector can be made more durable to withstand harsh conditions in the industrial sector is evidenced by the successful entry of Ethernet and PC technology in the industrial sector.

The advantage of turning to technology that is standard in home and office use is not only that costs are reduced through the returns of scale generated by these mass markets, but also that these technologies already enjoy worldwide acceptance. Ethernet technology is a prime example of this.

Wireless transmission will supplement wired networks where flexibility, mobility, and cost-effective integration of hard-to-reach devices are essential factors. The focus is on dynamic installations, where data is transmitted to moving, rotating or temporary devices, or where the devices can only be accessed via cable at great expense or are not accessible at all. Another expansive area for implementation exists in communications involving mobile service and monitoring devices. Phoenix Contact has been developing and marketing wireless-based industrial products for the last three years. By forming a partnership in 2003 with Omnex, a Canadian manufacturer of wireless products, the development of this market has been strategically reinforced. Today, Phoenix Contact can refer to several thousand applications based on “Trusted Wireless” technology from Omnex. The Trusted Wireless Technology is focusing its aim on the highly reliable transmission of small amounts of data over long distances. The specific area of application is monitoring and signalling tasks in technical processing applications such as tank warehousing, pipelines, and sewage treatment.

In addition to these proprietary technologies, Phoenix Contact also continues to work with standard technologies such as Bluetooth and Wireless LAN. To develop a range of products using the standard Bluetooth technology, a partnership with Connect Blue was formed in May 2004. Located in Malmö, Sweden, Connect Blue has been working in close cooperation with Bluetooth technology providers since 2000, and has since become a specialist in industrial Bluetooth applications. Connect Blue is a development service provider and supplier of base technology, such as OEM boards. Phoenix Contact was able to secure this partnership with a strategic 13% equity investment.

In this sector, Phoenix Contact’s product range is highly focused on machine automation at short distances with high demands for updates and on cycle times. Bluetooth is used to transmit sensor-actuator data to the higher-level fieldbus or Ethernet system. This includes products such as sensor-actuator modules in the Protection Category IP 67 that can wirelessly transmit field information to various fieldbus systems. A pilot project involving a welding application for the automotive industry was launched at the beginning of the year. The system has proved to be highly robust. Industrial Bluetooth products are both easy to operate and highly reliable. The components are highly integrated into each other, meaning they are no longer visible to other Bluetooth applications once they have been configured. These devices can no longer be detected by scans produced with a Bluetooth mobile phone or using a professional scanner. In addition to Bluetooth, Phoenix Contact is now developing products based on Wireless LAN 802.11. The Wireless LAN access points are initially to be developed for the product line of Ethernet infrastructure components, with the market launch set for the spring of 2005.

Although wireless technology will not fully replace wired connection technology, it will in the medium term complement it – as fibre-optic technology has done – in areas where users are able to gain technological and economic benefits from its use.

The knowledge gained from the fieldbus and Ethernet discussions has demonstrated that it takes a good five years from the time the technology is available for industrial application until it becomes widely used. At that point, wireless technology will become commonplace in automation technology, as is the case today with fibre-optic technology.

http://www.phoenixcontact.co.uk

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