EtherCAT Technology Group to officially support EtherCAT P

The technical committee of the EtherCAT Technology Group (ETG) has accepted EtherCAT P as an addition to EtherCAT. EtherCAT P, which combines EtherCAT with power supply on the same cable, will be supported and promoted by the ETG.

Introduced at the 2015 SPS IPC Drives trade show, EtherCAT P was developed by Beckhoff Automation as an extension of the company’s EtherCAT product range. Currently, the ETG is busy working out the EtherCAT P technology specification.

“EtherCAT P is the ideal supplement to the current portfolio of EtherCAT technology,” explained Dr Guido Beckmann, chairman of the ETG Technical Committee.

“Many prominent technology users have already expressed great interest in the technology extension and we’re convinced that soon after the specification is finished, numerous ETG member companies will support EtherCAT P through the introduction of new products.”

The key highlight of EtherCAT P is the combination of EtherCAT communication with system and peripheral voltage in a single ethernet cable. Additionally, EtherCAT P supports power forwarding via the participants. Users will still enjoy the high-performance characteristics of EtherCAT, along with the flexible topology and many other beneficial features of EtherCAT systems.

EtherCAT P presents a suitable solution for sensor, actuator and measurement technology since material and assembly costs are reduced, as are the space requirements for drag chains, control cabinets and overall machine footprint.

“With EtherCAT P, the devices have access to two 24 V supplies with a maximum of 3 A each, accomplished using traditional 4-wire ethernet cables. This enables completely new cabling possibilities for our ethernet fieldbus that had historically been found only in much slower systems. Thanks to ‘daisy chaining’ and the transmission of two 24 V supply voltages, the former limitations from combining ethernet and power no longer apply when using EtherCAT P,” Dr Beckmann added.