ProfiNET in six weeks, EtherNet/IP in two days!

This case study shows how ELOTECH restored delivery capability and built a future-ready multiprotocol communication platform with Anybus CompactCom 40 from HMS Networks.

When a critical communication platform reached end-of-life, ELOTECH turned to HMS Networks to restore delivery capability fast and build a future-ready multiprotocol communication platform.

Founded in 1994 and headquartered in Hilden (D), ELOTECH develops temperature control solutions for plastics processing, extrusion, and industrial furnace systems. With more than 30 years of experience and over 5,000 product variants, the company is a leading provider of multi-zone temperature control solutions. The problem: a trusted platform reached its end of life.
ELOTECH's existing communication solution was approaching the end of its lifecycle, and the module it depended on was being discontinued, just as customer demand was increasing. The company needed a replacement quickly to maintain production and continue meeting customer expectations. “We were facing the risk of supply shortages. Our priority was to restore delivery capability as quickly as possible while establishing a stable foundation for future developments,” said Florian Black, Electronic Engineer, ELOTECH

Reliable, flexible, compact, and quick to implement answer required.
ELOTECH decided that replacing the aging platform was the better long-term option. The company needed a solution that was reliable, compact, capable of supporting multiple industrial protocols, and fast to implement. It also wanted a future-ready platform that could support long-term product development, including evolving cybersecurity requirements.

“Reliability was our top priority. We wanted a proven solution from an established supplier that we could rely on for many years. We also needed a highly compact solution, ideally in a stamp-sized form factor that could be hand soldered for quick prototyping as well as optimized for serial production costs. Support for multiple industrial protocols was also important, as it would minimize the number of product variants. And given the situation, immediate availability and the fastest possible integration were key elements,” outlines Florian.

Solution.

After evaluating available alternatives, ELOTECH selected the Anybus CompactCom 40 Brick as the foundation for its next-generation communication platform. Florian explains why. “We were already familiar with Anybus from a previous evaluation, so we had a good overview of the concept. What convinced us was the combination of technical capabilities and promised low implementation effort. That aligns very well with our product strategy and simplifies future developments.”

In six weeks.
The implementation project started the week after the initial discussion with a hands-on workshop, where HMS experts introduced ELOTECH's team to the key tools, processes, and development resources needed to get started quickly. This early guidance proved critical. Rather than spending time learning unfamiliar tools and processes, ELOTECH's engineers could focus on integrating communication functionality into their products and rapidly progressing towards a working prototype.

Throughout the project, HMS Networks provided starter kits, documentation, code examples, configuration tools, and technical support. Its API and host application code generator let ELOTECH's team focus on the functionality specific to their device rather than communication details, accelerating prototyping and testing.

“The result was remarkable. From the initial workshop to a customer-ready ProfiNET solution, the entire process took approximately six weeks, including both hardware and software development. Considering the time pressure we were facing, this was a significant achievement,” says Florian.

EtherNet/IP added in only two days.
The successful ProfiNET implementation solved ELOTECH's immediate delivery challenge, but it also demonstrated the value of a multiprotocol communication platform.

“Once the platform was established, expanding to additional protocols became much easier. Our immediate focus had been ProfiNET because it represented the highest volume requirements and the greatest business urgency. After successfully completing that implementation, we were able to add EtherNet/IP with very little additional effort. In fact, the implementation required only about two days of effective development work,” explains Florian.

For ELOTECH, this highlighted one of the key advantages of the Anybus approach. Instead of developing and maintaining separate communication solutions for different markets and customer requirements, the company could build on a common hardware platform and efficiently add support for new protocols as needed.

Delivery restored, effort reduced.
The first major benefit for ELOTECH was restoring its delivery capability. “We were able to respond to customer demand quickly and avoid the long-term risks associated with the previous solution. At the same time, we gained a significantly more flexible platform for future developments,” according to Florian.

Today, many configuration changes can be implemented through application software, reducing development effort and speeding response to new customer requirements. “Our customers also benefit. Firmware updates are easier to manage, maintenance becomes simpler, and multiple communication protocols can be supported on the same hardware platform. This reduces product variants and simplifies deployment across different markets and applications,” Florian added.

Building for the future.
For ELOTECH, the implementation was much more than a technical upgrade. It was a strategic step that helped secure short-term delivery capability while creating a future-proof communication platform.

“The biggest impact is clearly on time-to-market. In the past, communication implementations had taken more than a year before reaching production readiness. With the new platform, development cycles have been significantly shortened, while future protocol integrations and product adaptations can be completed with far less engineering effort,” says Florian.

By combining fast integration, strong technical support, and multiprotocol flexibility, ELOTECH transformed an urgent supply-risk challenge into a long-term competitive advantage. In the context of increasing cybersecurity regulation, the new platform also provides a communication foundation designed to support future CRA compliance efforts.

The results speak for themselves: ProfiNET in six weeks, EtherNet/IP in two days, and a communication platform ready for the next generation of industrial products.

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@hmsnetworks @HMSAnybus @mepaxIntPR #Elotech #PAuto #Connectivity #Germany

Camera to accelerate Edge Ai Vision.

Kit simplifies multi-camera integration for automotive ADAS and robotics applications.

The Innodisk GMSL2™ Camera Starter Kit, an all-in-one vision solution that bundles four 3MP GMSL2™ camera modules, a capture card, FAKRA cables, and other necessary accessories. This is regarded as a milestone in Innodisk’s edge Ai vision strategy, the kit lets customers set up a multi-camera system and begin validation right out of the box, shortening the path from proof of concept (PoC) to deployment. Full camera source code is included, giving customers flexibility throughout development and maintenance.

As Ai vision moves toward multi-camera perception in robotics and intelligent vehicles, integrating cameras, capture cards, drivers, and host platforms has become increasingly complex, often taking six months or more before validation. The starter kit’s pre-integrated hardware and software driver enable system integrators to speed up time-to-market.

GMSL2™ is a high-speed video transmission technology that originated in automotive applications and offers long-distance connectivity. Unlike plug-and-play USB cameras, it requires a dedicated capture card and platform-specific drivers. The starter kit includes four 3MP fixed-focus GMSL2™ camera modules, a capture card, four FAKRA cables, a power adapter, power cords, and a quick start guide. It also provides camera source code for the widely adopted NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano Super Developer Kit, so users can bypass component sourcing, system-level integration, driver debugging, and tuning.

“The biggest challenge in a multi-camera AI vision project is often not the AI application itself, but the camera integration and system tuning that come before it,” said CK Hsu, Senior Manager of the Camera Product Business Department at Innodisk. “With the GMSL2™ Camera Starter Kit, Innodisk takes on the complexity of early-stage integration so customers can focus on development and move into PoC sooner.”

With the camera source code in hand, engineering teams can independently adapt the software driver to their own requirements and use the kit as a working foundation for further development. Innodisk also provides comprehensive customisation services from hardware fine-tuning to application deployment, helping customers move smoothly into design-in and mass production.

The kit supports edge Ai scenarios including blind spot detection and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) for heavy-duty vehicles, object recognition and environmental perception for humanoid robots and AMRs. Innodisk plans to expand its GMSL2™ portfolio and introduce more starter kits covering different camera models and supported platforms.

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@Innodisk_Corp @mepaxIntPR #PAuto #Ai #Robotics

Accessible emergency stop switch.

Extends the ability of users to safely stop equipment that is remote, hard to reach, or in motion.

A new assisted emergency stop (AE-stop) switch has been added to IDEC's wide range of safety products. The XW1E carries forward the same performance and patented features of other e-stop switches in the IDEC portfolio, while adding an optional solenoid-operated activation assist function so designers can incorporate improved safety in the form of remotely-commanded e-stop operation.

E-stops and safe equipment design.
Establishing a proper e-stop circuit, which commonly includes one or more e-stop buttons and other associated components, is essential for creating safe equipment designs. Workers will press an e-stop switch (button), latching it in the down position and de-energizing the e-stop circuit, to safely stop machines and other equipment when needed. The e-stop switch must be manually pulled back to the up position when the problem condition is cleared to reset the e-stop circuit.

Traditional e-stop switches work well for fixed installations with easy access. However, modern factories, warehouses, and similar sites increasingly have incorporated automated machinery and equipment, extensive robotics, automated guided vehicles (AGVs), autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), and other self-driving vehicles. What if automated equipment and/or payloads are moving in a manner that makes it challenging for workers to reach an e-stop switch?

Low-voltage switchgear and controlgear standard IEC 60947-5-5:2026 includes specific requirements for e- stop devices, and they now allow for the embedding of additional functions. This development has made possible some new and unique capabilities for e-stops.

Expanding e-stop capabilities.
IDEC has designed the new XW1E assisted e-stop switch based on the same fundamentals as other e-stop switches in the lineup, but with a brand-new additional functionality—the optional capability of being externally activated by a remotely-sourced signal. While the switch itself is safety-rated, the assisted activation is not a safety-rated function.

The AE-stop is a robust industrial-grade device with a compact form factor installable in a standard 22mm mounting hole, and it comes with an IP65 and UL Type 4X (indoor) rating. Designed and tested to withstand at least 250,000 mechanical/electrical operations, exceptional durability is assured. A red button top cap is easily seen, and it requires 11N to push latched, 17N to pull reset, or 0.27N-m to turn reset. A set of standard 1NO2NC contacts with push-in terminals provide one monitoring contact and two main contacts suitable for integrating with a wide variety of safety circuit designs.

The AE-stop physical mechanism uses a unique and patented “reverse energy structure” for an additional degree of safety, with a spring arranged to operate the e-stop if it is physically damaged in certain ways. Competitive devices can fail to drive equipment to a safe state under these conditions.

Where the AE-stop switch goes beyond traditional switches is with the addition of a 24V DC solenoid, which when energized will drive the button into the push latched state just as if a local person did so. This functionality allows designers to create more sophisticated ways for personnel, and even other automation components, to operate an e-stop circuit, providing improved options for creating safe design.

A remote activation signal may be generated by another safety device, an external sensor or controller, or even a wireless system or other more advanced options. It is important to note that whether a person or the solenoid push latches the AE-stop switch, the switch can only be reset locally and manually by a person. The overall design of the AE-stop switch preserves all basic and standard e-stop functionality in compliance with associated industry standards, and it simply provides new opportunities to create even safer equipment designs.

The IDEC assisted e-stop switch is designed to provide innovative new capabilities meeting the very latest safety standards, in an industry-leading small form factor rated for challenging environmental conditions. This style of assisted e-stop provides greater capabilities for new and retrofit applications such as robotics, AGV/AMR, logistics equipment, agricultural and construction machinery, the service industry, and anywhere else where automated equipment and moving payloads might make it challenging for users to reach a conventional e-stop switch when needed.

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@IDECUSA #PAuto #safety #Manufacturing

Sunshine and waste heat drives renewable energy.

Nord Drivesystems’ site in Gadebusch is to draw around a third of its required electricity from a nearby solar park in Lützow (D). The plant is thus consistently continuing its efforts to become less reliant on fossil fuels. This is part of the group-wide sustainability strategy that the system provider for drive technology set out.

A big day for Lützow.
The municipality in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, with a population of around 1,500, commissioned a 3.5-hectare solar park in June 2026. Together with photovoltaic modules installed on the roofs of two halls, the entire system is expected to generate 6.2 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. The largest consumer is a company belonging to drive manufacturer Nord Drivesystems: Fertigungstechnik NORD in Gadebusch, which is about a 10-minute car drive away, takes advantage of the nearby solar park and will draw 2.67 million kilowatt-hours per year from the photovoltaic system. This accounts for approximately a third of its required electricity.

24/6 manufacturing requires large amounts of energy.

Nord's Gadebusch plant.

The electricity demand is high. At its site in Gadebusch, NORD manufactures housings, shafts and worm wheels on six days a week, all day long. In five halls, over 180 employees are working on more than 80 machines and 60 interconnected systems. Every year, almost two million components leave the plant that is characterised by a high level of automation.

Every site contributes to achieving NORD’s sustainability targets.
Part of the Nord Drivesystems Group’s sustainability strategy is to continuously increase the self-produced electric power and the use of renewable energy. The company thus aims to achieve its target of reducing Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent by 2030 (compared with the base year 2024). At different sites of the NORD Group, respective projects involving the use of renewable power are being implemented.

Becoming less reliant on fossil resources.
The individual sites, such as Fertigungstechnik NORD in Gadebusch, thus make important contributions to achieving the group’s targets. Getting connected to the solar park is the plant’s latest effort to becoming less reliant on fossil resources. In 2012, a heat recovery scheme was launched and implemented step by step. Since then, plate-type heat exchangers have been ensuring that excess heat from the production machines is dissipated and used to heat factory halls, offices and hot water. The recovery system operates without additional heating when outdoor temperatures are above 0 °C. This alone helps Fertigungstechnik NORD save around a third of the 583,000 kWh of fossil heat energy it previously used each year.

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@NORD_Drive @mepaxIntPR #Sustainability #Manufacturing #Germany

Clamping nuts.

The MCA-S and MCA-T series power clamping nuts from Jakob, build upon the proven MCA range, offering further optimized handling. Instead of a standard hexagonal nut, they feature a star or T-handle, allowing for convenient operation without the need for additional tools. An integrated planetary gear system ensures that high clamping forces can be generated manually with minimal physical effort.

An innovative detent mechanism facilitates an automatic transition from initial pre-clamping to full power clamping. Thanks to their robust design and self-locking function, these power clamping nuts offer a high level of safety. Constructed from nitrocarburized heat-treated steel, combined with a housing cover made of high-strength aluminum, they are built for a long service life. Furthermore, the power clamping nuts are designed to operate across a wide temperature range, from −30 °C to +90 °C.

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@UnnGmbh @PresseBox #jakobantriebstechnik #PAuto

CEthernet/IP milestone certification.

ODVA's CIP Security™ has been formally certified by TÜV Rheinland to meet the applicable requirements of IEC 62443-4-2 at Security Level Capability 3 (SL-C 3). Security Level 3 protects against intentional violation using sophisticated means from attackers with moderate resources, IACS specific skills, and moderate motivation. Achieving formal certification that the CIP Security Specification complies with the IEC 62443 standard reinforces the position of the technology as the definitive security framework for EtherNet/IP™ products, simplifying the compliance path for product manufacturers incorporating CIP Security.

IEC 62443-4-2, part of the IEC 62443 series, defines the technical cybersecurity requirements for components used in an industrial automation and control system (IACS). CIP Security is an application layer network extension of EtherNet/IP that provides data integrity (rejecting altered data), authentication (verifying trusted identities), authorization (blocking unauthorized commands), and confidentiality/encryption via TLS and DTLS for automation devices.

Certification of CIP Security, and use of this technology in products, significantly lowers the barrier for product manufacturers seeking to achieve their own IEC 62443-4-2 certification. This certification also firmly establishes CIP Security as the natural compliance tool to meet requirements imposed by the European Union (EU) Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) by satisfying core technical and secure-by-design requirements related to confidentiality, integrity, and authentication. The CRA was created to strengthen cybersecurity in a broad range of products with digital elements and connectivity, and it therefore pertains to many products used in all types of operational technology (OT) applications.

“Achieving this certification is a significant accomplishment and further strengthens the position of EtherNet/IP as a leading secure industrial network technology,” said Dr. Al Beydoun, President and Executive Director of ODVA. “This represents an important milestone for EtherNet/IP technology and further demonstrates ODVA's commitment to advancing secure industrial communications and supporting the cybersecurity needs of our members and the broader industrial automation community.”

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@tuvcom_presse #ODVA #PAuto #Cybersecurity

Towards Wi-Fi 8 & Bluetooth® LE evaluation.

New RF characteristics evaluation options for the next-generation WLAN standard Wi-Fi 8 (IEEE 802.11bn) and Bluetooth® Low Energy (LE) for Anritsu's Wireless Connectivity Test Set MT8862A. The single-platform evaluation of RF characteristics for both wireless technologies helps improve development efficiency and optimising test environments. Anritsu continues to evolve its measurement solutions in step with advancing wireless technologies, helping enhance the reliability of wireless communications and supporting the realisation of a next-generation wireless networks.

Development background.
Wi-Fi 8 is being developed toward completion of formal standardisation in 2028, with the goal of enabling low-latency and highly reliable wireless communications. Adoption is expected in AI-enabled equipment that requires highly reliable connectivity, including physical AI systems such as robots operating in real-world environments. Meanwhile, IoT devices, wearables, and smartphones commonly incorporate both Wi‑Fi and Bluetooth® technologies, increasing demand for test environments capable of evaluating both wireless technologies efficiently on a single platform. Product overview.
The MT8862A is an RF transmit-and-receive measurement platform that supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth® LE device development from initial design through to quality evaluation. The newly developed evaluation options are provided as software, allowing existing MT8862A users to expand their test environments to evaluate Wi-Fi 8 and Bluetooth® Low Energy devices without introducing a new measurement system.

Supports Wi-Fi 8 and full range of WLAN Standards.
In addition to the latest Wi-Fi 8 and Wi-Fi 7 requirements, including 320 MHz channel bandwidth and 4096-QAM, the MT8862A supports all three Wi-Fi 6E frequency bands and legacy standards including IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, all on a single platform.

Wi-Fi evaluation under actual operating conditions.
The MT8862A supports Network Mode, which establishes a connection with the device under test and performs measurements while the device is operating. In addition to conducted testing, it also supports Over-the-Air (OTA) testing through the device antenna. Users can measure transmit power, modulation accuracy, and receiver sensitivity at individual data rates. This enables verification of communication performance under actual operating conditions and assists in identifying the root causes of issues when they arise.

The MT8862A supports RF characteristic evaluation in accordance with the RF PHY test specifications defined by the Bluetooth® Special Interest Group (SIG). This enables verification of communication performance in Bluetooth® Low Energy devices and helps identify the root causes of communication issues when they occur.

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@Anritsu @AnritsuEMEA @NapierPR #TandM #Communications