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Andreas Huhmann & Stefan Korf
The Switch is the Solution
Fast track switching ensures performance for Automation IT
Automation IT has had a tremendous impact on the market because it has concentrated discussions about the use
of Ethernet in industry on the most important factor, namely customer benefits. The benefits are generated by the
consistent use of standard Ethernet IEEE 802.3 networks. For automation, genuine automation performance, such
as deterministic data transport, is essential. As today’s switching technology for standard Ethernet cannot achieve
this, the customer benefits of Automation IT can only be realized by combining standard Ethernet with the new
fast track switching technology.
A) Communication in industrial applications:
Ethernet
The high expectations associated with the Ethernet
euphoria unleashed in 2000 included, for example, a
network for all applications. It quickly became apparent
that, although Ethernet was the right technology, it could
not fully meet automation requirements in terms of
consistent networks. So what had happened
When applied to automation, the performance of Ethernet
proved to be not yet sufficient to fully replace the field bus
systems used to date, with the result that efforts to further
develop Ethernet were stepped up significantly. This led
to a number of incompatible industrial Ethernet profiles.
What many of these profiles had in common was the fact
that, in accordance with IEEE 802.3, they had changed
Ethernet into a proprietary solution, which meant that
it was incompatible with devices and applications using
standard Ethernet. The performance problem was solved
by changing Ethernet on the OSI layer 2. The performance
of these profiles is generally good. In other words, their
performance in terms of their determinism, speed,
topologies and installation is similar to that of today’s
field bus systems and this is the benchmark that Ethernet
must achieve for automation. However, at that time, it was
not known that there was an alternative to changing the
Ethernet standard. As a result, at this time, the lifecycle
of industry Ethernet had become uncoupled from that of
standard Ethernet and, consequently, this point in time
also marked the birth of Automation IT. The visionary
Automation IT approach came into being in 2006 in order
to counteract the deviation from the Ethernet standard and
to secure a uniform communication platform for office IT
and industrial automation. One Ethernet as a standard for
the communication platform.
B) Platform for all applications:
Automation IT
Automation IT is the communication platform for all
applications of a producing industrial company. The
principle is as follows: all applications are interlinked
via a uniform Ethernet network. This ensures direct
communication between the various applications
determining the business process, for example, ERP and
MES. This avoids complex transitions and accelerates
processes. Efficient company processes are the result.
Networks based on Automation IT deliver multiple
customer benefits: they reduce costs, simplify installation
and increase availability.
C) The key technology for Automation IT:
Fast Track Switching
When selecting the communication standard, there are no
alternatives as the standard has already been set for MES
and ERP communication. Ethernet has become established
in office IT worldwide. In office IT environments,
communication is linked with the strict observance of
the Ethernet specification IEEE 802.3. Consequently,
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