Anybus Communicator - EtherCAT

Integrate your serial RS-232/422/485 based industrial devices and equipment to a EtherCAT control system without the need for any changes to the device. Just connect, configure and you're done!

The Anybus Communicator is a proven and trusted protocol converter gateway that connects non-networked industrial devices and equipment to EtherCAT. The gateway performs an intelligent protocol conversion and presents the serial data to the Master PLC/Controller as easily processed I/O data.

The Communicator is slim stand-alone gateway designed for IP20 and DIN-rail mounting, requiring a 24-volt power supply. The Communicator is conformance tested to current EtherCAT specifications guaranteeing network compatibility.

CONVERT ALMOST ANY TYPE OF SERIAL PROTOCOL

The Communicator is capable of converting almost any type of serial protocol such as Modbus RTU, ASCII, DF1 or any other type of proprietary Query/Response or Produce/Consume protocol.

TYPICAL SERIAL APPLICATIONS

Typical serial applications include variable frequency drives, sensors, actuators, human machine interfaces, barcode readers, RFID readers and industrial scales among others. 

Features and benefits

• Saves machine builders and device manufacturers of integrating a EtherCAT interface
• Allows system integrators to retro-fit older automation devices into modern EtherCAT communication structures
• Requires no hardware or software changes to be made to the connected device
• Compatible with all PLCs with EtherCAT support
• Performs complete serial protocol conversion, no PLC function blocks required
• Intelligent I/O data mapping within the Communicator permits even devices with slow serial communication can be integrated without any restrictions to the upper network  
• Possibility to connect upto 31 nodes via one Communicator giving inexpensive EtherCAT network connectivity for your devices
• Always free technical support from HMS and our global Anybus Distributors

Serial protocol configuration features

No high level programming skills are needed to set up the Anybus® Communicator as configuration is accomplished using the included, easy to use Windows™ based ACM (Anybus Configuration Manager).

• Selectable RS-232/422/485 interface
• Pre-defined 6-step Modbus-RTU configuration wizard
• Selectable pre-loaded DF1 commands. No scripting or serial frame building required!
• Ability to configure ASCII or vendor specific protocols (Request/Response or Produce/Consume via a visual frame building interface 
• Multi-language support for English, German, Spanish, Italian, French, Polish, Russian, Chinese and Japanese
• Handy Save/Load function allows for a completed configuration to be re-used for many other installations
• Password protection prevents unauthorized upload and download of configurations
• Serial Line Listener and In-built Checksum calculations for diagnostic and troubleshooting

EtherCAT interface features

• Supports CANopen over EtherCAT
• DS301 v4.02 profile compliant
• Max 512 bytes Input and 512 bytes I/O data as (SDO & PDO objects)
• Segmented SDO access, PDI Watchdog
• 4 FMMU Channels
• 100 Mbit/s operation in full duplex
• TCP/IP settings configurable with web-page, Configuration Tool, DHCP or ARP
• Integrated switch allowing for a daisy-chain topology
• Dual RJ-45 network connectors

Technical specifications