Yaskawa is enhancing its SLIO decentralized I/O and control system with a new I/O-Link module and Yaskawa IO-Link Manager software! This means that the SLIO I/O-Link module now enables communication between CPUs and I/O-Link-ready field devices, such as sensors and actuators, according to IEC 61131-9.
This new development can be executed directly on the CPU or via a fieldbus coupler with a CPU. The module works as an I/O-Link master: you can connect up to six masters, allowing the operation of up to 24 IO-Link devices per main module. On the hardware side, it has four freely parameterizable 64-byte channels, which can be operated in standard input/output (SIO) or I/O-Link mode. The status LEDs indicate the current mode and any errors that have occurred. The ports are galvanically isolated from the backplane bus.
IO-Link Master modules are configured, controlled and updated via another new addition, our IO-Link Manager software. IODD files are uploaded via an IO-Link community server. Doing so ensures a high degree of data security, as IODD files do not contain any executable code.
The software communicates with one or more IO-Link master modules connected via Ethernet and is able to read and display their configuration. In addition, users can change settings via a GUI (Graphical User Interface), save them locally to data media, and write them back to the module via Ethernet. The behavior of the module is controlled and changed by changing the configuration.