PROFIBUS is the most popular fieldbus in the world for discrete automation. It’s now 20 years since it was developed by a consortium of automation companies and academic institutions and it was one of the first to achieve international standardization in 1996.
PROFIBUS DP is optimized for distributed I/O applications. Up to 126 I/O devices can be connected to a PROFIBUS DP cable. Since each I/O device can handle hundreds of connection points, this provides a very large number connection possibilities for a single PLC or controller. PROFIBUS DP is suited to just about any manufacturing automation use, from simple conveyor systems and assembly lines right up to complex printing machines and robotic cells.
As well as the basic control of inputs and outputs, PROFIBUS DP supports a range of standardized automation application services, or ‘Profiles’ - Motion Control and Functional Safety are just two examples - that add significantly to the value proposition and business benefits.
In other words, PROFIBUS-enabled plants run more effectively and with lower life cycle costs, enhancing profitability and improving manufacturing across the enterprise.
TEN REASONS FOR USING PROFIBUS
- It's the preferred fieldbus for end users and it's used in the largest number of applications worldwide.
- It offers huge vendor and product choice.
- It delivers true openness and total interoperability, allowing changes/updates at low cost.
- Its protocol is optimized for factory and process control using standardized interfaces, and therefore it's ideal for hybrid applications too.
- Less hardware needed, which means less weight and space also lowered installation and life cycle costs.
- There's easy and consistent integration of functional safety and motion control in factory and process automation applications.
- There's flexible media redundancy.
- PI supports managed technology development, including test & certification processes.
- PI is the world’s largest fieldbus organization.
- There's easy migration to PROFINET, PI's Industrial Ethernet solution.
