New Profinet Interface Proves Impressive

Pilz decentralized I/O system, PSSuniversal, used in the automotive industry Pilz is to be the exclusive supplier of decentralized I/O periphery with protection type IP20 to automotive manufacturer BMW, effective immediately. In the future, the automotive group will use the PSSuniversal decentralized I/O system worldwide.

A prerequisite was the development of a new head module with Profinet interface, which was achieved in close cooperation with BMW. This was an impressive control solution from both a technical and an economic point of view. Thanks to the customized, certified Profinet interface, the decentralized I/O system PSSuniversal can be integrated seamlessly and safely into existing or new plant structures. “We regard the openness of control solutions not just in terms of investment protection. We are really keen to give users the chance to choose the solution that best suits their project”, says Albrecht Feucht, from Key Account Automotive at Pilz.

Open systems stimulate competition Under the scope of AIDA (Automotive Initiative of German Domestic Automobile Manufacturers), German automotive manufacturers have opted to use Profinet as a standardized communication medium, but AIDA has also stated that competition needs to be guaranteed where the connected control solution is concerned.

The decision in favor of Pilz was preceded by a comprehensive evaluation of the market and all available products by experts from BMW. In addition to its openness toward Profinet, other criteria included the system’s cost effectiveness plus the ability to link standard control functions and safety functions. Intense cooperation and continual coordination with BMW during the two-year development period paved the way for the launch of a user friendly system which meets the exact requirements. System is easy to handle. The integrated safety principle of the PSSuniversal represents a key distinguishing feature in comparison with existing solutions.

On the control system, the head module alone represents the safety-related subscribers, so that users only need to make the necessary settings at this central point. There is no need to assign awkward sub-addresses. Consequently all safety-related addresses on the Profinet Master can be put to optimal use.

Not only does this reduce the administrative work in assigning safe address ranges, it also
reduces costs, as less hardware is needed because the safety technology is concentrated
exclusively in the head module.

Initial projects with the decentralized I/O system Pilz PSSuniversal with Profinet connection will be implemented in BMW’s plants in Regensburg, Munich and Leipzig, with global applications to follow.