Vendor support grows for established networking architecture that provides speed and flexibility that manufacturers demand from every aspect of their applications
Hannover, Germany - ODVA today projected that more than one million total nodes of EtherNet/IP have shipped worldwide. With more than 150 vendors promoting nearly 400 products, EtherNet/IP is well established in the market. EtherNet/IP stands apart from other industrial Ethernet options as it uses the same standard TCP/IP protocol chips and wiring that are used for the Internet and in company business networks worldwide. This approach offers a myriad of benefits to automation users and vendors alike: low product development costs, ease of use, simple product and network integration and multi-vendor interoperability, delivering far more than a fieldbus ever could.
Sharing the same application layer — the Common Industrial Protocol (CIP) — as DeviceNet, ControlNet and the recently announced CompoNet, EtherNet/IP provides seamless bridging and routing of messages from sensors to the enterprise software, delivering a free flow of information and enhanced decision making throughout the enterprise. “The viability of EtherNet/IP is tremendous, as this recent milestone proves," said Katherine Voss, Executive Director of ODVA. "It matches the needs of industrial automation users looking to build information-rich, cost-effective and integrated facilities that will last well into the future.
Many manufacturers have already adopted EtherNet/IP as their networking standard in industries as diverse as Automotive, Food, Military, Infrastructure, Beverage and Brewing and Life Sciences, and we anticipate that many more will follow." In an April 2005 study published by ARC Advisory Group, EtherNet/IP and Modbus TCP dominate global node shipments for open Industrial Ethernet, a market that is projected to grow 51.4% annually through 2009. The report cites the economic benefits and broad availability as the strongest factors in the deployment of industrial networks using Ethernet.
About EtherNet/IP
EtherNet/IP, owned and managed by ODVA and ControlNet International in a joint technology agreement, extends commercial off-the-shelf Ethernet to Common Industrial Protocol (CIP™). CIP allows EtherNet/IP and DeviceNet product developers, system integrators and users to apply the same objects and profiles for plug-and-play interoperability among devices from multiple vendors and in multiple sub-nets. Combined, DeviceNet and EtherNet/IP promote transparency from sensors to the enterprise software.
About ODVA
ODVA, founded in 1995, is an international association comprised of members from the world's leading automation companies. Collectively, ODVA and its members support network technologies based on the Common Industrial Protocol (CIP™). These currently include DeviceNet™, EtherNet/IP™, CompoNet™, CIP Motion™, CIP Safety™ and CIP Sync™. ODVA manages the development of these open technologies, and assists manufacturers and users of CIP Networks through tools, training and marketing activities. In addition, ODVA offers conformance testing to help ensure that products built to its specifications operate in multi-vendor systems.
ODVA also is active in other standards development organizations and industry consortia to drive the growth of open communication standards.
