The wired Ethernet-based communication lines for data exchange and the networking of industrial systems are not generally monitored continuously at present. One reason for this, in addition to the large number of Ethernet cables, is that most of these cables are concealed and difficult to access. Until now, cable breaks and faults have usually had to be investigated during machine downtimes and away from the system using additional measuring devices.

Against this backdrop, the two-year research project "Ko²SiBus - Continuous and cost-effective signal monitoring for industrial bus systems" was launched in mid-2017. As part of this BMWi-funded project, the Institute for Reliable Embedded Systems and Communication Electronics (ivESK) at Offenburg University of Applied Sciences and the team from the Chair of Measurement and Sensor Technology at Chemnitz University of Technology are working together with the IMMS Institute of Microelectronics and Mechatronics Systems to develop new solutions that will significantly reduce downtimes and maintenance costs in industrial plants that are attributable to faults in data cables that were previously difficult to detect.

The new concept should also allow monitoring data to be passed on via a standardized and open interface, making it easy to integrate into customer-specific monitoring solutions. The solution should be able to be retrofitted into existing systems, for example as an extension for switches, and integrated as a feature directly into network nodes of Industry 4.0 systems.

The project committee consists of the following industry partners: Bosch Rexroth, Gemac - Gesellschaft für Mikroelektronikanwendung, Hilscher, Indu-Sol, Pilz, R. Stahl Schaltgeräte, Renesas Electronics, Sick, Stackforce and Turck.

TU Chemnitz researches methods for cable diagnostics

Chemnitz University of Technology is providing the theoretical groundwork for the development of the embedded cable diagnostics process in Ko²SiBus. For this purpose, a large number of existing test methods are being compared and analyzed, such as Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR). The main challenge here is to use the diagnostic tool in industrial plants without interrupting their operation. The aim is to achieve a significant improvement on the current state of the art. On the basis of a specially adapted demonstration network, the theory is to be compared with practice, among other things by looking at typical cable fault events.

HS Offenburg works on communication interfaces

In the project, Offenburg University of Applied Sciences is primarily concerned with the necessary communication interfaces via which the analysis data is passed on to higher systems. Standard protocols are used, which have to be adapted and optimized for use on small, low-power microcontrollers. Offenburg University of Applied Sciences is also implementing the corresponding controls for the analysis functions.

IMMS designs circuit concepts

IMMS will use this input to design an embedded system and develop suitable circuit concepts. Based on the know-how from developments for sensor solutions, including for monitoring industrial plants, a system will be implemented in Ko²SiBus that tracks physical signal parameters using integrated analog and digital components and reports deviations to a monitoring center. The functionality is to be tested using a demonstrator to be built by IMMS.