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| Ethernet-Based NI's Devices Offer Expansion I/O for Any PC or PAC National Instruments has announced two new Ethernet- and serial-based NI Compact FieldPoint network interfaces that engineers and scientists can use to expand the I/O in any PC or programmable automation controller (PAC). The new National Instruments cFP-1804 four-slot and the cFP-1808 eight-slot interfaces offer five standard protocols for open connectivity with industrial platforms and make it even easier for engineers to integrate more than 30 Compact FieldPoint industrial I/O modules into their systems with industry standards including TCP/IP, Modbus and Optomux. The NI cFP-1804 and cFP-1808 natively communicate with a variety of protocols running on RS232 serial or Ethernet, including Modbus RTU, Modbus TCP, Modbus ASCII, Optomux and National Instruments event-driven protocol. Engineers and scientists can easily add expansion I/O to most software packages including National Instruments LabVIEW by selecting the correct Modbus register address and then accessing the I/O from the Compact FieldPoint bank. The Compact FieldPoint product line also includes a free OPC server that makes it simple to add I/O to any OPC-compliant software package. Engineers can choose from a wide range of Compact FieldPoint modules including analog input and output, thermocouple, RTD, strain, high current relay and digital I/O. The Compact FieldPoint platform provides extended operating temperatures - from -40 degrees to 70 degrees C - and Class I, Division 2 industrial ratings. The system contains built-in diagnostics for network failures and provides a network watchdog to set values to a safe state and power-up states. In addition, it is now even easier to add Ethernet-based communication to PAC systems by using the new NI LabVIEW 8 graphical programming environment. Engineers can add I/O - including Compact FieldPoint, NI CompactRIO and NI CompactVision System modules - with the LabVIEW Project, a new project-based environment for managing large applications in LabVIEW 8. By using the simple drag-and-drop FieldPoint API, engineers select the appropriate I/O channel from the cFP-1804 or cFP-1808 and then instantly add it to the LabVIEW block diagram targeted to a PC or Compact FieldPoint real-time controller. Engineers also can easily add expansion I/O from distributed NI PAC systems, including CompactRIO, with the LabVIEW shared variable. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Networking News :: home page |