PMA - Precision Metal Forming
PMA is the full-service trade association representing the $91-billion metalforming industry of North America-the industry that creates precision metal products using stamping, fabricating, spinning, slide forming and roll forming technologies, and other value-added processes. Its nearly 1,100 member companies also include suppliers of equipment, materials and services to the industry. PMA leads innovative member companies toward superior competitiveness and profitability through advocacy, networking, statistics, the PMA Educational Foundation, METALFORM tradeshows and MetalForming magazine.
www.metalforming.com
Profinet
PROFINET is the largest automation organization of its type in the world, with a network of regional offices and globally-based member companies. PI also has a network of competence centers, training and test organizations that contribute to and support developers, integrators and end users. No other fieldbus organization has a 'community' better able to support the automation market and its end users with solutions designed to help manufacturing enterprises maximize profits.
Powerlink
POWERLINK is CANopen over Ethernet" – even if this statement simplifies the matter, since it leaves POWERLINK's real-time capabilities out of the equation, it nonetheless captures an essential point about this communication system, which gives users the benefits of both of the latter protocols in one package. Hence, a proper evaluation of POWERLINK's advantages requires some basic knowledge of Ethernet and CANopen. This section will begin by pointing out the peculiar characteristics of the Ethernet protocol itself, which will make it easier to grasp the specific features described in the following section on “Technology
ODVA
ODVA is an international association comprising 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™, and ControlNet™, along with the major extensions to CIP — CIP Safety™ and CIP Motion™. ODVA manages the development of these open technologies, and assists manufacturers and users of CIP Networks through its activities in standards development, certification, vendor education and industry awareness.
www.odva.orgEtherNet/IP Technology Overview | DeviceNet Library.
EtherCAT
EtherCAT is the open real-time Ethernet network originally developed by Beckhoff. EtherCAT sets new standards for real-time performance and topology flexibility.
