Profibus troubleshooting made easy

With the release of version 4.0 of its Profibus Scope diagnosis tool, Trebing & Himstedt claims to have opened up new possibilities in Profibus network maintenance.
Never before has it been possible to identify and solve Profibus problems so quickly and easily, says the company. Among many other new features, the highlight of the new release is the option of permanent monitoring via Ethernet. Using the xEPI Ethernet-Profibus interface, monitoring is no longer limited to the local area, so every Profibus segment in the plant can be viewed from a central point. Monitoring is also available through widely-available Siemens CP and PG hardware. The tool’s revised Diagnosis mode, with its clear four-window design, provides at-a-glance information on key current and historic network parameters and possible problems, with both graphical data and clear text messages. A new “Top 10” function allows users to quickly identify the network stations with the highest number of errors and repeat telegrams. For expert users, the Telegrams mode has an enhanced display and extensive error-locating functions. Profibus Scope is rapidly gaining acceptance among equipment manufacturers, industry sectors including pharmaceuticals, and by the PNO in its guidelines on validating Profibus systems.