Market Update Test, Registration Services Available for Ethernet-APL Infrastructure Products

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Fieldcomm Group has recently announced the availability of test and registration services for Ethernet-APL infrastructure products. In this background, Pepperl+Fuchs’ Rail Field Switches are the first Ethernet-APL products to achieve registration.

Fieldcomm Group provides conformance testing and registration for industrial instrumentation technologies for the process automation sector, now Ethernet-APL solutions join the portfolio of registered products with the availability of physical layer conformance testing for Ethernet-APL infrastructure products — power switches and field switches.

Ethernet-APL is an enhanced physical layer for single-pair Ethernet (SPE) based on 10Baset1l. This new physical layer provides end-users with a resilient, isolated and powered Ethernet network for process automation, states the company. Ethernet-APL enabled field devices connect directly to this network. Switches registered with Fieldcomm Group undergo conformance tests for crucial aspects of the physical layer of the new technology: EMC, Data and Power.

Pepperl+Fuchs is thrilled to have the first registered Ethernet-APL switches, the Rail Field Switches including up to 24 intrinsically safe Ex ic spur ports, with Fieldcomm Group. It has recently been working with the Group to create test policies and procedures for infrastructure products like field switches and power switches usable by all test and registration authorities in the Ethernet-APL consortium, including ODVA, OPC Foundation, and Profibus & Profinet International. This effort will ensure conformance to the Ethernet APL standards independent of test agency, adds the firm.

The Group has worked closely with ODVA, OPC Foundation, and Profibus & Profinet International in a concerted collaboration in developing the test specifications and processes for Ethernet-APL products.

Conformance to the Ethernet-APL standard strengthens the process automation industry as a whole, mentions Fieldcomm Group. The company is excited for this opportunity to provide testing and registration of Ethernet-APL Infrastructure Products, a major component of the Ethernet-APL ecosystem. This is the first step towards a complete suite of registration services from the Group for Ethernet-APL products to fulfill the field-to-cloud initiative brought forth by Ethernet-based technologies.

As additional innovative products join the digital evolution of process automation, the Group sees Hart-IP field devices and other infrastructure products completing the registration process, expanding the breadth of fast and secure process data delivery for cloud-based analytics and optimization.

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