DAC 2021_12

28 n COMMUNICATIONS November/December 2021 www.drivesncontrols.com Will TSN become essential for industry? C onnected industries of the future will rely on single, converged networks. These will facilitate access to data by enabling both vertical and horizontal communications to share actionable insights across enterprises. Ultimately, the knowledge gathered will drive productivity and competitiveness. By simplifying the architecture behind unified industrial communications, such a set-up can also simplify network architectures and maintenance activities, cutting costs. This vision for future-oriented data- sharing, in line with Industry 4.0, is in stark contrast to legacy communications, characterised by “islands” of automation where most machines are isolated. This means that we currently have to rely on multiple, often semi-proprietary, standards to share data within the different layers of the automation pyramid. Besides, each protocol can rarely communicate with the others, preventing the transfer of key information across the enterprise. Even more, as machines and systems expand, networks become increasingly complex to address these changes. Next-gen networks Existing network technologies – even when well-established – may therefore not be able to address the needs of next-gen industries. A first, significant step to address change is the use of systems with wide bandwidths of around 1 Gbit/s. One of the reasons why systems have remained partially isolated is to avoid interference. As businesses move away from this model and enlarge their networks, they need sufficient bandwidth to guarantee that time-critical data, such as control traffic, can always be transferred in a deterministic manner. By doing so, they can support more applications and start benefitting from the gains offered by converged networks. The next step is to implement TSN technology, whose relevance has grown rapidly. When I first came across TSN, about five to six years ago, I thought it was just another technology with limited impact. But the more I learned about it, and as the standards behind TSN developed, the more I could see its game-changing role for next- level communications. It is now clear how TSN will change industrial automation and the way we run our businesses. Businesses around the world are well aware that TSN is the enabler for Industry 4.0 as it can unleash their full potential by supporting converged, deterministic networks that are at the core of smart, Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) lays a foundation for future interconnected, data-driven smart factories. It offers a systematic way of supporting determinism, convergence and transparency. Chih-Hong Lin, global technology partner manager at the industrial communications specialist Moxa, considers the role TSN will play in shaping the future of industrial automation. By converging various aspects of the OT and IT worlds, TSN networks deliver the process transparency needed by end-users “Time-Sensitive Networking will change industrial automation and the way we run our businesses”