Industrial Communication Guide

COMPONENTS AND STRUCTURE OF AUTOMATION SYSTEMS

Ring topology: When the devices are connected in a ring topology, every device can essentially communicate with every other device via two channels (clockwise , counter-clockwise). And this is the main advantage of this structure: communication between the devices is still preserved even if one section of the network is interrupted. This type of redundant ring structure can be realized with EtherCat, for example.

Star topology: With a star topology, a distribution component is required that forms the center of the star.

Tree topology: A tree has several distribution components, depending on its size, and can therefore be regarded as an “expanded” star. One example of this is the common type of Ethernet office network using switches as a distribution component.

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