Beckhoff ELX3181 | EtherCAT Terminal, 1-channel analog input, current, 4…20 mA

The ELX318x analog input terminal allows the direct connection of

intrinsically safe HART-capable field devices located in hazardous

areas classified zone 0/20 or 1/21. It supplies measuring transducers

located in the field and transmits their analog measuring signals

electrically isolated to the automation device.

Overload and open-circuit detection are signaled by the error LEDs,

furthermore LEDs inform about the status of the HART communication

and signal any communication errors. The EtherCAT Terminal indicates

the signal state by means of light emitting diodes.

The HART protocol (Highway Addressable Remote Transducer) enables

two-way communication through digital data transfer via the analog

4…20 mA wiring. In this way, in addition to the analog current signal,

further data can be exchanged with the field device via the

superimposed digital signal.

The HART communication can also be used for the FDT/DTM concept.

The TwinCAT FDT container enables the integration of field device

DTMs into TwinCAT Engineering, so that the device configuration and

diagnostic functions are available directly within the development

environment. As the FDT concept only supports 32-bit, it cannot be

used in the 64-bit TwinCAT XAE Shell.