Time-Sensitive Networking Innovation Transforms Industrial Connectivity

Time-sensitive networking (TSN) is a network technology designed to complement industrial Ethernet communications by enhancing determinism and convergence. Thanks to these capabilities, it improves the way companies’ processes operate as well as how their machines and components communicate, bringing with it a host of benefits that can drive competitiveness throughout the industrial landscape.

The technology can guarantee determinism across a network, enabling machine builders and users to set up ultra-high-speed industrial automation applications, such as complex motion systems, and improve productivity. In addition, by providing a platform for convergence, TSN can help create simpler, leaner, and more cost-effective networks that streamline troubleshooting. Also, it supports data-driven decision making, thanks to its ability to facilitate the merger of information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT).

Driven by the competitive advantages that TSN can bring to companies in various sectors, the demand for the technology is rapidly growing. To address this, industrial automation vendors at the forefront of the industry are beginning to offer devices that can leverage TSN, such as CC-Link IE TSN open industrial Ethernet. This solution, which combines TSN functions and gigabit bandwidth, already offers more than a hundred compatible products that are readily available and can support advanced Industry 4.0 setups. For the myriad of other products that use other network technologies, there are protocol converters that support their incorporation on CC-Link IE TSN networks to maximize interconnectivity. As machine builders and end-users can select suitable industrial automation devices from an extensive portfolio, the number of CC-Link IE TSN applications being implemented to advance operations is rapidly growing.

Related:Harnessing the Power of Deterministic Networks for Motion Control

The Land of CC-Link IE TSN’s Rising Sun

The CC-Link IE TSN adoption curve found its origin point in Asia, where forward-thinking companies across the continent quickly realized the potential of the network technology as well as its many benefits. For example, Shashin Kagaku, a Japanese producer of additive manufacturing systems, also known as 3D printers, turned to CC-Link IE TSN for its new SZ-6000 machine. The resulting solution provided the company with a significant lead over other businesses in what is already a highly competitive marketplace. More importantly, its customers can also benefit from a significant increase in productivity through a highly cost-effective unit.

In China, CC-Link IE TSN has been adopted by a producer of automated lithium-ion battery manufacturing lines. The company was looking for a new communications technology that would improve the productivity of its systems, while simplifying their designs and reducing time to market. Also, the Instrumentation Technology & Economy Institute (ITEI) in China selected CC-Link IE TSN as an enabling technology within the Smart Manufacturing Comprehensive Test Platform. This is a full-scale, fully automated demonstration of a manufacturing system that leverages key technologies to showcase best practices for future manufacturing facilities. 

Another leading example of the advantages of this network technology in the region was developed by Orisol, a provider of automated systems for footwear production. The company saw its OFA240 series upper-to-sole flash activator machine as an ideal candidate to benefit from TSN technology. By using CC-Link IE TSN, this updated setup could increase the speed of internal communications by a factor of 220, with execution time shortened by 7 times and application speed increased by 12 times overall. CC-Link IE TSN also enabled machines to be synchronized to an accuracy of 1 millisecond for almost instant data sharing, delivering precise communications within the machine itself, and to other devices and IT systems.

Go West

The adoption of CC-Link IE TSN in Asia, highlighted by the aforementioned examples, marked the first steps in a global shift towards a more interconnected and efficient industrial landscape. The Western market is now following in the footsteps of companies in the East. Applications built on CC-Link IE TSN are helping companies in Europe and the Americas to enhance their connectivity, productivity, and efficiency. 

A solution based on the technology that rises above the others is the latest project completed by Keller poligrafia dla przemysłu in Poland. This stands as a testament to the fast-growing adoption of TSN. The Polish company, an OEM of machines that perform screen and pad printing as well as hot stamping, developed an innovative bottle printing system that leverages CC-Link IE TSN network technology to boost productivity. By incorporating TSN, the unit delivers next-level productivity via deterministic motion control over a multitude of servos. This has resulted in significant improvements in terms of speed, accuracy, and precision that can greatly benefit end-users.

The success of implementations such as the one carried out by Keller demonstrates that CC-Link IE TSN is not merely an Asian phenomenon but a growing global trend. As more companies recognize the transformative potential of this technology, we can anticipate further breakthroughs and improvements in industrial processes in the West as well as on a global level.

A Global Shift Toward CC-Link IE TSN Is Underway

Today, more and more companies spanning various sectors have embraced CC-Link IE TSN. These include industry players in automotive, food and beverage, logistics, consumer electronics, semiconductor, and lithium-ion batteries as well as consumer packaged goods. This broad spectrum of industries leveraging the technology underscores its ability to address Industry 4.0 challenges across the board and signals a turning point in the industrial connectivity landscape. 

The continuous increase in applications that use CC-Link IE TSN for effective communications is a compelling indicator of the technology's role as enabler for the creation of connected industries of tomorrow. The total number of installed devices that are compatible with the CLPA’s range of open technologies, from CC-Link fieldbus to CC-Link IE open gigabit Ethernet and CC-Link IE TSN, surpasses 40 million globally and continues to climb. This therefore provides an unmistakable sign that the trend of adopting CC-Link IE TSN is not merely a passing phase but a fundamental shift that is here to stay.