Real-time Networking

INtime applications have direct access to a TCP/IP stack without requiring Windows as an intermediary. Applications use a standard sockets API to communicate with dedicated, real-time Ethernet hardware. Device drivers for a variety of standard Ethernet hardware are supported, including the Intel Fast Ethernet (10/100 Mbps) and Gigabit Ethernet interfaces.

See the TenAsys Knowledge Base for more information regarding available Ethernet adapter support and support for TCP/IP networking within INtime real-time applications.

Virtual Ethernet driver

The INtime virtual Ethernet system provides a virtual network connection between Windows applications and the INtime real-time applications. The virtual Ethernet driver passes packets directly between the Windows Ethernet driver interface and the INtime Ethernet driver interface.

Our virtual Ethernet connection can be used to quickly migrate pre-existing networked real-time applications to the INtime RTOS for Windows environment. Converting an existing dual-platform Windows plus RTOS system to a single hardware platform is facilitiated by using a virtual Ethernet connection between Windows and INtime.

If your existing real-time application consists of a Windows host and a real-time target connected by a TCP/IP network, the Windows component of your application should require only minimal changes. Familiar networking APIs are used in both the Windows and INtime environments. See this INtime TCP/IP networking knowledge base article to determine what changes your real-time application may require to support the INtime TCP/IP networking API.

EtherCAT fieldbus

Profimatics GmbH, an embedded system developer and TenAsys partner, has developed a real-time EtherCAT master for INtime. The Profimatics software allows you to utilize a standard Windows PC platform as the EtherCAT master of a deterministic EtherCAT fieldbus network.

The König-PA EtherCAT Master Stack is also available for the INtime RTOS. The König master is delivered in three variants: basic, standard, and premium, and is compatible with their EtherCAT Studio development workspace.

The EtherCAT fieldbus utilizes the speed and cost effectiveness of Ethernet hardware to implement a fieldbus network that provides higher performance than traditional fieldbus solutions. For example, 1000 distributed digital I/O points can be queried within 30µs, 200 analog values in 50µs, or 100 axes of motion can be controlled in 100µs. EtherCAT is particularly well suited for PC-based control technology. A PC-based EtherCAT master requires no special plug-in card and can be implemented on any standard Ethernet controller.

Please visit the EtherCAT Technology Group website for detailed information regarding the EtherCAT fieldbus standard.