A novel Ethernet-based equipment integration framework for factory automation

In this paper we propose a novel equipment integration framework that is constructed on top of Ethernet and possesses the capability of real-time, synchronous control networks. The equipment integration framework can be used in the equipment-control layer of factory automation networks. Also, it can easily integrate with information-management layer networks. Simulation and experimental results with a laboratory-scale factory show that the proposed equipment integration framework can not only achieve a good performance but also remedy some drawbacks of traditional automaton networks. It is believed that our work can be a significant contribution for factory automation.