Automatic configuration (Plug & Produce) of Industrial Ethernet networks

Current developments in globalized markets lead to an increasing need for flexible and reconfigurable production systems. By means of automatic reconfiguration of real-time capable communication networks, the effort to perform changes in production systems can be tremendously reduced. This paper proposes new approaches for automatic reconfiguration for robot cells and their equipment on the one hand, controls and Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) on the other hand. Therefore a five-step-model for reconfiguration is introduced. Based on Industrial Ethernet networks, different realistic setups were built. On the basis of these setups the approaches were tested and evaluated.