• Intelligent Solutions for Intelligent Transportation Systems
  Part I: Integrated Ethernet Solution for Railway Automation

• IMC-21-M-ST-FL (10BaseT to 10BaseFL) Entry-level Industrial Media Converter
• ioLogik 4000—Ethernet I/O Server for PC-based Data Acquisition and Control

• Industrial Science Parks Get a Boost from Video/Voice/Data over One Network
• NPort IA Makes Environmental Monitoring Easier

• MOXA's October Solution Forums "Brighten Up" the UK, Nordic Countries, and Australia
• See Moxa's "Integrating Video, Voice, and Data Over One Network" at SPS Show 2005
  

Part I: Integrated Ethernet Solution for Railway Automation

Speed, reliability, and safety are important factors for the efficient and economic operation of railway systems. Builders of modern railway systems have found that automation technology can be used to lower labor costs, and to create a more "real-time environment" for communication and data transfer. However, railway transportation systems consist of many complex sub-systems that together form a distributed architecture requiring centralized control and monitoring. Because of the complexity involved, an open, reliable network that can connect to and communicate with all sub-systems is required to ensure that management and operation is carried out in the most intelligent way.

System Description

Railway systems contain many subsystems, including a Control and Dispatching System (Signaling System), Environment Monitoring System, Video Networking Surveillance System, and Electric Power Supply System. These subsystems, which handle key aspects of railway operation, are generally located at remote locations, such as the railway stations making up the rail line.

A layered network is often used to integrate all of these systems into one complete railway system.

• The device-level control network is a fieldbus network that uses gateways to communicate with the Ethernet network. All of the information transmitted from the field is forwarded to the upper layer network via the Ethernet network.

• The station-wide control network connects the main subsystems of each railway station with the Ethernet network. The station-wide networks are then integrated via the backbone network to transmit operations information between stations.

• The backbone network collects and transmits the operations information from each station to the Central Control Room. In this way, the Central Control Room has sufficient information for further control and analysis.

The device level network collects the operations information from devices such as PLCs, DCS systems, field I/O devices, and also SCADA and CCTV systems. All of this information passes through the gateways, after which it is sent to the Ethernet network. The backbone uses a Gigabit Ethernet network, which provides enough bandwidth to handle data and video communication from station to station easily. The three layers of networks connect all of the stations together, and integrate all of the information that is required to keep the system operating smoothly. The end result is a railway control system that is fast enough to respond in real-time, and that runs more efficiently.

Requirements
Railway transportation systems are characterized by mission-critical requirements and the need to provide on-time service. For this reason, networks that connect to all of the subsystems must be reliable enough to keep the system running non-stop. A network used as part of a railway transportation system should satisfy the following primary requirements:

• High reliability—Network devices used for the railway communication network must have a high MTBF, and use redundancy to ensure non-stop operation.

• High bandwidth—A considerable amount of data (including images) is transmitted over the network, so that sufficient bandwidth is needed. This is especially true for the backbone network.

• Rugged design—Railway systems may need to operate reliably in different types of environment, including those that experience extreme temperatures, and sites that are subject to incessant vibrations. Only devices with a rugged, anti-vibration design can be used safely for railway environments.

• Long-haul Transmission—Railway systems consist of many stations, some of which could be separated by hundreds of kilometers. A network used to integrate operation information from that many stations must be capable of transmitting data over long distances.

• Free from Interference—Since railway environments are subject to various types of interference that may affect the operation of the electronics, the devices making up the railway systems need to be free from interference.

• Real time network—In order to provide real-time information for railway operations, a railway system requires an open and fast-transmission network.

MOXA's Networking Solutions are Suitable for Railway Systems

The stability and reliability of network communication are at the core of constructing an intelligent railway transportation system. Moxa provides industrial device networking solutions to control and manage data from various sites. Moxa's products include industrial Ethernet switches, serial device servers, embedded computers, media converters, and video servers, and Moxa provides solutions that match the requirements of railway networks in many ways:

• Moxa provides different kinds of products for industrial networking. These products can transmit all kinds of railway operations information to allow fast system integration, with open Ethernet adopted as the standard to form a fluent communication stream.

• Moxa industrial Ethernet switches have a rugged industrial design, support media redundancy, and have a high MTBF to ensure network reliability. For example, Moxa's EDS-508 series of industrial Ethernet switches have an MTBF of 260,000 hours.

• Moxa industrial Ethernet switches are available in models that support from 10/100 Mbps to Gigabit transmission speed. The solutions meet the high-bandwidth transmission requirements for different sites, from the control level to the backbone network.

• Moxa's products have received major regulatory approvals, such as EMC and DNV, giving users added assurance that the products will operate reliably in environments subject to vibration and interference.

• Moxa industrial Ethernet switches are rated to operate under extreme temperatures, from -40 to 75°C, ensuring stable operation in both hot and cold environments at different sites along the railway.

• Moxa's EDS-508-SS/405-SS series supports long-haul transmission of up to 80 kilometers for the long transmission demands of railway applications.

• Moxa Video Servers can network the video surveillance systems used by railways efficiently and quickly. Analog signals are converted into digital signals, and then transmitted over the Ethernet network to allow remote control and access from anywhere.

Back to top

Those of you working in the Industrial Automation field will be interested in Moxa's new entry-level industrial media converter. IMC-21-M-ST-FL is DIN-Rail mountable, supports DC power, and is designed to operate reliably in an extended operating temperature range. In addition to the industrial-grade design, IMC-21 also sports a DIP switch for setting Full/Half duplex and MDI/MDI-X modes for IMC-21's copper port.

Product Features:

• Cost-effective industrial media converter solution
• Supports Link Fault Pass-Through
• DIP Switch selectable for TP port's Full/Half duplex and MDI/MDI-X modes
• -10 to 60°C operating temperature range
• Versatile power inputs: 12 to 45 VDC, 18 to 30 VAC
• DIN-Rail mounting capability

Click here for more information about IMC-21-M-ST-FL.

Back to top

Moxa's new Ethernet I/O Server for PC-based data acquisition and control is now ready. ioLogik 4000 is designed to read sensor data, on/off status, and control on/off status of devices remotely over an Ethernet network from a host computer. Support for standard Modbus protocol makes ioLogik 4000 compatible with most SCADA software, such as Intellution iFix, Wonderware, and Labview.

One ioLogik Ethernet Network Adapter can connect up to 32 I/O modules, which is equivalent to 512 DI/O points or 128 analog input channels. Over 40 types of I/O modules are available, including 24 VDC, 48 VDC, 110 VAC, and 230 VAC digital input/output modules, and 0-20 mA, 4-20 mA, and 0-10V analog I/O modules. Special temperature sensor modules are also available, including modules with RTD (PT100) and thermocouple sensors.

ioLogik 4000 is certified by PLC-grade safety regulation UL508. In addition, the digital output modules provide protection against shorts, as well as over-current/temperature protection. The safety status is user configurable for digital output and analog output modules in case communication with the computer is interrupted.

Each Ethernet Network Adapter can receive data from up to eight different computers on the network for data sharing. For Windows programming, the intuitive MXIO DLL programming library is available for users of Visual Basic, Visual C++, and Borland C++ Builder.

Click here to read more about ioLogik 4000.

Back to top

October was a brilliant month for the Moxa Solution Forum series. In October, Moxa held ten forums in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, The UK, and Australia to demonstrate Moxa's latest solutions and share vertical market experiences. All ten forums were highly praised by the attendees.

Moxa displayed its latest solutions at the forums, including a 26-port Gigabit modular managed switch, industrial wireless Ethernet solutions, and MPEG4 video over IP server with audio input/output. The Moxa Solution Forums are giving us the chance to share what we've learned over the years about various vertical markets, such as Manufacturing, Power Utilities, Water Treatment, Shipbuilding, Oil & Gas, Metals, and Transportation.

The most up to date information about upcoming Moxa Solution Forums can be found on Moxa's website at http://www.moxa.com/IE_Solution_Day/index.htm. You may also contact Moxa Networking directly by email at info@moxanet.com, or by phoning +886 (2) 2910-1230.

Back to top

Taipei, Taiwan, October 27, 2005—Network technology is becoming more and more versatile, and transmitting all types of communication signals (video/voice/data) over one net is a trend that is sure to last well into the future. In fact, Moxa provides a total solution for industrial Ethernet and video networking that can help customers establish an integrated networking system. This year, Moxa will display its One Net solution of industrial networking at SPS/IPC/Drives 2005. You can find Moxa in Hall 9, Booth 158, from November 22 to 24, 2005, in Nuremberg, Germany.

Moxa is providing a series of new products this year. Product lines to be exhibited include Industrial Ethernet Switches, Media Converters, Wireless AP/Bridge/AP Client, NPort IA Industrial Serial Device Servers, Network I/O Servers, Embedded Computers, and Video over IP Servers.

If you are interested in one of these products, please visit us at SPS/IPC/DRIVES 2005, or link to www.moxa.com. You may also contact us directly by email at info@moxanet.com, or by phoning +886 (2) 2910-1230.

Back to top