The 8 Advantages of IO‑Link

From discussions I’ve had with automation professionals and helping customers deploy IO-Link, I’ve gained several insights about this networking method. IO-Link is a short-distance, digital, point-to-point networking standard. It’s used to communicate between an IO-Link master and one or more IO-Link devices such as sensors, barcode scanners, lighting devices, and others. It’s an extremely powerful and cost-effective technology.

An IO-Link system is simple. It runs on standard 24-volt DC power. This is huge because it means you can use an unshielded, three-conductor M12 cable. The M12 cabling is one of the big drivers that’s causing users, including OEMs, to adopt IO-Link. They’re able to standardize on that M12 connectivity. With this cabling, you can run up to 20 meters between master and device.

As I see it, the eight key advantages of IO-Link are:

With IO-Link you can avoid costs associated with shielded cables and analog input cards. By using the IO-Link process data on the device as opposed to the analog output, you can avoid digital-to-analog and analog-to-digital conversions and provide the highest quality measurement that is robust and immune to noise. By switching to IO-Link you can reduce analog costs by 15% to 25%.

It’s possible to connect multiple IO-Link hub blocks into one IO-Link master. Each IO-Link hub can connect up to 16 discrete sensors, so up to 64 discrete sensors can be connected via a single network connection. Banner also has a broad portfolio of converters that can convert legacy signals such as 0 V to 10 V, 4 mA to 20 mA, NPN, PNP, and more over to IO-Link.

IO-Link incorporates process, service, and diagnostic data for continuous data monitoring and device status. Process Data In is the information sent from the IO-Link device to the IO-Link master repeatedly and automatically. The specific information sent in the Process Data In varies by device.

Dynamically make changes from the control system. Complex IO-Link device programming can be loaded onto a device quickly and easily. You can store configurations on the PLC and upload via IO-Link based on what product is being run (recipe control).

You can establish maintenance tasks based on real-time information. Alarms can be set to alert personnel to address a sensor before it stops working. This allows you to make decisions based on real-time data and notify you if a lens is dirty or if a sensor might be overheating. Predictive error detection is possible because process data is consistently and continuously displayed in the controller.

The availability of valuable data, combined with vendor independence and interoperability, make IO-Link a very useful tool for implementing IIoT.

Sean Foley, Banner Engineering Global Product Manager, joined the company in 2021. He is responsible for Banner’s IO-link technology and its new Snap Signal IIoT product line. Sean has held roles in application engineering, marketing, training and product management at a former employer within the industrial automation sector. He is passionate about educating customers on industrial automation and making it fun and engaging. Sean studied Mechanical Engineering at the University of Minnesota.