Safety
PROFIsafe
ActivePublished
Key
innovation
Transmitting safety data over a standard industrial network (a 'black channel') with guaranteed integrity and timeliness.
Category
Safety
Abstraction level
Pattern
Operation level
SystemDeployment
How it works
PROFIsafe wraps safety data in a special telegram with fault-detection mechanisms (sequence numbering, timing, CRC). The network is treated as an unreliable 'black channel', and the PROFIsafe layer itself ensures integrity and timeliness, achieving the required safety integrity levels (SIL).
Problem solved
Implementing safety functions traditionally required separate wiring and devices; a way to reliably transmit safety data over a regular industrial network was needed.