PROFIBUS in Practice

PROFIBUS in Practice consists of four parts. Part I covers the installation of PROFIBUS devices and cables, Part II system engineering, commissioning and maintenance, Part III system architecture and design and Part IV standard and operation. This book is Part IV of this series. The four parts or four books were planned to meet the different needs in applications of PROFIBUS technology. The first book is for PROFIBUS equipment installers, second for commissioning and maintenance engineers and third for system designers. The three books have been well received since their publication and a major factor in encouraging me to complete the last book, on PROFIBUS telegrams, protocol, data structure and operation. The level of the details in this book will help fault-finding, system debugging and hence are intended to improve productivity through making the automation systems more reliable and available. It is well known that fault-finding in code, software and systems is difficult and uncertain. It is uncertain if a problem can be fixed and hence production can be resumed. Knowledge, experience and skills are important in fault diagnosis and fixing. This book explains how PROFIBUS Class 1 master, Class 2 master and slave stations operate. It is intended to bring about improved techniques in fault detection and resolution in PROFIBUS systems. I have been teaching PROFIBUS in the Certified PROFIBUS Engineer and MSc Industrial Communication Systems courses for a number of years. Both courses require students to sit a 3-hour examination and many find it demanding. I have included some tutorial questions. Students and readers are expected to work on these questions to check understanding and to prepare for any assessment if required. The book contains a large number of images, figures and cross-references. Making use of these resources helps with understanding. The book is informative in understanding how data networks work through a simple network, a bus - PROFIBUS. Understanding how a bus system works helps to understand many other types of networks. In this sense, the book is a useful resource in understanding modern fieldbus systems, industrial real-time networks and suitable for students of electrical, mechanical engineering and computer science.