Sercos operating principles
Cross communication
Sercos allows for decentralized intelligence and an unlimited capacity to work in real-time because direct communication between all devices is possible. Indirect communication between slaves by bypassing the master would compromise synchronous movements, e.g. by corrupting gantry axes or slowing down reaction times, suchy as when transmitting a trigger signal quickly. Sercos slaves can communicate via cross communication directly and with a minimum of communication dead times – this ensures unlimited real-time communication and intelligent automation structures. Control systems use the same principle to directly communicate with each other.
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How it works: Given that real-time telegrams are always processed in two directions independent of the kind of topology, a direct exchange of data between any given slaves is enabled within one communication cycle (see image). This has the advantage that data can always be transmitted between the slaves within an individual communication cycle while causing minimal delay, even with increased cycle times. Moreover, all real-time data is available synchronized – that is, in relation to the general communication cycle – at every point in the network. As a result, data can be processed extremely easily, efficiently and flexibly at individual network nodes. Network diagnosis and monitoring can also be carried out as a result.
The possibility of cross communication means that decentralized automation solutions can be installed with minimal reaction times and a great amount of flexibility.