Actuator and assembly

Abstract

The invention relates to an actuator (1) in automation technology for actuating a fitting such as a valve, comprising: a motor (10) such as an electric motor or a fluid motor; a transmission (20); an output (30) for actuating the fitting; an electronic operating circuit (40) for operating the motor; wherein the transmission is designed to transmit a force or a torque to the output; wherein the actuator (1) has a communication assembly (50) with at least one communication connection (51), and in particular at least two communication connections, wherein the communication connection has a plug connector, characterized in that the at least one communication connection (51) is designed to receive a respective modular pluggable transceiver (100).

Description

[0001] Actuator and assembly

[0002] The invention relates to an actuator for automation technology and an assembly comprising such an actuator and a transceiver or transmit / receive device.

[0003] Actuators for actuating valves have transceivers for transmitting data, as shown, for example, in US20230220928A1, where the transceivers shown therein are configured to exchange data between a control unit and a sensor of the actuator.

[0004] Transceivers in actuators are also used to exchange data with the actuator's environment. For example, DE102011106372A1 discloses an actuator configured to communicate with a control center via a bus system. Such actuators often remain in a technical environment for many years. Requirements for data exchange or communication with the technical environment can change, causing bus systems to become obsolete over time. When the bus system is replaced, typical actuators either need to be replaced along with the system or require extensive replacement of their operating electronics. Adapting actuators to new requirements in accordance with the state of the art is difficult.

[0005] The object of the invention is therefore to design actuators that are adaptable in a robust and simple manner with regard to communication with a technical environment.

[0006] The problem is solved by an actuator according to independent claim 1, and by an assembly according to independent claim 5.

[0007] An actuator according to the invention for automation technology for actuating a fitting such as a valve comprises: a motor such as an electric motor or a fluid motor; a gearbox; an output for actuating the fitting; an electronic operating circuit for operating the motor; wherein the gearbox is configured to transmit a force or torque to the output;wherein the actuator comprises a communication module with at least one communication port, and in particular at least two communication ports, and a communication circuit, wherein the communication circuit is configured to ensure communication between the electronic operating circuit and the at least one communication port, wherein each communication port has a connector, and wherein each communication port is configured to accept a modular pluggable transceiver for wired or wireless communication. By replacing the transceiver, it can be ensured that the actuator can also be used in a new, modern communication environment.

[0008] In one embodiment, the communication module has a PHY sub-circuit for each communication port, wherein the PHY sub-circuit provides or comprises a Physical Coding Sublayer or a physical coding layer.

[0009] The pluggable transceiver is designed to provide a medium-dependent physical layer, so that a physical interface, or PHY, is formed by the PHY sub-circuit and the transceiver.

[0010] The communication port serves as a base for the electrical connection of the PHY sub-circuit and the transceiver.

[0011] In one configuration, the communication module is set up to transmit data between the communication ports using a data protocol such as Profinet.

[0012] In one embodiment, the electronic operating circuit and the communication circuit are set up to exchange data for the purpose of operating the actuator.

[0013] In one configuration, the electronic

[0014] The operating circuit and the communication module are set up to exchange data using a data protocol from Industrial Ethernet such as Profinet, Modbus TCP, Ethernet / IP.

[0015] In one embodiment, the communication module has at least two communication ports, and the communication circuit is set up to ensure communication between the communication ports.

[0016] In this way, the actuator can act as a communication hub.

[0017] An assembly according to the invention comprises an actuator according to the invention; at least one modular pluggable transceiver, wherein the transceiver is received by a communication port in each case.

[0018] In one embodiment, the transceiver includes a medium-dependent physical layer (PHY). This creates a physical interface (PHY) between the PHY sub-circuit and the transceiver. The separation of the PHY (physical interface) between the PHY sub-circuit and the transceiver is achieved by a "Physical Medium Attachment Sublayer".

[0019] In one embodiment, the transceiver is configured to convert between the physical implementation of bit transmission and / or data security on the line and the physical implementation of bit transmission and / or data security of the communication module.

[0020] This refers to the physical layer and the data link layer according to the OS I model.

[0021] Because the transceiver is designed to convert between an external communication environment and the internal communication environment of the communication module, changes to a communication standard, transmission path, and / or transmission path requirements do not necessitate a modification or replacement of the actuator or its communication module. This ensures the future-proofing of the actuators.

[0022] In one embodiment, a physical implementation of bit transmission is characterized by one of the following features:

[0023] Design of the communication distance, transmit and / or receive power, fiber type of the optical waveguide, electrical data transmission, optical data transmission.

[0024] In one embodiment, the transceiver is based on one of the following operating principles: optical, in particular optical waveguides, electrical, magnetic, electromagnetic.

[0025] In one embodiment, the modular transceiver includes a SED module or an SFP+ module, in particular according to specification INF-80741 dated May 12, 2001.

[0026] In this way, the assembly can be adapted to a wide variety of communication environments, thus ensuring good future-proofing.

[0027] In one design, a

[0028] The communication control device is configured to monitor and / or check at least one, and in particular at least two, and preferably at least three of the following quantities or parameters of the at least one transceiver:

[0029] Transceiver temperature,

[0030] Duration of a temperature limit being exceeded by the transceiver, electrical transmit and / or receive power, time course of the electrical transmit and / or

[0031] Receive power, electrical voltage and / or electrical current at a transceiver component, maximum data transmission rate, presence of missing data packets, data transmission volume,

[0032] Utilization of a maximum data transfer rate,

[0033] Wavelength and / or frequency of a transmission signal;

[0034] Article or serial number of a transceiver component for the purpose of identifying a nominal transmission rate and / or a supported communication standard.

[0035] In one embodiment, the transceiver and / or the communication control device is configured to adapt a transmit and receive power to a state of the transceiver and / or transmission link, wherein the adaptation is based on measured values ​​of the quantities or parameters.

[0036] In one embodiment, the actuator has a housing arrangement with at least one housing, comprising a motor, gearbox, output, electronic operating circuit, and

[0037] Communication ports are arranged in the housing configuration.

[0038] In one configuration, the communication module has the following properties:

[0039] Proxy function and / or gateway function.

[0040] The communication interface of an assembly according to the invention can be enabled to send data over a transmission distance of at least 500 meters, at least 2-4 km or at least 20 km.

[0041] The invention therefore makes it possible to design an actuator that is future-proof.

[0042] The invention is described below using exemplary embodiments.

[0043] Fig. 1 shows an exemplary schematic assembly according to the invention comprising an actuator for automation technology and a transceiver; Fig. 2 shows an exemplary schematic arrangement with assemblies according to the invention which form a network.

[0044] Fig. 1 shows an exemplary schematic assembly 200 according to the invention comprising an exemplary actuator 1 according to the invention for automation technology and a transceiver 100;

[0045] The actuator 1 comprises a motor 10, which can be an electric motor or a fluid motor. The motor is configured to apply a torque or force to an output 30, with an intermediate gearbox 20 being configured to convert the torque or force appropriately. The output 30 is configured to actuate an actuator of a fitting, such as a valve. An electronic operating circuit 40 is configured to operate the motor 10. A housing 70 with at least one housing chamber 71 is configured to house actuator components.

[0046] According to the invention, the actuator has a communication module 50 with at least one communication port 51, here by way of example two communication ports 51 for communication with external devices, wherein the at least one communication port 51 is configured to accommodate one optical, near-infrared, ultraviolet or electrical modular pluggable transceiver 100 for wired or wireless communication.

[0047] The exchange and the ease of replacement due to the pluggability of the transceiver ensure that the actuator can also be used in a new, modern communication environment.

[0048] The communication module comprises a circuit board 52 with a communication circuit 53, wherein the at least one communication interface is located on the circuit board 52. The communication circuit 53 is configured to ensure communication between transceivers 100 and / or between a transceiver 100 and the electronic operating circuit. The at least one transceiver of the module 52 is configured to convert between the physical implementation of the bit transmission on the line and the physical implementation of the bit transmission and / or the data link layer of the communication module. A physical implementation of the bit transmission can be characterized by one of the following features:

[0049] Design of the communication distance, transmit and / or receive power, fiber type of the optical waveguide, electrical data transmission, electromagnetic, especially optical, data transmission, wavelength and / or frequency of the transmission, network standard such as 100Base-LX, 1000Base-LX, or 10Base-T1L (SPE / APL) etc.

[0050] Because the transceiver is designed to switch between an external communication environment and the internal communication environment of the communication module, there is no need to modify or replace the actuator. This ensures the future-proofing of the actuators.

[0051] The number of communication ports is not limited to two; for example, three or four or even more than four communication ports may be provided for a communication module 50.

[0052] The electronic operating circuit 40 and the communication module 50 can be configured to exchange data using a data protocol such as Profinet, Modbus TCP, Ethernet / IP.

[0053] The Transceiver 100 can have a fiber optic transceiver module, or be of the fiber optic type, where fiber optic stands for optical fiber. The Transceiver 100 can have an SFP or SFP+ module, in particular according to specification INF-80741, for example, dated May 12, 2001.

[0054] In one embodiment, the communication module has a PHY sub-circuit 54 for each communication port 51, wherein the PHY sub-circuit provides or comprises a physical coding sublayer. The pluggable transceiver 100 is configured to provide a medium-dependent physical layer, so that a physical interface, or PHY, is formed by the PHY sub-circuit and the transceiver. The separation of the PHY, or physical interface, between the PHY sub-circuit and the transceiver is achieved by a "Physical Medium Attachment Sub-layer".

[0055] For example, as shown here, an electronic communication control device 60 can also be provided, which is configured to record the status of communication flows and / or communication participants. The communication control device can be, as shown here by way of example, a component of the communication assembly or the electronic operating circuit 40. This includes, for example, collecting information for a reliability test and / or compatibility test of communication between the actuator 1 and external devices, and / or for a compatibility test between two external communication participants, and / or for a diagnosis of at least one transceiver 100, wherein the communication control device is configured to evaluate the information or to send it to an external electronic device, such as a computer or a control center, for evaluation.

[0056] The communication control device 60 is, for example, configured to monitor and / or check at least one, and in particular at least two, and preferably at least three of the following quantities or parameters of the at least one transceiver 100:

[0057] Transceiver temperature,

[0058] Duration of a temperature limit being exceeded by the transceiver, electrical transmit and / or receive power of the transceiver, time course of the electrical transmit and / or receive power, electrical voltage and / or electrical current at a

[0059] Transceiver component, maximum data transmission rate, presence of

[0060] Missing data packet, data transfer volume, utilization of maximum data transfer rate,

[0061] Wavelength and / or frequency of a transmission signal;

[0062] Part number or serial number of a transceiver component for the purpose of identifying a nominal transmission rate and / or a supported Ethernet standard.

[0063] In this way it can be determined whether communication participants within an arrangement 300 (Fig. 2) are compatible with each other, and whether a physical state of the assembly 200 and / or the arrangement 300 (see Fig. 2) of assemblies 200 according to the invention allows stable communication.

[0064] For example, an increased temperature of the transceiver 100, caused by high transmission power and / or high ambient temperatures, can lead to increased wear of electronic transceiver components. This can negatively affect the maximum data transmission rate, for example, because the signal amplitude of a transmitted signal drops.

[0065] Therefore, the communication device can be configured, for example, when the transceiver 100 reaches a critical temperature, to reduce its transmit and receive power, particularly while maintaining a specified transmission quality, in order to reduce the electrical power consumption of the transceiver. In this way, exceeding the critical temperature can be avoided or limited in duration. Other quantities or parameters listed above can also be used to adjust the transmit and receive power. Adjustment can also involve increasing the transmit and receive power, for example, if a condition improvement occurs in a transceiver 100 and / or assembly 200 and / or arrangement 300.

[0066] The communication control device 60 or the electronic operating circuit 40 can be configured to calculate or detect the following based on testing or monitoring of the quantities or parameters or from reflections of signal pulses: a remaining lifetime or remaining operating time of the transceiver 100;

[0067] Signal attenuation;

[0068] Presence of a pipe crush or an insufficient bending radius in a pipe section;

[0069] Presence of contamination at contact between a conductor and an associated coupler;

[0070] The presence of an installation or design error;

[0071] A distance between two communication participants.

[0072] The transceiver 100 can be configured, or caused by the communication control device or the electronic operating circuit, to send signal pulses in the event of a fault in order to determine, via a signal propagation time of reflections of the signal pulses, the distance and / or type or presence of a line disturbance such as signal attenuation; the presence of a line pinch or an insufficient bending radius in a line section; or the presence of contamination at contact between a line and an associated coupler. Fig. 2 shows an exemplary schematic arrangement 300 according to the invention with several electrical devices such as actuators 1, wherein at least one of the electrical devices is an assembly according to the invention, and wherein the electrical devices form a network 310.The network can, for example, have a linear topology as shown here, which can be transformed into a ring topology by connecting the ends (dashed lines). Other network topologies, such as a mesh network, are also possible.

[0073] A communication control device 60 of at least one assembly 200 according to one of the preceding claims is configured to receive and evaluate diagnostic data from at least one other actuator of the network, wherein an evaluation provides, in particular, information on at least one of the following points: the presence of vulnerabilities in the network, and the cause of the vulnerabilities. By analyzing the above-mentioned quantities and parameters, a statement can be made about the state of the network. In particular, an assembly can be configured to request diagnostic and / or evaluation data from other assemblies of the network in order to base its own analysis on a broader data foundation and to determine or locate the cause of errors or impairments more precisely.

[0074] Reference numeral list Actuator Motor Gearbox Output Electronic operating circuit Communication module Communication port Circuit board Communication circuit PHY sub-circuit Communication control device Housing arrangement Housing Transceiver Module Arrangement Network

Claims

Claims 1. An actuator (1) for automation technology for actuating a fitting such as a valve, comprising: a motor (10) such as an electric motor or a fluid motor; a gearbox (20); an output (30) for actuating the fitting; an electronic operating circuit (40) for operating the motor; wherein the gearbox is configured to transmit a force or torque to the output; wherein the actuator (1) includes a communication module (50) comprising at least one communication port (51), and in particular at least two communication ports, and a communication circuit (53), characterized in that the communication circuit (53) is configured to ensure communication between the electronic operating circuit and the at least one communication port, wherein the communication port has a connector, wherein the at least one communication port (51) is configured to accommodate a modular pluggable transceiver (100) for wired or wireless communication.

2. Actuator according to claim 1, wherein the communication assembly (50) has a PHY sub-circuit (54) for each communication port (51), wherein the PHY sub-circuit provides or comprises a physical coding sublayer.

3. Actuator according to one of claims 1 or 2, wherein the electronic operating circuit (40) and the communication circuit (53) are configured to exchange data for the purpose of operating the actuator.

4. Actuator according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the communication assembly (50) has at least two communication ports (51), wherein the communication circuit (53) is configured to ensure communication between the communication ports (51).

5. Assembly (200) comprising an actuator according to one of claims 1 to 4 and at least one modular pluggable transceiver (100), wherein the transceiver is received by a communication port.

6. Assembly according to claim 5, wherein the transceiver provides or comprises a medium-dependent physical layer or Physical Medium Dependent Sublayer.

7. Assembly according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the transceiver is configured to convert between the physical implementation of the bit transmission and / or the data link layer on the line and the physical implementation of the bit transmission and / or the data link layer of the communication assembly.

8. Assembly (200) according to claim 7, wherein a physical implementation of the bit transmission layer and / or the data link layer is characterized by one of the following features: Interpretation of communication distance Transmit and / or receive power Fiber type of optical waveguide Electrical data transmission Electromagnetic, especially optical Data transmission Wavelength and / or frequency of the transmission network standard such as 100Base-LX, 1000Base-LX, or 10Base-T1L (SPE / APL) etc.

9. Assembly (200) according to one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the transceiver (100) is based on one of the following operating principles: optical, in particular optical waveguides, electrical, magnetic, electromagnetic.

10. Assembly (200) according to any one of claims 5 to 9, wherein the modular transceiver (100) comprises an SFP module or an SFP+ module, in particular according to specification INF-80741 dated May 12, 2001.

11. Assembly (200) according to one of claims 5 to 10, wherein a communication control device (60) is configured to monitor at least one and in particular at least two and preferably at least three of the following quantities or parameters of the at least one transceiver: temperature of the transceiver (100) , Duration of a temperature limit being exceeded by the transceiver, electrical transmit and / or receive power, time course of the electrical transmit and / or receive power, electrical voltage and / or electrical current at a transceiver component, maximum data transmission rate, presence of data packet errors, data transmission volume, Utilization of a maximum data transmission rate, wavelength and / or frequency of a transmission signal; article or serial number of a transceiver component for the purpose of identifying a nominal transmission rate and / or a supported Ethernet standard.

12. Assembly (200) according to one of claims 5 to 11, wherein the transceiver (100) is configured to adapt a transmit and receive power to a state of the transceiver and / or transmission link, wherein the adaptation is based on measured values ​​of the quantities or parameters.

13. Assembly (200) according to one of claims 5 to 12, wherein the actuator (100) has a housing arrangement (70) with at least one housing (71), wherein the motor (10), gearbox (20), output (30), electronic operating circuit (40), the communication assembly (50) and the communication control device (60) are arranged in the housing arrangement.

14. Assembly (200) according to claim 13, wherein the Communication module (50) has the following feature: a proxy function and / or a gateway function.

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