What is an industrial network driven on?   What will prepare a network for the future?  Microprocessors are the “Heart of the Network,” according to Jim Montague, executive editor at Putman Media.  “Heart of the Network,” featuring our own Mike Justice, is the featured publication in the fourth quarter 2011 edition of Industrial Networking.

Mike Justice stated, “Microprocessors might be on the lowest layer of the network, but they have a huge influence.”  Chips have evolved from simple standard microprocessors, to application-specific integrated circuits, field-programmable gate arrays, and so on.  Design flexibility is what allows industrial networking to move into the future.

Gigabit Ethernet will help industrial networks keep up with the bandwidth requirements for increased network traffic.  Many gigabit products have already hit the commercial network.  It will not be long before the industrial Ethernet networks will need to speed up.  With our new gridARM microprocessor, we are able to supply our customers with a cheap Gigabit Ethernet solution for adding fast Ethernet to their devices.

The gridARM microprocessor is designed for low cost products that require a fast Ethernet connection.  This system on a chip is most flexible because it includes an ARM7TDMI core, 10/100/1000 Ethernet MAC, CAN controller, up to 3 serial ports, I2C, SPI, on chip SRAM, USB device, A/D converters, and interfaces for SDRAM, Flash, Compact Flash, external SRAM, and NAND flash.

To understand why the microprocessor is the underlying technology driving advances in industrial networks and to understand how you can benefit from the evolution of microprocessors, download the full “Heart of the Network” article below.

Today we are announcing the gridARM^tm, System on a Chip, with integrated Gigabit Ethernet. The gridARM is targeted at the low cost embedded marketplace where cost and performance are important. The cost for quantity 100 pieces is $10 each.

The gridARM is designed for low cost products that require a fast Ethernet connection. As most IT networks, PCs and laptops are all gigabit Ethernet, it only makes sense to have all your devices on the network to be as fast as possible. The gridARM is designed to be the main processor in the system. The cost of adding Ethernet to your product is now low and can be a marketing and performance advantage for your product.

The gridARM is available in volume today. The development kit includes an evaluation board, cables, JTAG emulator, power supply and a complete set of development tools including a royalty free real-time operating system, TCP/IP v4/6 library, web server, telnet and example tunneling software.

The gridARM is available in two packages – 225 pin BGA and 208 pin QFP. The gridARM chip includes an ARM7TDMI core, 10/100/1000 Ethernet MAC, CAN controller, up to 3 serial ports, I2C, SPI, on chip SRAM, USB device, A/D converters, and interfaces for SDRAM, Flash, Compact Flash, external SRAM, and NAND flash.

The gridARM is our third ASIC in the family. The LX and EX ASICs have been around since the early 2000 and are used by thousands of customers in commercial and industrial applications. The gridARM is manufactured for Grid Connect by Atmel Corporation.

For more details or to purchase a development kit please go to: http://www.gridconnect.com/gridarm.html

The world’s tiniest device server, the NET232jr, was originally nicknamed by its first customer as “IP In Your Hand”.   This clever turn of phrase gave us a few chuckles, but it does point out the amazingly small size of the NET232jr.    The  NET232 “junior” enables serial devices with IP technology in the smallest package available in the world (as far as we know!).

We were able to shrink down the size of our standard NET232 by getting rid of the power regulation circuitry and the power LED.    This change requires that power be provided to the NET232jr over the serial port (coming from the serial device), and that power must be regulated at 3.3VDC or 5VDC.    This obviously means that the NET232jr is not for everyone.

The NET232jr has been primarily used thus far by OEM’s who want to offer it as an add-on for their serial port devices, and who have the ability to modify the serial port of their product to put out the power required.    You might ask “if you’re going to modify your product to put out power on the serial port, why not just go ahead and add the XPort (the main component inside the NET232jr) to your product instead?”    Well, there are several reasons why you might not want to do that.  First and foremost is cost.  Maybe you expect only a limited percentage of your customers to actually need an Ethernet connection.   Why put an XPort in every product?  Why not just sell an add-on that is small, smart, cost-effective and can be customized to your specifications with ease?   This is the motivation for the NET232jr.

Another interesting use of the “junior” is when you have a serial device that must be operational at all times, and you need to “live swap” it for servicing quickly and simply.   If you use the NET232jr as the network connection, then you can leave the NET232jr attached to the network while you swap out whatever serial device is attached.  This means you do not have to reconfigure the network connection for the new device; you simply plug it in and the NET232jr “remembers” the network settings.   Thus, you do not need to call in IT personnel to replace your serial device – anyone can do it – just plug it in!

The NET232jr came into existence when a customer asked for something smaller than the NET232 (which is already one of the smallest Serial to Ethernet device servers on the market).    Grid Connect is happy to discuss your project/product needs with you and see if we can find a solution – even if you don’t see on our website.  We have on staff a team of engineers dedicated to finding solutions to your networking problems.    Maybe you need a custom design that will fit in your enclosure or cabinet.  Who knows – maybe you’ll even see an “IP in your cabinet” blog post someday!