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The new Beckhoff EQxxxx EtherCAT Box I/O series in durable V2A stainless steel housings are rated at protection class IP 69K. As a result, these rugged and robust I/O modules are designed for use directly on machines in application areas with demanding hygienic requirements, such as in the food, packaging, chemical and pharmaceutical industries. In addition to excellent protection in harsh production environments, a wide range of digital and analog units in this new product series covers numerous I/O signal requirements.
With the new EQ series EtherCAT Box modules featuring IP 69K protection and stainless steel finish, processes and signals in hygienically critical areas can be measured, evaluated and controlled directly on the machine with the high performance of EtherCAT. The EQ series EtherCAT Box meets all “hygienic design” requirements and thrives outside of electrical cabinets: the housing and all screw connections are made entirely of stainless steel. The screws are fitted flush without grime-collecting contours. These distributed I/O boxes are mounted to the machine or equipment by means of mounting brackets. This avoids unwanted cavities and joints in which dirt can settle while ensuring proper cleaning procedures.
Due to the housing tightness in accordance with protection class IP 69K, the stainless steel box modules ensure resistance to corrosion as well as impermeability to moisture and can be cleaned with high-pressure cleaners. The EQxxxx EtherCAT Box series is qualified for the extended temperature range of -25 to +60 °C (storage temperature -40 to +85 °C) and can be used in extreme climatic zones.
Through the integrated EtherCAT interface, the EQxxxx modules can be connected directly to an EtherCAT network without an additional Coupler Box. The high-performance of the EtherCAT industrial Ethernet system, with communication speeds in the microsecond range, is maintained into each module. Each box is a 100% self-contained EtherCAT device and an EtherCAT slave, which can be connected directly to any other EtherCAT device via a standard Ethernet cable with 100BASE-TX.
The EtherCAT Box modules from the new EQxxxx series already cover an extensive range of I/O signal requirements:
EQ1008-0002: 8-channel digital input, filter 3.0 ms
EQ1809-0022: 16-channel digital input, filter 3.0 ms
EQ2008-0002: 8-channel digital output, Imax = 0.5 A
EQ2809-0022: 16-channel digital output, Imax = 0.5 A
EQ2339-0022: 16-channel digital input or output, freely selectable
EQ3174-0002: 4-channel analog input ±10 V or 0/4…20 mA, parameterizable
EQ3204-0002: 4-channel analog input PT100 (RTD)
EQ3314-0002: 4-channel analog input, thermocouple
The signals are connected via rugged M12 connectors.
As with all EtherCAT Box solutions, the stainless steel box modules are exceptionally compact: the EQxxxx-0002 modules have housing dimensions of just 39 x 160 x 43 mm (W x H x D); the EQxxxx-0022 series, with 16 channels, measures 72 x 160 x 43 mm (W x H x D).
