decentralized safety systems

The Ideal Route to a Safe Machine

Create levels of freedom for designers with safety solutions for modular production

The Best Move: Decentralized Safety Technology

Decentralized safety systems place personal protection close to the danger points.

Ethernet-based safety I/O modules guarantee personal protection directly at the machine module. This enables designers to shorten cycle times and create machines from autonomous units which are easier to expand and can be put into operation faster thanks to stand-alone tests.

High-performance safety-Ethernet communication connects all units. By distributing the safety logic in the field, non-affected applications remain productive even during an emergency stop of adjacent processes.

Decentralized Safety: Your Benefits

Accelerated commissioning

Safety applications can be pre-programmed and comprehensively tested on the integrated safety controller of the I/O modules. What's more, this can be done by the manufacturer — before the machine is even integrated in a complete plant. The elimination of control cabinets and the use of quick connectors reduce the amount of wiring required, thus shortening the commissioning time for the end customer.

Simplified design

In applications with centralized safety control systems, long bus cycle times and concatenated messages can result in longer response times for the control system. These in turn require greater distances between the protective equipment and the sources of danger. Decentralized safety control systems ensure the shortest possible response times and bring about new levels of design freedom.

Flexibly expand machines

In centralized safety systems, machine expansions can require complex wiring or additional control cabinets. With decentralized, Ethernet-based safety technology, modular concepts can be consistently implemented without control cabinets. The modular principle makes the expansion of machines and plants considerably easier.

Cost-effective

Decentralized, passively designed safety concepts significantly reduce safety costs. Passive safety ensures that the voltage of actuators is safely switched off in critical situations (or in the event of an emergency). For this purpose, the I/O groups provide consistent galvanic isolation between the sensor voltage (V1) and the actuator voltage (V2).

Webinar - How Decentralized Safety Technology Can Shorten Commissioning Times

Commissioning can be lengthy, especially if unexpected difficulties arise. An offline safety test of machines relaxes the situation – for example with decentralized safety technology from Turck.

In the webinar "Decentralized Technology? A Safe Bet !"
Michael Flesch, Product Manager Safety Systems, showed, among other things, how you can set up your machine safety flexibly, cost-effectively and without a control cabinet using -I/O and control technology in IP67.

Three Versions of Decentralized Personal Safety

For each individual application, the user decides on the extent to which decentralized safety is transferred to the field. By way of example, we can distinguish between three different concepts of decentralized safety.

Scenario 1: Decentralized wiring — decentralized control
The safety I/O modules themselves assume control of the application — both in the test run and in live operation. In addition to the safety components, standard sensors/actuators can be connected to the I/O module via I/O-Link ports. Advantages: Complete independence, flexible expansion, minimal mechanical effort and stand-alone tests shorten commissioning times

Scenario 2: Passive safety
In this scenario, the safety signals are collected in the field and transferred to the safety PLC via the safety-Ethernet protocols Profinet or CIP Safety. The benefit: Stand-alone tests of the application on the internal controller of the safety modules shorten commissioning times.

Scenario 3: Decentralized wiring — centralized control
The decentralized concept with passive safety is based on the consistent galvanic isolation between actuator and sensor voltage. In an emergency, the actuator voltage can be safely switched off while the sensor system remains active. Advantages: The minimum number of safety inputs saves costs and diagnostics remains possible despite an emergency stop.

Worldwide use

The hybrid and full-safety I/O modules are available as TBPN with Profinet/Profisafe for the European market or as TBIP with Ethernet/IP/CIP Safety for the American market — ideal for export-oriented mechanical engineering.

Copy-and-paste safety

Programs of the Turck Safety Controller can simply be copied to a USB stick directly on the module and copied to other modules with the same tasks — including between devices with Profisafe and CIP Safety.

Decentralized Safety Modules Secure the Palletizing System

Whitepaper: Safe Risk Assessment of Modular Machines

Take the right steps in risk assessment of a linked machine or integrated manufacturing system (IMS). This free whitepaper gives you a practical example of how to identify, describe and reduce potential hazardous situations.

Decentralized Safety in Practice

Safety triple

The safety I/O module on the gripper tool of a press processes IO-Link, safety and standard signals and thus saves complex designs

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Safe, fast and modular

Automotive supplier modularizes machines consistently with a passive safety concept

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A doorman for the washing bay

A cleaning system for transport containers ensures decentralized access to the system with light curtains

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Decentralized Safety in Detail

Full-safety and hybrid module

Turck’s safety hybrid module combines safe inputs/outputs with standard I/Os and IO-Link ports. This allows signal requirements to be mapped flexibly. If more safety signals are generated, the full safety module is used. Both versions—the full and the hybrid module—are available for Profinet/Profisafe or Ethernet/IP/CIP Safety.

To the products

Technology page machine safety

Advantages and disadvantages of different safety concepts, as well as technical details about decentralized safety solutions, an overview of all safety technology product groups and examples of successful safety technology applications from Turck can be found on the technology page machine safety.

Functional safety for man and machine

Whether centralized or decentralized solutions for modular machines: Turck's scalable safety portfolio enables customized and flexible solutions for machine safety in any application.
Watch the video to see which application advantages you can realize with the SC10, XS26 safety controllers or the IP67 I/O modules.

To the video

Ask an Expert

Michael Flesch and his colleagues will answer your questions about machine safety and decentralized safety systems. Please use our contact form and let us advise you.

Michael Flesch

Produktmanager Safety Systems

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#DigitalInnovationPark

Digitally designing industrial processes, controlling applications decentrally as required, and making relevant data usable are key topics in our regular Digital Innovation Park updates.

Explore the latest innovations from Turck for Industry 4.0 and IIoT.