The industrial Ethernet protocol stack is responsible for managing the specific tasks required to facilitate reliable and deterministic communication in industrial environments. Designed to meet the stringent demands of industrial applications, the stack provides real-time data transfer, high availability, robustness, and seamless integration with various industrial devices and systems.

For example, in an EtherCAT™ device, the Media Access Control (MAC) layer is crucial for forwarding EtherCAT frames with minimal delay while performing necessary frame manipulation. As EtherCAT frames pass through each device, the EtherCAT MAC can insert or extract data at specific locations within the frame. The EtherCAT stack is responsible for configuring the MAC so that the MAC correctly performs these manipulations at the appropriate points in the frame.

The EtherCAT stack handles various functions, including:

• Frame Processing and Synchronization: Ensuring precise timing and handling of EtherCAT frames.
• Process Data Handling: Managing the exchange of process data through Process Data Objects (PDOs).
• Network Management: Overseeing network topology and ensuring stable communication between devices.
• Error Handling and Diagnostics: Monitoring and addressing errors within the network.
• Communication Services: Supporting services such as CAN Application Layer over EtherCAT (CoE), File Access over EtherCAT (FoE), Ethernet over EtherCAT (EoE), and Servo Drive Profile over EtherCAT (SoE).
• Slave Information Interface (SII): Facilitating the configuration and identification of devices.
• Functional Safety (FSoE): Ensuring that safety-critical data is handled securely within the EtherCAT framework.

While EtherCAT is a specific example, other industrial Ethernet protocol stacks provide similar functionality tailored to their respective requirements.

Texas Instruments (TI) offers pre-certified stack solutions integrated with TI chips, enabling customers to build their final products without needing to source the stack from third-party suppliers. This single-supplier approach streamlines the development process, providing access to industrial communication stacks, demonstration examples, demo boards, and comprehensive technical support directly from TI.