Tim Cutler

Because data cable runs are costly and disruptive in industrial settings, wireless alternatives, especially wireless Ethernet, are rapidly growing in popularity. As is often the case with new technology applications, there is a wide range of wireless Ethernet implementations on the market. Some are standards-based, some proprietary; all offer varying degrees of appropriateness to these environments. The operation of nearly every factory and industrial setting depends on vital data flows between machinery, control, and monitoring devices. Throughout the range of applications, from periodic status updates to continuous process control, the most important aspect of any communications system is timely delivery without failure. The Ethernet networking standard has understandably gained popularity in industry; Ethernet delivers high performance at reasonable cost, accomm... (more)