Pinetek Networks' IOL HAT Gives Raspberry Pi Boards IO-Link SDCI Powers for Industrial IoT Comms
Designed to simplify industrial-grade SDCI communication projects, the IOL HAT is heading to Crowd Supply soon.
Pinetek Networks is preparing to launch a crowdfunding campaign for a Raspberry Pi add-on designed to make it easier to work with IEC 61131-9 IO-Link devices including sensors and actuators: the IOL HAT.
"IOL HAT allows for the exchange of data between single-board computers (SBCs) and smart SDCI sensors, actuators, and other devices," Pinetek Networks' Andreas Lau explains of his company's creation. "SDCI is also known under the brand name of IO-Link. IOL HAT is an add-on board (HAT) for Raspberry Pis and other SBCs [Single-Board Computers], and you can stack up to two of them, allowing the connection of up to four SDCI devices."
More properly known as IEC 61131-9, IO-Link is a standard for a single-drop digital communication interface (SDCI) that allows a single central IO-Link server to control multiple IO-Link devices —which can be anything from temperature sensors to electromechanical actuators. "SDCI is a standard with over 20,000 different devices — mainly sensors — on the market," Lau says. "This reliable, digital interlink allows for fault-free data transfer even in harsh environments or with cable lengths up to 20 meters [around 66 feet]."
IO-Link connections require both hardware and software to work, with Pinetek providing both: the IOL HAT connects to the general-purpose input/output (GPIO) header on a Raspberry Pi 3 Model B/B+, Raspberry Pi 4 Model B, or Raspberry Pi 5 and offers two IO-Link ports stackable to a total of four ports, through an Analog Devices MAX14819ATM+ transceiver. The company has also written a software stack offering a binary Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) interface to any application — with examples provided in both C/C++ and Python.
In addition to the Raspberry Pi-specific version, Pinetek has also designed a more generic model "for use with any SBC," Lau claims, in which the signals are brought out to a 0.1" pin header. In both cases, the hardware is functionally identical — including the presence of a 24V power supply, capable of pushing 0.5A per IO-Link port.
Pinetek is planning to launch a crowdfunding campaign on Crowd Supply in the near future; the hardware schematics and software source, based on RT-Labs I-Link stack, are available on the company's GitHub repository under the reciprocal GNU General Public License 3. Additional information is available on the Pinetek Networks website.