Using Rt-linux for the Interconnection of Industrial Fieldbuses

Many different proprietary fieldbuses, each one supporting different standards and targeting particular market requirements, have been installed in the industry in different time periods under different circumstances. The alwaysgrowing need to integrate the control applications of the above fieldbuses makes interoperability in device and fieldbus level, as well as real-timelines, the key issues in the area of control applications. In this paper we consider the use of real-time Linux for the development of an interworking unit that constitutes the basic network element of our approach towards interoperability in the fieldbus level. The interconnection of two or more distant fieldbuses over a common backbone, comes to assist process and systems engineers in the development and configuration of distributed control applications. We present, the first step towards implementation, which was defined to include the interconnection of two fieldbuses of the same type. We chose as a case study Profibus due to its popularity and wide acceptance.