Pinetek Networks’ IOL HAT is a Raspberry Pi expansion board using the IO-Link (IEC 61131-9) protocol to interact with industrial sensors. It’s based on the Analog Devices MAX14819 IO-Link master transceiver and offers two SDCI (“Single-Drop Digital Communication”) connectors.
While work on the IO-Link communication protocol started in 2006, and the IEC 61131-9 “Single-drop digital communication interface (SDCI) for small sensors and actuators” standard was adopted in 2013, it only recently came onto our radar with products like the STMicro EVLIOL4LSV1 IO-Link actuator board and Renesas CCE4511 IO-Link master and ZSSC3286 IO-Link sensor signal conditioner. The IOL HAT brings the IO-Link standard for industrial IoT communication to the Raspberry Pi.
IOL HAT specifications:
- IO-Link chip – Analog Devices MAX14819 dual IO-Link master transceiver with integrated framers and L+ supply controllers
- 2x SDCI ports for IEC 61131-9 (IO-Link) sensors and actuators
- Host connection (one or the other)
- PT-1201 model – 40-pin GPIO header; SPI and interrupts used; 3.3V logic levels; two IOL HATs can be stacked together.
- PT-1202 model – 7-pin generic connector with SPI, interrupt, 3.3V, and GND (jumper port not used)
- Jumper port selection for SDCI 1-2/SDCI 3-4
- Status LEDs for SDCI ports
- Power Supply – 24V via 2-pin connector
- Dimensions – 65.5 x 66 x 18 mm (Raspberry Pi HAT compatible)
- Temperature Range – -25°C to 60°C
- Accessories – 4x spacers with nuts
Besides the hardware itself, PineTek provides the software to run on the Raspberry Pi and control the IOL HAT expansion module through SPI and interrupts. There’s also a chip select pin to control two IOL HATs stacked on each other. The Master Application established a TCP connection with the user application, and the company provides examples in C and Python. A binary is provided as well as the source code for people wanting to build it on other platforms.
Note the Master Application is based on the i-link stack from RT-Labs with dual license (GPLv3/Commercial). The project relies on the GPLv3 license, but depending on your use case, you may need a commercial license with options for support and maintenance. You’ll find the source code on GitHub, while the software and hardware manuals, and STEP files can be found on the Pinetek website.
Pinetek Networks sells the IOL HAT on Tindie for $92.25, and the product ships from Germany. More details can also be found on the product page, where you can also purchase the HAT directly from the company. Finally, the video below shows a demo using an IO-Link HMI Display and an IO-Link distance sensor for metallic objects.
Via Hackster.io
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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