Hilscher and the HIMA Group have launched an evaluation board capable of implementing functional safety and industrial communication on a single platform and have embarked on the joint development of related solutions. The aim is to reduce the burden of verification and integration processes by streamlining the development method of industrial devices, which previously required safety control and network communication to be configured separately.

On April 7, the two companies announced the signing of a strategic partnership to jointly develop and sell building blocks for functional safety communication. This collaboration targets device manufacturers that need to design safety and industrial networking simultaneously, and the two companies jointly unveiled an evaluation board that supports the development of facilities required up to SIL 3, PL e, and Cat. 4 levels.

The key feature of this evaluation board is the integration of HIMA’s safety SoC, HICore 1, and Hilscher’s multiprotocol communication controller, netX 90, into a single piece of hardware. Based on this, users can develop and test functional safety solutions. An integrated solution for PROFIsafe is already available, and solutions compliant with FSoE and CIP Safety are also under development.

Until now, many development teams have configured safety functions and industrial communication as separate subsystems. In this case, there was a problem where development resources were dispersed due to increased interface design, testing procedures, and documentation work. Both companies expect that this integrated board will help improve development efficiency and shorten product launch times by reducing these processes.

The technology is also based on verified components. HICore 1 is a safety system-on-chip applicable to safety sensors, actuators, and remote I/O, designed to support up to SIL 3. netX 90 is a communication controller for devices supporting industrial Ethernet and fieldbus communication, configured to handle major network standards on a single hardware platform.

Both companies explained that this collaboration is significant not only for safety-related requirements but also for responding to future cybersecurity regulations. In particular, for manufacturers preparing for new regulations such as the European Cyber Resilience Act, there is a growing need to review safety, communications, and security requirements together from the initial design stage.

Hilscher and HIMA previously unveiled evaluation kits and solution examples for the first time at SPS 2025 in Nuremberg, Germany. Since then, the two companies plan to expand the scope of their cooperation, including joint development and sales, to meet the industry's demand for faster application of functional safety communications into product designs.