Hilscher announced on the 10th that it has maintained its position as the industry leader in factory automation for over 25 years with embedded modules for industrial communication.

Since 1986, Hilscher has made the development and production of industrial communication solutions technology for modern factory automation its core area of expertise.

We offer a diverse product lineup ranging from PC cards to embedded modules and gateways, as well as OEM plug-in modules that connect directly to high-performance SoCs equipped with related protocol stacks.

Hilscher's comX product was developed about 25 years ago and, through gradual optimization, is a leading communication module used as a field device by companies around the world today, making it a successful product in the field of embedded modules.

We explore Hilscher's technology fields and the origins of the comX module through Hilscher's product development history.

Hilscher's first communication module was released to the market in 1995 for the industrial protocol PROFIBUS-DP.

The COM-DPM and COM-DPS products were based on AMD network controllers and supported master and slave functions.

It was equipped with 2 kByte dual-port memory (DPM), which is a parallel interface to the host processor where the actual application runs, and was a very compact module for its time with dimensions of 63 x 77 x 14 mm (L x W x H).

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With the expansion of the animation market, customer requirements for COM modules increased year after year, and Hilscher continued to apply them to its products.

Meanwhile, the initial model was about 1.5 times larger and provided twice the data width compared to the current comX product, and used low-loss 3.3V components.

With the emergence of additional fieldbus technologies such as DeviceNet and CANopen, Hilscher was able to recognize the opportunity to equip COM modules with all industrial protocols early on, which led to the birth of the first multi-protocol capable embedded module.

The 10mm size COM-AS product, which focuses on the minimum height of the component, was used mounted in parallel below the front panel with a vertical fieldbus connector/LED/switch.

On the other hand, COM-BA products focus on a minimum front width of 40mm when mounted at a right angle behind the front panel with angled fieldbus connectors/LEDs.

COM-BN products route fieldbus, LED, and switch signals to the host board, saving additional space during installation and improving flexibility.

COM-CA and COM-CN products focus on a minimum module size (W x L x H): 70 x 30 x 21.5 mm, with 2.5 mm of clearance provided under the module for SMD components on the host board.

This means that all connectors are placed on the outer edges, saving space on the host board.

Communication modules have been expanding their scope of application in the field of factory and process automation over the years.

Currently, first and second generation modules are still used in various applications, including dual distributed control systems (DCS), power supplies for electroplating plants, and industrial PCs (IPCs), and in addition to first generation COM modules, second generation COM-CA and COM-CN modules are also widely applied in the industry.