Renesas launches RX72M industrial network solution

Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723), a premier supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions, today announced the RX72M Industrial Network Solution to accelerate the development of industrial slave devices based on the RX72M 32-bit Industrial Ethernet microcontroller (MCU).

The new RX72M solution includes an evaluation board, operating system, middleware, and sample software that supports approximately 70% of the communication protocols in industrial network applications, allowing users to immediately start the development of slave devices such as motor control for compact robots, PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) devices, and remote I/O systems. The sample software includes: EtherCAT, PROFINET RT, Ethernet/IP, Modbus TCP, and OPC UA as industrial Ethernet software, and PROFIBUS DP, Modbus, RTU/ASCII, CAN open, and DeviceNet as fieldbus communication software.

Renesas has passed conformance tests for three major protocols, including EtherCAT, PROFINET RT, and Ethernet/IP (representing major industrial Ethernet markets worldwide), helping developers reduce overall development time (including development, evaluation, and verification steps) by up to 6 months, thereby accelerating time to market.

The new solution will be demonstrated at the Renesas booth at the China International Industry Fair (CIIF) in Shanghai from September 17 to 21, 2019 (Shanghai Convention and Exhibition Center, Hall 6.1H, Booth E202).

“We expect the market for industrial devices connected to industrial networks to grow at a CAGR of approximately 10% over the next three years, making it imperative to develop slave devices that can support multiple industrial networks in a short period of time,” said Daryl Khoo, Vice President of Product Marketing, IoT Business Unit at Renesas Electronics. “The new RX72M Industrial Network Solution is designed to support multiple protocols, which will accelerate global deployment of our customers’ products.”

Since industrial network protocols vary greatly between countries and regions, it is necessary to support a wide range of protocols when deploying global industrial network equipment. The RX72M solution includes the main protocols used in each region, allowing users to immediately evaluate industrial network connection equipment. Users can focus on their own application development while enhancing their competitive advantage in global product deployment.

Renesas provides sample software for the new RX72M solution and will collaborate with partners to provide protocol support that can be used for mass production, helping users transition from development to mass production.

The Renesas RX72M Industrial Network Solution offers the following:

● Hardware

  • Evaluation board, including RX72M MCU

● Software

 • RX72M Driver

 • OS (µITRON) and TCP IP middleware sample programs

 • Industrial network protocol sample programs

● Others

 • CS+ and e2 studio integrated development environment (IDE)

 • Application Notes

 • Sales and support of OS, middleware and industrial networks from partner companies

Availability

The RX72M Industrial Network Solution will be available in Japan in December 2019, including OS, middleware, and industrial network support from Renesas Electronics’ partner companies; and will be available globally in October 2020.