IN Brief:
- Murrelektronik has presented six products spanning IO-Link, safety, power distribution, and decentralised I/O.
- The pure.IO platform supports PROFINET, EtherNet/IP, and EtherCAT in a compact field-mounted architecture.
- Integrated diagnostics and daisy-chain connections are intended to reduce cabinet hardware and machine wiring.
Murrelektronik has expanded its decentralised automation portfolio with six products covering IO-Link operator control, functional safety, field power, cabling, and compact industrial I/O.
Among the additions is an IO-Link control box that combines configurable pushbuttons with an integrated emergency-stop device. M12 plug-and-play connectivity allows the unit to be added to new machinery or retrofitted to an existing IO-Link installation without routing every operator signal separately to a central cabinet.
When paired with Murrelektronik’s MVK Fusion CIP Safety fieldbus module, the control box can operate within an EtherNet/IP safety architecture. Standard and safety-related information remain logically distinct, while the physical installation requires fewer dedicated cables and interfaces between the operator station and the machine-control system.
The wider portfolio includes safety cabling, an AS-Interface power tap, and the pure.IO decentralised connectivity platform. Pure.IO supports PROFINET, EtherNet/IP, and EtherCAT, allowing one field-mounted I/O family to serve machinery built around several common controller and network environments.
Eight IO-Link ports can connect intelligent sensors, actuators, and local I/O hubs, while fieldbus and power connections may be daisy-chained between modules. Machines can therefore be divided into repeatable functional zones rather than returning every device connection to one enclosure.
Conventional cabinet architectures create substantial cable bundles, terminal hardware, and installation work because each sensor and actuator is wired back to a central location. Placing sealed I/O modules closer to the process shortens those runs and allows network and power to follow the mechanical structure of the machine more closely.
The electrical design does not disappear when the cabinet shrinks; instead, voltage drop, conductor loading, short-circuit protection, earthing, connector coding, electromagnetic compatibility, and environmental sealing are distributed across the installation. Access for replacement and inspection must also be considered before modules are mounted beside moving equipment or inside guarded areas.
As the number of field nodes rises, diagnostics become essential to maintainability. A central I/O-card failure is comparatively easy to locate, whereas a distributed system may contain dozens of modules, branches, connectors, and device links. Port-level current, communication, and device-status information can narrow the search before maintenance staff begin opening cable routes.
IO-Link extends that visibility below the industrial Ethernet layer by carrying parameter and diagnostic data alongside the process value. Sensors can report temperature, signal quality, contamination, operating hours, or internal faults, while replacement devices can receive stored parameters from the master rather than being configured manually.
That convenience depends on disciplined configuration management, since device descriptions, parameter sets, firmware versions, and controller logic must remain aligned throughout the machine lifecycle. Automatic parameter download accelerates replacement only when the stored configuration has been controlled and tested against the installed device revision.
Connected motor-management platforms are developing along the same path. Schneider Electric’s TeSys Tera architecture combines protection, condition information, and networked control at the field level, while Murrelektronik is strengthening the connectivity layer that carries such devices into the automation system.
Safety communication imposes stricter controls than ordinary process data because emergency-stop information must retain a defined response time and diagnostic coverage when transferred across a network. Configuration signatures, device identity, watchdog timing, and validation consequently remain part of the safety case even when installation becomes mechanically simpler.
Protocol diversity adds another pressure for machine builders serving several markets. An OEM may retain one mechanical platform while customers specify different controller families and industrial networks, so supporting PROFINET, EtherNet/IP, and EtherCAT through one hardware range can reduce stocked variants. Protocol-specific configuration, performance, and certification still require separate verification.
A decentralised layout is most effective when the machine has been divided into functional modules from the outset. Power segments, safety boundaries, connector access, washdown exposure, cable replacement, and future expansion all influence the placement of each node, and adding remote boxes late in a cabinet-led design can simply move complexity rather than reduce it.
Murrelektronik’s additions bring operator control, device communication, safety, and field power into that modular arrangement. Less point-to-point wiring is the immediate result, while the broader architectural change places more sensing, diagnostics, and connection intelligence directly on the machine, where installation quality and lifecycle control become as important as the network protocol itself.
