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• 'Settings' Editor (EtherCAT Master)

'Settings' Editor (EtherCAT Master)

The following information refers to a specific, typical device type. Your screen may differ.

This help topic describes the 'Settings' editor of the 'EtherCAT' PLANT node (which represents the EtherCAT Master). The editor is used to configure the EtherCAT Master and set up the EtherCAT network.

Further Info Detailed information on the EtherCAT Master configuration as well as step-by-step procedures can be found in the help chapter "Master Configuration".

On the left side on the 'Settings' page, several editor categories can be selected. These are described below in detail.

This topic contains the following sections:

• 'All'
• 'General'
• 'Update task'

'All'

After selecting the 'All' category, the settings that are available in each category are visible on one page.

'General'

Parameter	Description
Maximum number of connectable EtherCAT devices	Indicates how many EtherCAT slave devices can be connected to the EtherCAT Master. This number depends on the EtherCAT Master and is specified in its device description. The maximum number of table rows in the 'Device List' editor corresponds to this number.
Station name	Descriptive name of the Master.
Cycle time [ms]	The bus cycle time can be selected from the drop-down list. The cycle time is the interval in which time-critical Process Data Objects (PDO) telegrams are transmitted in the EtherCAT network. The time intervals between two PDO telegrams are used for the exchange of Service Data Objects (SDOs).
Create HC Group for Slaves	Mark the checkbox if you want the Master to assign each connected slave to a unique HotConnect group. Note The created group is in Floating Mode. That means, the topology of the configuration does not necessarily have to match with the physical hardware. The HotConnect (HC) functionality allows to disconnect EtherCAT modules from the network during operation in terms of communication (for example, by switching off or disconnecting the Ethernet line) or to insert them into the data traffic (for example, by switching on or plugging in the Ethernet line). Activated: Physical slaves may be missing, and the position in the topology does not necessarily have to correspond to the physical hardware. Deactivated: The position in the topology of the physical hardware must match the configuration. Further Info Detailed information can be found in the topic "Identification and HotConnect of Slaves".
Lost cyclic frame alarm threshold	Specifies the threshold alarm value for lost EtherCAT frames. If this threshold is exceeded, an alarm is created. Select a number from the drop-down list. The default value is '9'.

'Update task'

The interval at which variables are updated from the running controller can be configured by selecting an update task.

Parameter

Description

System and global variables

Drop-down list for selecting the task with which the EtherCAT system variables (EC_*) and assigned global input/output variables are updated (that is, when the global input/output variables connected to the process data items are read/written) The drop-down list provides the suitable tasks for selection that are defined in the 'Tasks and Events' editor (on the 'PLCnext' PLANT node). Note If no task is selected here, the update is done in an interval of 50 ms.