Beckhoff integrates compact, precise displacement measurement into standard control technology, reducing complexity

EL5072 EtherCAT Terminal Enables Direct Connection of Inductive Displacement Sensors

SAVAGE, Minnesota, April 28, 2021 – The new EL5072 EtherCAT Terminal from Beckhoff enables direct connection of up to two inductive displacement sensors, including transducers in LVDT and half-bridge designs or inductive angular position sensors in the RVDT version. This means that precise position and distance measurements, such as in process control or the control of joining processes, are possible in a compact, finely scalable and cost-effective format. The EL5072 measures just 12 mm wide for space-saving installation in the standard EtherCAT I/O system.

Displacement measurement is one of the most important metrological tasks, both in the industrial production environment and in infrastructure monitoring. Examples include the measurement and inspection of workpiece geometry, the monitoring of press-fit and joining processes, inline quality assurance and building monitoring. With the EL5072 EtherCAT Terminal, all commercially available inductive measuring probes can be integrated into the standard control platform and evaluated without great effort.

The integrated excitation source of the EL5072 provides a wide range of parameterizable excitation frequencies and voltages. Further special features include the automatically adapted measuring signal range, switchable input impedances for different probe types and one digital input per channel for setting and storing the position value (including timestamp). The measured value is determined with high precision by a 24-bit A/D conversion and output directly as a 32-bit position value that can be easily integrated into the control program. In addition, the terminal features diagnostics for short circuit and overload of the excitation source as well as amplitude errors of the measuring signal per channel.