Application Description: Beckhoff's EtherCAT Master is very powerful, especially in the field of motion control where TwinCAT NC, paired with third-party EtherCAT servos, has extensive applications. In fact, in the measurement and control domain, Beckhoff's EtherCAT Master can also connect to NI's EtherCAT Slave. This article explains how to use Beckhoff's EtherCAT Master to connect with the NI 9144 EtherCAT Slave.
Step 1: Install LabVIEW and Related Software
NI's control over EtherCAT Slaves is quite strict, unlike with ordinary third-party devices where you can directly download the related XML device description files. Instead, you need to use the NI 9144 XML Creator software to generate the XML file.
- Install LabVIEW software on the programming machine.
- Install NI-RIO – Windows.Download link: http://www.ni.com/download/ni-rio-13.1/4572/en/
- Install NI-Industrial Communications for EtherCAT.Note: The version of software 3 should not be higher than that of software 2; otherwise, you will receive an alert during installation.
Step 2: Use NI 9144 XML Creator to Generate the XML Device Description File
- Open NI 9144 XML Creator and select the modules actually used in each slot.
- Click "Create XML File" to generate the XML device description file.
Step 3: Configure the NI 9144 EtherCAT Slave in TwinCAT
- Add the XML file to the C:\TwinCAT\Io\EtherCAT directory.
- Restart the computer, or TwinCAT will automatically reload the device description file.
- In TwinCAT's System Manager, locate the EtherCAT Master and manually add the NI 9144 slave.
With that, all configurations are complete.