Siemens A&D uses ARTiSAN Studio in new ASI-safe products

The new ASI-safe products developed by Siemens A&D using ARTiSAN Studio include the DP/AS-i F-Link for the seamless integration of ASI-safe slave devices into Profisafe environments creating a safety-related gateway between the AS-Interface and the higher level Profibus; a new ASI-safe compact module offering twice as many safe inputs to the module it replaces thereby reducing costs and space in the plant; and a new generation of ASI-safe position switches (the 3SE5 Series) that integrate all the ASI-safe electronics and the previously external power supply into the position switch housing.

Siemens A&D recently selected ARTiSAN Studio for all the safety-critical embedded software development needed to ensure the fail-safe operation of its innovative control automation products, systems and complete solutions for a broad range of manufacturing and process industries. ARTiSAN Studio enables engineering teams to visualise, design and validate systems before building them, and simplifies implementation with code generation and software reuse. It is highly scaleable and suitable for use on both small and large technical projects. ARTiSAN Studio is a proven platform that provides a stable, robust working environment ensuring high availability of model information, while securing all valuable data. Teams using ARTiSAN Studio’s powerful suite of tools can model systems and software, document legacy systems, for the complete project lifecycle from start to finish.

The AS-Interface (the actuator-sensor interface or AS-I) is now established a fundamentally important part of most control automation strategies and Siemens A&D was one of the dozen or so initiating companies instrumental in its development and standardisation. As such, Siemens A&D has long since established itself as an innovation driver and trendsetter in the global market for AS-Interface products and solutions. An increasingly important aspect of AS-I is the ASI-safe (AS-Interface Safety at Work) Profile. This was created for functional safety applications to enable safety devices such as emergency stop buttons, light barriers and interlocks to run on the same cable as a standard AS-I system. Typical ASI-safe applications range from conveyor-based assembly lines to advanced robotics and even airport carousels.

“We were particularly drawn to ARTiSAN Studio because of its support of UML 2.0 and its reputation in safety-critical markets. Using it for the development of these new ASI-safe products, we are able to meet and exceed our safety-critical requirements,” said Peter Weichhold, a senior software engineer at Siemens Automation and Drives (A&D). “Maintaining Safety Integrity Level 3 is crucial to us. Also, all of our product development has to follow IEC61508, the European standard for safety-critical systems. Furthermore, in this project it was essential to integrate several safety-critical bus systems like the ASI-safe and PROFIsafe with a PLC based on SIMATIC S7 using the SIMATIC IDE and Siemens Safety Integrated.”