EtherCAT Master Stack for Microware® OS-9

Deterministic - Efficient - Scalable - Fast Booting

Microware OS-9 is a full-featured operating system framework, including the OS kernel, kernel services and industry-standard APIs, middleware and a complete IDE based development framework. The OS-9’s compact, high-performance, multi-user, multi-tasking real-time kernel is a proven foundation for time-to-revenue success. OS-9 supports Freescales Power Architecture, Intel Platforms, ARM-, SHx, MIPS and others.

• Hard Real-Time Performance
• Small Footprint
• Scalable Modular Architecture
• Power Management / Efficiency
• Reliable, Safe and Secure
• Multi-Core and Virtualization
• Extensive Services and Middleware
• Native Development Framework

Overview: EtherCAT Master Stack for Microware® OS-9
The EtherCAT Master Stack for OS-9 is based on the Beckhoff Master Sample Code and optimized to meet the requirements of hard real-time operation under the RTOS OS-9. The cycle time can go down to 50µs depending on CPU-performance and data size.
EtherCAT Master is ENI based, thus accepts any configuration created in accordance with EtherCAT specifications.
EtherCAT Master has a modular architecture and consists of the following layers to adapt the programmers need to create user applications on different complexity levels.

Level One:
EtherCAT Mastertask: The user application coexists to the EtherCAT master task. The user application communicates event synchronized over shared memory with the EtherCAT master task. The access by the user application to the EtherCAT field I/O is based on configured symbolic field variable names. The configuration is done by an EtherCAT configuration tool by the application writer himself.
Level one is today’s preferred model of usage.

Level Two:
EtherCAT Library: The EtherCAT Mastertask itself uses the EtherCAT library for all communication purposes. Actually from the point of view of the EtherCAT library the EtherCAT master task is just an “ordinary” user application. So for advanced programmers familiar to the EtherCAT communication standards can use the library directly. Then the user application is direct plugged in to the EtherCAT library bypassing all intermediate levels.

Supported CPU-architectures to date

• Freescales Power Architecture
• Intel Architecture
• ARM

Functional Overview
EtherCAT Mastertask OS-9 uses EtherCAT Library (libEcat.l) which provides the following functionality:

• Process Image
  • Cyclic Data Exchange (periodic frames down to 50µs, depends on hardware performance and OS functionality)
  • Acyclic Process Data Exchange (PDO in SDO)
  • Different Process Image Update Cycle Times (as specified in the XML configuration file)
  • Process Image memory may be provided externally by application (e.g. EtherCat master task
  • Large Process Images (exceeding Ethernet frame length
• Master Configuration
  • XML Schema (Conforming ENI Specification)
  • No ESI (EtherCAT Slave Information File) upload from EEPROM
• Mailbox Communication
  • Application Interface installable User-Callbacks
  • Mailbox Protocols
  • CAN application protocol over EtherCAT (CoE)
  • Application uses standard Mailbox Communication Interface
  • SDO upload, SDO download, SDO information service, Emergency Requests
• Ethernet over EtherCAT (EoE)
  • Requires a virtual Ethernet device with Implemented for QNX; OS-9 ready as soon as a virtual Ethernet device is available
• Servo drive profile according to IEC 61491 over EtherCAT (SoE)
• File Access over EtherCAT (FoE)
  • Implemented
• Distributed Clocks (DC)
  • Distributed Clocks of slaves synchronized by master
  • Offset and delay compensation