RapidPath EtherCAT Network Setup

RapidPath™ is MachMotion's trademarked EtherCAT motion controller solution. 

1. EtherCAT Network

1.1 What is the EtherCAT Network?

The EtherCAT network consists of a single "master" node (in RapidPath, the motion controller is the master) and any number of "slave" nodes (drives, I/O blocks, etc.).

All the nodes on the network are daisy chained together in a line. Each node should have an "in" and an "out" connection, and the "out" of one node should be connected directly to the "in" of the next node on the network.

EtherCAT Network Wiring

Node order is not, generally, important and can be changed to suit the needs of the application (e.g. to accommodate the physical locations of the nodes).

1.2 First Time Setup

The first time you want to start the network after reconfiguring it (e.g. adding/removing drives or I/O blocks), You will need to generate a new ENI (EtherCAT Node Information) file.

Start RapidSetup (Usually: C:\Mach4\MotionControllers\RapidPath\Runtime\RSI\RapidSetup.exe)

RapidSetup

The RapidSetup window will open.

RapidSetup

Click [Discover Network Nodes] and wait for it to finish. It should display some basic information about the devices on your network, shown on the left side of the window.

EtherCAT Nodes

Click [Generate ENI File]. It should complete in a few seconds.

The creation of this file is the only essential thing that has to be done within RapidSetup.

You can verify that everything is good by making the network operational. Click [Start Network]. When the network is operational, "Operational" should be shown as the network status in the lower-right corner of the window.

Network Status: Operational

You will not need to use RapidSetup again unless you reconfigure the nodes in the EtherCAT network.