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, either in a line or a ring. 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.

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