[etherlab-users] Etherlab example mini module

[Thomas Elste]

Hi Florian,

thanks for your reply.

>> 2. After the eeprom data has been read, the master tries to scan the  
>> data and find out the slaves configuration (syncmanager config, pdos,
>> etc.). But except vendor id, product code and some other numbers,
>> the netX eeprom doesn't contain any configuration data. TwinCat uses
>> the xml file delivered with the netX to configure it as slave. The
>> Etherlab master seems to depend on the eeprom content.
>
> Yes. Again, slaves vendors have to provide the desired EEPROM contents  
> for masters, which do not (or can not) use the XML slave descriptions.

I mentioned the missing EEPROM config data in the Hilscher forum
(http://board.hilscher.com/viewtopic.php?t=262) among some other things.
Sounds like maybe in some upcoming firmware release the preloading of
the EEPROM (-emulation) might be supported.

> In future releases, great parts of the master will be moved to user
> space. Perhaps then, someone will implement the XML file parsing...

Sounds good. Is it possible to access the master sources via CVS or SVN?
Maybe I could help (at least with some testing).

>> I've fixed this by generating the eeprom content for the netX manually  
>> and copy it after the scan into the masters data structure (very quick
>> and dirty, indeed).
>
> FYI, it's also possible to generate EEPROM contents and store them to
> the slave's EEPROM via the Sysfs interface.

Thats what I've tried, too. But the netX firmware seems not to accept
the EEPROM write commands. Maybe its not implemented. I could of course
only guess, as the netX firmware is closed source.

>> 4. To change the slaves status, TwinCat writes the AL control register
>> always with the ERR_ACK bit set, without worrying. The Etherlab master
>> doesn't. This causes the state change not always carried out by the
>> netX. I've changed this, too.
>
> Does this work for all slaves? I encountered similar problems...

Can't tell. The netX is the only slave I've got, at the moment. We are
going to order some Beckhoff components shortly. So I'm about to find
out, if the modifications that were necessary in order to get the netX
working will not prevent a bus configuration with some other and some
more slaves.


Regards
Thomas


-- 
Dipl.-Inf. Thomas Elste

Institut fuer Mikroelektronik- und Mechatronik-Systeme gGmbH
Ehrenbergestraße 27, 98693 Ilmenau, Germany

WWW: http://www.imms.de