What Is MECHATROLINK?

• Yaskawa Electric Hoist
• Yaskawa Software
• Yaskawa Electric Careers

MECHATROLINK is an open field network that connects controllers and all types of components.
By enabling high-speed communications and concurrency, MECHATROLINK increases system speed and achieves advanced functionality.
Simple cable connections reduce system wiring, enable downsizing, and allow for easy expansion.
MECHATROLINK is an open standard, and many companies market compatible devices.
You can flexibly combine these devices to meet your needs.
Also, you can freely develop controllers and all types of devices for your applications.
We recommend MECHATROLINK to easily and quickly achieve a wide range of machine motion control at a low cost.

Advantages of MECHATROLINK

USB port on any PC using a USB cable. Drive Connection Port Port Location A1000 RJ-45 Port of the Drive V1000 Communications Port of the Drive LO RE ESC RUN STOP RESET ENTER DIGITAL OPERATOR JVOP-182 ALM CIMR-AA2A0021FAA 200V 3Phase 5.5kW/3.7kW REV DRV FOUT S/N: Cop y r y Rea d LOCK YASKAWA JVOP-181 USB Copy Unit COM ERR STOP Cop y r ify Rea d. YASKAWA Servo Motor 850W 3KW 7.5KW SGD7S Series and Driver SGM7G Series + Connection Cable 5Meter US $898.00 - $4616 / Set.

All MECHATROLINK communications specifications are published on the MECHATROLINK Members Association website.
You can become a member to download any of the technical materials to freely develop controllers and components.

A dedicated ASIC is used to provide the concurrent communications and perform the complex processing required for motion control. You can easily achieve synchronized control from a controller.
Even communications errors caused by noise or other factors do not interrupt synchronization because the ASIC automatically performs retry processing to resend data and increase communications reliability.
Also, new industrial connectors and cables that resist noise and vibration are used.

ASIC access drivers, sample applications, development software, and standard hardware circuit diagrams are available for developers free of charge on the MECHATROLINK Members Association website.
For product users, optimum wire-reduction systems are provided to integrate motion networks and I/O networks to help reduce the cost of the system.

Communications are achieved by mounting an ASIC in the master and in components.
The ASIC processes communications, which greatly simplifies implementing MECHATROLINK in products in comparison with implementing complete software functionality in a master.
Also, software tools required for development are available to help you reduce development time.

Many companies market a wide range of products that support MECHATROLINK.
You can combine any of the MECHATROLINK products from world-leading manufacturers to build systems.

The MECHATROLINK network was created in Japan.
Backed by the technical strength and reliability of Japan, the MECHATROLINK provides a worry-free network solution.

MECHATROLINK Features

Two generations of MECHATROLINK are available. MECHATROLINK-II supports general-purpose networks, while MECHATROLINK-III provides the power for advanced, high-speed applications.
Together, they meet a wide range of needs in manufacturing equipment and production facilities.

Transmission cycles from 250 μs to 8 ms are supported in a bus network that connects to up to 30 nodes.
Many manufacturers currently provide masters and components to provide you with an extremely wide range of product selections.
Click here for details.

Ethernet is used for the physical layer and the fastest transmission cycle in the industry is supported in a wide transmission cycle range of 31.25 μs to 64 ms.
You can connect up to 62 nodes in a flexible topology with cascade, star, and other connections.
Click here for details.

International Standard

The MECHATROLINK network technologies have been adopted as an international standard.
This global recognition of MECHATROLINK as a standard lets you implement MECHATROLINK networks without worrying about reliability.

• MECHATROLINK is certified for the SEMI E54.19 standard.
  This makes it even easier to implement MECHATROLINK for equipment related to semiconductors and liquid crystals.
  Certification for E54.19 (sensor and actuator networks) was received in March 2007.

• The MECHATROLINK Members Association and member companies worked to promote MECHATROLINK as an IEC standard and it was adopted in August 2014. This makes MECHATROLINK a global standard in open-field networks.
  Applicable standards: IEC 61784 Field Network Profiles
  IEC 61158 Field Network Protocols and Services

Safety Implementation

The MECHATROLINK Safety Working Group completed a list of specifications for the communications protocol of the MECHATROLINK field network that meets safety standards. Certification was received in July 2011 after an independent third party, TÜV Rheinland, confirmed that these specifications satisfied the requirements of IEC 61508 (safety level SIL3).
With MECHATROLINK Safety, communications between MECHATROLINK masters and slaves with the standard protocol and communications between MECHATROLINK Safety masters and Safety slaves can coexist on the same network.
A safety system can be constructed by simply adding a safety master, such as safety PLC, and safety slaves, such as safety I/O devices, to an existing system.
No special cables are required to connect MECHATROLINK Safety devices. Standard MECHATROLINK cables are used.

MECHATROLINK Compliant Products

Yaskawa Electric Corporation manufactures the following MECHATROLINK compliant products.
Various MECHATROLINK-compliant products can be easily connected with a MECHATROLINK communication line.
The following table shows the MECHATORLINK-compliant devices.

Yaskawa Electric Hoist

MECHATROLINK Members Association (MMA)

The MECHATROLINK Members Association (MMA) is a group of MECHATROLINK product developers and users who promote the use of MECHATROLINK, a motion field network. All members support the construction and promotion of a larger MECHATROLINK family.
Yaskawa Electric Corporation is a member of MMA.
For information on MMA, visit the website http://www.mechatrolink.org/

Newly Developed Industrial Network Achieves New Manufacturing Using IoT and AI

Wm driver. New ProductJan 22, 2018

One of the world’s highest performance networks for motion control devices has had a significant update, preparing it to meet the heightened standards of today’s new generation of manufacturing environments.

Yaskawa Electric Corporation has announced the development of MECHATROLINK-4 (M-4), which inherits the functions, performance, and usability of the popular MECHATROLINK network developed in the first half of the 1990s. MECHATROLINK-4 achieves advanced and more efficient control in many ways, including improving transmission efficiency, adding multi-master functions.

Also, for the Σ (Sigma)-LINK developed by Yaskawa in the mid-1990s for communication between servo amplifier and servomotors, Yaskawa announces that it has developed the Σ-LINK II which supports functionality to connect and to synchronize with not only encoders but also sensors and other I/O devices.

In recent years, the environment for industry is changing significantly, for example the introduction of smart production and operations, and the achievement of flexible and stable production using IoT and AI. With this background, a variety of sensors for ensuring product quality, predictive maintenance have begun to be connected in large numbers to machines and equipment at production sites, and the product data generated by these sensors are required to be collected and utilized.

Using the newly developed M-4 and Σ-LINK II together makes it possible to easily and simply synchronize and acquire not only the data related to motion control but also various sensor data. This further raises the productivity and achieves a new level of manufacturing technology utilizing IoT and AI.

Yaskawa also announces that it has decided to transfer the developed M-4 and Σ-LINK II to the MECHATROLINK MEMBERS ASSOCIATION (MMA) during FY2018.

Together with the MMA, Yaskawa will work for the further promotion of MECHATROLINK and the achievement of new advances in manufacturing.

• Production management PC for information system

1. Main Features

①MECHATROLINK-4

Yaskawa Software

While inheriting the high functionality, high performance, high reliability, and usability of the previous M-III (ensuring the application compatibility), the M-4 improves transmission efficiency (performance improvement of about 4times under the same conditions), provides much higher functionality and performance by supporting distributed systems with multi-master functions, and achieves simpler development and maintenance.

Also, the M-4 specifications supports 1000Base-T in the physical layer for the further performance improvement in the future. (M-4G)

Yaskawa Electric Careers

Main MECHATROLINK-4 Specifications

②Σ-LINK II

While inheriting the high functionality, high reliability communications of previous encoder communications (Σ-LINK), Σ-LINK II supports cascade connections like MECHATROLINK. Σ-LINK II achieves higher functionality and performance with reduced wiring by connecting not only encoders but also sensors, I/O equipment, and other devices installed on the machine side in cascades.

Main Σ-LINK II Specifications

2. Future Plans

Releasing the specifications of M-4 and Σ-LINK II through MMA are in preparation a scheduled unveiling at the Yaskawa’s booth and the MMA booth at System Control Fair 2017, to be held from Wednesday November 29, 2017 to Friday December 1, 2017 at Tokyo Big Sight.

* Ethernet is a trademark of Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.

[Contact information]
Mr.Mitsuhiro Nishimura
Motion Control Division
Business Promotion Department, Marketing Promotion Section,
Yaskawa Electric Corporation

Phone: +81-4-2962-5470
Fax: +81-4-2966-0746