Hardware Setup Requirements for TwinCAT 3

Step 1 of 5 in Modeling EtherCAT Networks

For the development computer and Speedgoat^® target computers, the EtherCAT^® I/O module has these requirements:

Each Ethernet card must be compatible with EtherCAT communication.
On the development computer, as a best practice, install two Ethernet cards in addition to your local area network card. Dedicate one card to linking the development and target computers. Dedicate the other card to EtherCAT network configuration.
Assign each Ethernet card a static IP address and a nonroutable subnet and netmask. You assign an IP address on the development computer extra Ethernet port that connects to the target EtherCAT subordinate device network by using a switch. For information on setting up the dedicated Ethernet card, see your network administrator.
Configure the development computer Ethernet card that you are using for EtherCAT to enable only the Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) driver. For information on creating an EtherCAT configuration file, see the TwinCAT^® 3 documentation.
On the target computer, consult with Speedgoat support for configuration of the two Ethernet cards in the Speedgoat target machine. A typical configuration dedicates one card to linking the development and target computers and dedicates the other card to model-based EtherCAT communication. See Install EtherCAT Network for Execution.

With only one card on the development computer, before configuring the EtherCAT network, unplug the Ethernet link cable and plug in the EtherCAT network cable. Before building and downloading the model, unplug the EtherCAT network cable, plug in the Ethernet link cable, disable the EtherCAT filter, and restart your development computer.

Modeling EtherCAT Networks