Product Description:

The EJ1100-0000 EtherCAT plug-in is manufactured by Beckhoff within the EJ EtherCAT Plugins series. Designed as an interface terminal, the card terminates the fieldbus segment on a customer PCB and passes telegrams to adjacent I/O plugins, giving OEMs a scalable way to embed EtherCAT communication directly on the control board. The module translates the high-speed serial fieldbus into the internal E-bus signal system so motion controllers, sensors, and actuators can exchange deterministic process data without external cabling.

It draws a 24 VDC supply from the application backplane, and the logic side requires at most 0.41 A of input current, so onboard regulators must be sized for that load. The EtherCAT link operates at 100 MBaud through two RJ45 connectors configured as in- and out-ports, while the shielded CAT-5 cable used as the data medium preserves signal integrity. Communication follows the EtherCAT Device Protocol, which organizes telegrams with distributed clocks for cycle-synchronous operation. An IP20 housing confines the hardware to control cabinets, and the 44 mm width, 66 mm height, and 55 mm depth match the EJ card carrier grid. The internal E-bus rails provide a stabilized 3.3 V reference to adjacent plug-in terminals for low-power logic.

Deterministic behavior is supported by a 1 µs internal delay between the input port and the output port, maintaining precise update times for downstream modules. Network segments may span up to 100 m per link before an Ethernet switch is required, a distance governed by the physical layer and shielding. The module can supply neighboring EJ terminals with up to 2200 mA over the E-bus, allowing multiple low-power I/O cards to be stacked without extra wiring. Continuous operation is permitted up to 2000 m of installation altitude; above that level, derating must be applied to account for reduced air density.