•ABB’s FSV400 vortex flow meters and FSS400 precessional flow meters received FieldComm Group’s first Ethernet-APL certification
• The certification of Ethernet-APL guarantees the quality of process instrumentation products and ensures reliable interoperability over industrial communication networks
Innovative Ethernet-APL communication technology helps manufacturing companies improve operational efficiency

PM861AK01 After a series of comprehensive tests, the international Standardization Organization FieldComm Group awarded ABB vortex flowmeters (VortexMaster FSV400) and SwirlMaster FSS400) the world’s first Ethernet-APL standard certification. Vortex and precession flow meters are the most widely used flow meters in the process industry. Enabled by ETHERNET-APL technology, ABB brings vortex and precession flow meters with Ethernet communication into hazardous areas in industrial environments.

As a new member of the Ethernet family, ETHERNET-APL is a communication standard designed for the process industry to securely connect field instruments, and transmit long-distance and high-speed through multiple levels of automation structure. Its design is based on the 10BASE-T1L Ethernet standard, allowing cables up to 1000 meters. With a transmission rate of 10 Mbit/s, it is intrinsically secure, enabling Ethernet and TCP/IP communication to be fully applied in hazardous environments such as chemical plants, oil and gas operations, and hydrogen plants. In previous industrial environments, Ethernet communication is difficult to lay Ethernet communication networks in large industrial facilities due to security, cost and cable length limitations.

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Tilo Merlin, Instrument Business Line Platform Manager and APL Development Project Leader for ABB’s Measurement and Analysis Business unit, said: “For ABB, this certification is an important milestone in our journey towards digital instrumentation and networked systems. Obtaining this certification means that we can quickly embed Ethernet-APL technology into other instruments based on the same platform. We plan to introduce pressure and temperature meters with Ethernet-APL technology in 2025.”

PM861AK01 Paul Sereiko, Director of marketing and product strategy at FieldComm Group, said, “Ethernet-APL certification is key to ensuring superior product quality and interoperability over industrial communication networks.”

At the 2023 Expo, ABB released vortex and precessional flowmeters equipped with Ethernet-APL, bringing the technical advantages and characteristics of Ethernet-APL into the field flow measurement, simplifying the field communication connection, enhancing the field data transmission rate. It also provides a feasible solution for analyzing and diagnosing a large number of process parameters and monitoring complex working conditions in real time.

FieldComm Group is an international standardization organization co-founded by leading process automation companies, manufacturers, universities, and research institutes to lead the development and implementation of new technologies, as well as the merger of overlapping technologies, and to serve as a provider of FDI(Field Equipment Integration) technologies. The organization plays an important role in equipment integration, industrial communication networks and digital technologies, providing support and guidance for industrial automation and digital transformation.

ABB and FieldComm Group are founding members of the APL program and have been working with other companies and institutions since 2015 to develop technology, develop standards, and test and certify products.