ODVA 2026 Industry Conference

EtherNet/IP In-Cabinet system replaced hardwiring between devices with a single composite media and extended EtherNet/IP communication directly into low-cost industrial control components. As adoption grows, there is increasing demand to support functional safety applications within this ecosystem while maintaining performance, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), and multi‑vendor interoperability. This paper examines emerging EtherNet/IP In‑Cabinet Safety use cases, key technical challenges associated with implementation—including EMC behavior and system safety response time—in achieving safe, deterministic communication on Single‑Pair Ethernet. The paper explores key new 10Base-T1M features and its compatibility when used in existing EtherNet/IP In-Cabinet system. The paper further discusses ecosystem expansion through third‑party development toolkits and conformance‑ready implementations, enabling broader vendor participation and accelerating innovation. The intent is to provide guidance to device vendors, system integrators, and technology partners on achieving safe, interoperable, and scalable in‑cabinet safety architectures using EtherNet/IP.

Authors
Yutao Wang, Principal Engineer, TUV Functional Safety Engineer,Cyber Security Specialist, Rockwell Automation
David Brandt, Engineering Fellow, Rockwell Automation
Jeff Martin, Senior Project Engineer, Rockwell Automation
Amsale Abera, Global Product Manager, Rockwell Automation