11. Conclusion

Profibus offers an open communication architecture well suited to the major application areas of industrial and field networks: manufacturing industry with Profibus-DP and Profibus-FMS, continuous processes with Profibus-DP and Profibus-PA, and technical building. Each version, each FMS, DP and PA protocol meets specific communication needs in an automated environment, based on a common set of robust, deterministic services.

Application profiles such as ProfiDrive and ProfiSafe reinforce the network's various business specializations and its adaptation to the strong constraints of interchangeability and management of safety devices at field level.

The early stabilization of Profibus through national, European and then international standardization, right down to the physical layer, combined with a proven product certification process, has...