Mouser Electronics, Inc., the New Product Introduction (NPI) leader empowering innovation, stocks a broad range of MKR shields from Arduino, including three shields ideal for industrial communications systems. The Arduino MKR 485 shield, MKR CAN shield, and MKR ETH shield are designed to allow the development boards with an MKR form factor to connect to industrial automation and automotive systems using various communication protocols.
The Arduino MKR 485 shield enables engineers to connect their MKR boards to any of the industrial systems that use the RS 485 protocol. The MKR 485 shield can also be used to extend the serial wired communication over much a longer range. The MKR 485 shield supports half duplex and full duplex, with or without biasing and termination, and master/slave configuration. An on-board, three-way DIP switch allows simple configuration. With the shield, engineers can tap into almost any legacy industrial system, such as industrial PLCs, controllers, drives, and human-machine interfaces (HMIs). Older industrial systems such as machinery, heating systems, and conveyors can to turned into Internet of Things (IoT) devices through a serial connection using the shield.
The Arduino MKR CAN shield connects MKR boards to a controller area network (CAN) bus. Based on a Microchip Technology MCP2515 CAN controller with SPI interface, the MKR CAN shield simplifies interfacing with industrial systems and automotive applications. An onboard switch allows engineers to easily enable or disable the termination resistor. The MKR CAN shield enables engineers to develop applications related to smart vehicles, autonomous cars, and drones, and allows development boards to connect directly to industrial grade sensors, motors, and displays.
The Arduino MKR ETH shield enables a MKR board to connect to the internet using Ethernet instead of a wireless connection, enabling a faster and more reliable connection in industrial environments. The shield is based on a WIZnet W5500 embedded Ethernet controller, which supports up to eight simultaneous socket connections and provides an IP stack capable of both TCP and UDP. In addition to Ethernet connectivity via the Arduino Ethernet 2 library, the shield includes a microSD card slot with the ability to read and write to a microSD card using the Arduino SD library.
