Texas Instruments adds pre-certified multiprotocol module and advanced IO-Link master to expand industrial communication portfolio

Texas Instruments announced two new devices that the company said are designed to enable seamless interoperability across increasingly complex factory automation, robotics and Industrial Internet of Things systems.

The company said that the new multiprotocol communications system-on-module (SoM) and IO-Link master expand TI's industrial communication portfolio, which includes software-programmable hardware and certified, production-ready software stacks that enable engineers to run any established protocol on one integrated platform.

Multiprotocol integration with TI technology

Built on TI's AM2612 microcontroller (MCU) and DP83826AI Ethernet physical layer, the company said that the new TICS100MOD is the industry's smallest fully featured, certified communications SoM that supports multiple real-time Ethernet protocols on a single piece of hardware. TI said that the SoM allows engineers to switch between EtherCAT, EtherNet/IP and Profinet during boot time through a simple firmware update, future-proofing their designs as protocols evolve and making Industrial Ethernet integration easier and more cost effective.

The company said that TICS100MOD SoM integrates two Arm Cortex-R5F cores and external memory, providing enough compute performance to support fully featured protocol stacks and advanced factory automation applications in an optimized system footprint.

"Industrial communication is evolving faster than ever, and engineers need a partner who can help them adapt to emerging standards and requirements," said Karim Jamal, director of industrial communication solutions at TI. "TI brings together certified hardware, software and in-house engineering expertise, supporting customers as they develop next-generation industrial automation systems that work together seamlessly across devices, networks and communication protocols."

Texas Instruments said that the TIOM2212 dual-channel IO-Link master bridges TI's upstream multiprotocol approach to the sensor and actuator level with IO-Link connectivity, enabling engineers to connect IO-Link devices to higher-level Industrial Ethernet networks through a single platform. With advanced analog integration and built-in protection features, the company said that the TIOM2212 ensures fast, reliable data exchange between field devices.

Additionally, the company said TIOM2212 is compatible with TI's Sitara industrial networking system-on-chip (SoC) family and AM13Ex real-time MCUs through an integrated frame handler, which reduces the design complexity and costs of bridging field devices and factory control systems.

"At SICK, we rely on robust and future-ready communication technologies to connect sensors, machines and systems,” said Dr. Stefan Odermatt, senior vice president of research and development, integrated automation at SICK. “TI's Industrial Ethernet and IO-Link solutions help us bring products such as the SIG300 to market with the performance and reliability required for modern industrial automation."

Innovation in connected factories

Texas Instruments said that connected factories require multiple industrial communication protocols to exchange data between diverse equipment on the production floor. Supporting multiprotocol networks typically requires separate hardware for each protocol, which TI said increases cost, design complexity and time.

The company said that sourcing both hardware and software from a single vendor can simplify integration and customization, reduce supply-chain risk, and streamline long-term platform maintenance.

TI said that its multiprotocol portfolio enables engineers to address these design challenges in several ways: 

• Protocol flexibility: Firmware-based switching and customization help meet changing customer or regional requirements without hardware redesign.
• Deterministic communication: Simultaneous real-time performance is achieved across multiple protocols, with industry-leading process data cycle times on TI MCUs and processors.
• Software configurability: Full media access control layer access enables highly customized protocol implementations across the stack.
• Streamlined development: Evaluation modules and a software development kit (SDK) with certified, production-ready protocol stacks, application examples, training resources, and development and troubleshooting tools accelerate time to market.

Texas Instruments at electronica 2026

TI said that it will display its multiprotocol industrial communication technology at electronica, Nov. 10-13, in Munich, Germany. The new TICS100MOD SoM will be featured at TI's exhibit in two demonstrations:

• TICS100MOD multiprotocol Industrial Ethernet: Reduce complexity and speed up time-to-market by seamlessly integrating multiprotocol industrial Ethernet into any system with TI's certified, production-ready module.
• New industrial communication technologies and trends: Create a seamless, future-ready industrial networking ecosystem by leveraging the latest Ethernet and IO-Link protocols, integrated neural processing units and time-sensitive networking.

The company said that preproduction quantities of the TIOM2212 IO-Link master device are available now, with the TICS100MOD SoM available by the end of 2026.