Media converters for network expansion

06 April 2021 Knowledge Base

In industrial facilities, engineers are faced with the following problems: The number of different devices, the distance between them and the volume of incoming data are increasing. Interface converters or media converters are commonly used to solve these problems. These can be splitters or converters to fast fiber-optic connections. They can be installed almost anywhere on the network.

Media converters are single-layer devices that only convert electrical signals and the physical medium without changing the data.

MOXA offers a wide range of media converters for serial, Ethernet and fiber optic connections in its arsenal.

MOXA’s media converters have several advantages:

Allows you to convert Ethernet or serial interfaces to fiber
Industrial grade design for harsh environments
Plug-and-play technology and modular design make networking easy

Where to apply media converters? Here are 4 examples of application scenarios:

Scenario 1: You want to connect a RS-232 device via RS-422/485 interfaces. For that, MOXA offers Serial-to-Serial converters

Model name	TCC-80/80I	TCC-100/100I	TCC-120/120I

Interface A	RS-232	RS-232	RS-232
Interface B	RS-422/485	RS-422/485	RS-422/485
Power over interface	✔	—	—
Repeater	—	—	✔
Port isolation	2 KV (TCC-80I)	2 KV (TCC-100I)	2 KV (TCC-120I)
Overvoltage protection	—	1 KV	1 KV

Scenario 2: You want to increase the transmission distance between serial devices. MOXA offers Serial-to-Fiber converters.

Standard design

Model name	TCF-90	TCF-142	ICF-1150/1150I

Interface A	RS-232	RS-232/422/485	RS-232/422/485
Interface B	—	Fiber optic (single-mode or multi-mode)	—
Power over interface	✔	—	—
Repeater	—	—	✔
Port isolation	—	—	2 KV (ICF-1150I)
Overvoltage protection	—	—	1 KV
Optical ring	—	✔	✔
Industrial certificates	—	—	C1D2, ATEX, IECEx

Modular design

1) Chassis

Model name	TRC-190	TRC-2190

Slots for modules	19	18
Remote management	—	✔
Input voltage	100-240 VAC or ±48 VDC redundant

2) Plug-in modules

Model name	TCF-142-RM

Interface A	RS-232/422/485
Interface B	Fiber optic (single-mode or multi-mode)
Optical ring	✔

Scenario 3: You want to increase the distance between PROFIBUS or CAN devices. MOXA offers Fieldbus-to-Fiber converters.

Model name	ICF-1170I	ICF-1180I	ICF-1280I

Interface A	ISO 11898-2, terminal block	PROFIBUS DP (DB9 female)	PROFIBUS DP (DB9 female)
Interface B	Fiber optic (multi-mode)	Fiber optic (single-mode or multi-mode)
Port isolation	2 KV	2 KV	2 KV
Overvoltage protection	1 KV	2 KV	2 KV
Optical ring	—	—	✔
Industrial certificates	—	C1D2, ATEX, IECEx

Scenario 4: You want to increase the distance between Ethernet devices. MOXA offers a wide range of Ethernet-to-Fiber media converters for any industrial network.

Standard design

Model name	IMC-21	IMC-21A	IMC-21GA	IMC-101	IMC-101G	IMC-P101	PTC-101	PTC-101-M12

Interface A	10/100BaseT(X), RJ45	10/100BaseT(X), RJ45	10/100/1000 BaseT(X), RJ45	10/100BaseT(X), RJ45	10/100/1000 BaseT(X), RJ45	10/100BaseT(X), RJ45	10/100BaseT(X), RJ45	10/100BaseT(X), RJ45
Interface B	100BaseFX	100BaseFX	100/1000BaseSX/LX, 100/1000 BaseSFP slot	100BaseFX	100/1000BaseSFP slot	100BaseFX	100BaseFX	100BaseFX
Port connection loss	—	—	—	✔	✔	✔	✔(LV model)	✔(LV model)
Power loss	—	—	—	✔	✔	✔	✔(LV model)	✔(LV model)
PoE	—	—	—	—	—	✔	—	—
Industrial certificates	—	—	—	C1D2, ATEX, IECEx	C1D2, ATEX, IECEx	—	IEC 61850-3	EN 50121-4