Page
7
February 2010
Chapter One INTRODUCTION
The WI-MOD-E Industrial Wi-Fi Wireless Ethernet module provides wireless connections between
Ethernet devices or Ethernet wired networks (LAN’s). It complies with the IEEE 802.11b standard.
The WI-MOD-E has an internal 2.4GHz direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) wireless
transceiver, which can be used without a radio license in most countries. Users can select one of 11
5MHz wide channels, with the first channel centered at 2.412 GHz.
Note that regulations in North America and part of Europe permit all 11 channels to be
used in these countries. Please check with your Weidmuller, Inc. representative for the
permitted channel usage in your country.
The WI-MOD-E unit also provides two serial connections as well as the Ethernet connections. It is
possible to use all three data connections concurrently, allowing the WI-MOD-E to act as a
Device
Server.
Wireless connections can be made between serial devices and Ethernet devices, however
appropriate driver applications are required in the host devices to handle the different data format.
The WI-MOD-E does provide connection functionality between serial “ModBus RTU” devices and
Ethernet “ModBus TCP” devices.
The WI-MOD-E is available in two models with different RF power:
WI-MOD-E-100 100mW of RF power
WI-MOD-E-300 300mW of RF power
Note that European regulations do not permit more than 100mW of RF power to be used.
In USA, Canada and Australia, up to 1W of RF power may be generated. In other
countries, please check with your Weidmuller, Inc. representative.
The WI-MOD-E has a standard RJ45 Ethernet connection which will operate at up to 100Mbit/sec.
The module will transmit the Ethernet messages on the wireless band at rates between 1 and 11
Mbit/sec.
1.1
Network Topology
The WI-MOD-E is an Ethernet device, and must be configured as part of an Ethernet network. Each
WI-MOD-E must be configured as:
an “Access Point” or a “Client”, and
a “Bridge” or a “Router”.
You can also connect to the WI-MOD-E via a RS232 or RS485 serial port using serial server or PPP
(point-to-point) protocol. PPP allows the WI-MOD-E to connect serial communications into the
Ethernet network.
