Manufacturing Automation Protocol
Encyclopedia
Manufacturing Automation Protocol was a computer network
standard released in 1982 for interconnection of devices from multiple manufacturers. It was developed by General Motors
to combat the proliferation of incompatible communications standards used by suppliers of automation
products such as programmable controller
s. By 1985 demonstrations of interoperability were carried out and 21 vendors offered MAP products. In 1986 the Boeing
corporation merged its Technical Office Protocol with the MAP standard, and the combined standard was referred to as "MAP/TOP". The standard was revised several times between the first issue in 1982 and MAP 3.0 in 1987, with significant technical changes that made interoperation between different revisions of the standard difficult.
Although promoted and used by manufacturers such as General Motors, Boeing, and others, it lost market share to the contemporary Ethernet
standard and was not widely adopted. Difficulties included changing protocol specifications, the expense of MAP interface links, and the speed penalty of a token-passing network. The token bus network
protocol used by MAP became standardized as IEEE standard 802.4 but this committee disbanded in 2004 due to lack of industry attention.
Computer network
A computer network, often simply referred to as a network, is a collection of hardware components and computers interconnected by communication channels that allow sharing of resources and information....
standard released in 1982 for interconnection of devices from multiple manufacturers. It was developed by General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
to combat the proliferation of incompatible communications standards used by suppliers of automation
Automation
Automation is the use of control systems and information technologies to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods and services. In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization...
products such as programmable controller
Programmable controller
Programmable controller may be:* Programmable logic controller* Programmable automation controller* Programmable Interrupt Controller* Universal remote...
s. By 1985 demonstrations of interoperability were carried out and 21 vendors offered MAP products. In 1986 the Boeing
Boeing
The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
corporation merged its Technical Office Protocol with the MAP standard, and the combined standard was referred to as "MAP/TOP". The standard was revised several times between the first issue in 1982 and MAP 3.0 in 1987, with significant technical changes that made interoperation between different revisions of the standard difficult.
Although promoted and used by manufacturers such as General Motors, Boeing, and others, it lost market share to the contemporary Ethernet
Ethernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
standard and was not widely adopted. Difficulties included changing protocol specifications, the expense of MAP interface links, and the speed penalty of a token-passing network. The token bus network
Token bus network
Token bus is a network implementing the token ring protocol over a "virtual ring" on a coaxial cable. A token is passed around the network nodes and only the node possessing the token may transmit. If a node doesn't have anything to send, the token is passed on to the next node on the virtual ring...
protocol used by MAP became standardized as IEEE standard 802.4 but this committee disbanded in 2004 due to lack of industry attention.