Bits & Bytes

July 24, 2007
Who’s aligning with whom? Who’s buying? Who’s being bought?

The EtherCat Technology Group (ETG) established its first North American office in the greater Austin, Texas, area. Claiming more than 500 member companies worldwide, the ETG promotes real-time, deterministic Ethernet performance.

Schneider Electric became one of ODVA’s principal members, alongside Cisco Systems, Eaton Electrical, Omron, and Rockwell Automation. The increased support reflects Schneider’s plans to deploy EtherNet/IP as a part of its network strategy.

The HART Communication Foundation (HCF) announced in April that it completed draft specifications for WirelessHART communication and released the spec to member companies for review and subsequent approval.

MTL Instruments Group has acquired Elpro International. The acquisition consists of Elpro International, the Australian-based holding company; Elpro Technologies Pty Ltd, the Australian-based operating company; and Elpro Technologies LLC, the U.S.-based operating entity.

Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has absorbed the Wibree Forum, the group specifying Nokia ultra low power wireless technology, into the Bluetooth SIG.