Systems and Methods for Provisioning Devices Operating in Industrial Automation Environments

A method of provisioning devices configured to communicate using industrial communication protocols and equipped with general-purpose busses to interconnect device components, the method comprising:

• communicatively coupling a main electronic board of a device to an external memory via a general-purpose bus;
• transferring configuration data associated with an industrial automation function of the device via the general-purpose bus;
• subsequently to transferring the configuration data, disconnecting the external memory and communicatively coupling the main electronic board to a peripheral board;
• wherein the device performs the industrial automation function in accordance with the received configuration data.

A system for provisioning devices that operate in industrial automation environment, the system comprising:

• a main electronic board including:
• a processing unit,
• a memory,
• an industrial communication interface to communicate with external devices via an industrial communication protocol, and
• a general-purpose bus;
• the system further comprising:
• an external memory device configured to communicate with the main electronic board when connected thereto via the general-purpose bus;
• and
• a peripheral board connectable to the main electronic board via the general-purpose bus and configured to perform a sensing or control function in the industrial automation environment;
• wherein the system is configured to:
• when the main electronic board is coupled to the external memory via the general-purpose bus, transfer configuration data related to the sensing or control function from the external memory device to the main electronic board, wherein at least one of the main electronic board or the peripheral board utilizes the configuration data during operation.