For a year now, certification of Profinet devices in accordance with Conformance Class A has been available. Numerous devices have now passed the tests and been certified. The Profinet test experts of the Technical Committee 1 "Test and Certification" have in the meantime continued with their intensive work and have fulfilled requirements for the certification of devices in accordance with Conformance Class B by drawing up a test specification and test cases.

PI has classified the scope of functions of Profinet IO into conformance classes, since not all of the functions are required for each individual automation system. This facilitates the use of Profinet IO. The conformance classes enable systems operators to select the field devices and bus components they require according to respectively defined features and available services. This is an important step towards ensuring interoperability for all the field devices involved in the communication process.