Configuration Tutorial for A6-EC Series Servo Motors with Beckhoff PLC

First, please refer to the connection steps overview:

1. Install Beckhoff PLC-TwinCAT3 Software

1.1. Installation Notes:

Computer Operating System:

Windows 7 (must have Service Pack1 installed)

Windows 10 Professional / Enterprise (only supports TwinCAT 3.1.4020 or later versions)

(Windows 10 Home / Education editions are not recommended, as they may cause system freezes when switching to Run mode.)

1.2. Network Adapter:

Intel gigabit or higher Ethernet adapter is recommended. Other network adapters may not support TwinCAT3 or exhibit unstable performance.

After installing the software, add the A6-EC series XML device description file (STEPPERONLINE_A6_Servo_V0.04.xml) to the EtherCAT device directory of TwinCAT3 (e.g., C:\TwinCAT\3.1\Config\Io\EtherCAT).

The XML file download link is as follows:

https://www.omc-stepperonline.com/index.php?route=product/product/get_file&file=5072/STEPPERONLINE_A6_Servo_V0.04.xml

2. Create a New Project

Run the TwinCAT3 program and create a new TwinCAT3 project:

After creating a new project, select "TwinCAT Projects" in the pop-up interface, enter the project name, and confirm.

3. Install Network Adapter Driver

After creating a new project, click the [TwinCAT] drop-down menu in the interface, then select "Show RealTime Ethernet Compatible Devices...".

Choose the local network adapter and click Install.

After the installation is complete, the interface will appear as shown in the figure below:

4. Device Discovery

4.1. Click on "Devices";

4.2. Click the magic wand tool to start searching for devices;

4.3. After the pop-up window appears, click "OK";

4.4. Check the previously installed network adapter driver and click "OK";

4.5. In the pop-up window, select "Yes";

4.6. Finally, click "OK".

After the search is completed successfully, the interface will appear as shown in the figure below:

Now you can add an axis, select and add it to discover the drive slave station.

5. Servo Parameter Configuration

You can view and configure servo parameters in the [CoE-Online] interface according to your requirements.

(Note: When the value of object 2013:11h is set to 1, the written SDO data will be stored persistently after power loss.)

6. PDO Configuration

The default PDO selections are groups 0x1701 and 0x1B01. Users can choose to keep these or select other groups according to their needs.

As shown in the figure, open the "Process Data" tab and follow the illustrated steps to select the desired group.

Note:

Groups 0x1600 and 0x1A00 are user-configurable and support adding or removing objects freely.

Other groups have fixed configurations.

When using an EtherCAT-based PLC, if a PDO group containing a torque limit value (e.g., group 1703) is selected initially, and then a group without torque limit (e.g., group 1600) is selected without powering off the servo, the torque limit will be reset to its default value of 0. In this case, the motor will not output torque. To resume operation, either power cycle the servo or restore the original PDO configuration.

7. Configure Runtime Information

Configure the gear ratio and following error in TwinCAT according to the encoder settings compatible with the A6-EC series servo.

(The A6 series is equipped with a standard 17-bit magnetic encoder, so the gear ratio should be set to 131072:60 and the following error to 30.)

As shown in the figure above, open the "Enc" tab to set the gear ratio.

Here, set the following error value to 30.

8. Activate Configuration

Click the "Activate Configuration" button, then select 【OK】 in the pop-up dialog box, as shown in the figure below:

After confirmation, switch to the "Online" interface and check whether the device enters OP state.

Once the device is in OP state, the servo drive panel will display "88rd", indicating that the servo network has successfully established communication with the PLC and is ready for operation.

Below is a simple example to control the servo operation:

• Click on Axis Settings;
• Switch to the "Online" interface;
• Click "Set";
• Select "All" in the pop-up window.
• Use the F1, F2, F3, and F4 keys to perform jog operation of the servo.

The above completes the full tutorial on connecting the A6-EC series to a Beckhoff PLC via EtherCAT. During the operation, please ensure that each step is performed according to the instructions. If you encounter any issues during the configuration process, feel free to contact us for support. In the future, we will release additional tutorials on configuring the full A6 series drives with other brand PLCs, such as Siemens.

Updated on: 22/08/2025