FANUCAnalog Output Module DA03A, 3 Channel Digital-to-Analog, Series 11 / 15 CNC PLC

Product Description

What this part is

Fanuc A03B-0801-C055, module type DA03A, a three-channel analog output module for the Fanuc Series 11 and Series 15 CNC PLC. It converts digital values written by the PMC/PLC into analog signals that drive external devices: a variable-speed drive’s speed reference, a proportional hydraulic or pneumatic valve, a chart recorder, a servo-valve amplifier, an analog meter. It is a D/A converter card. DA03A is analog output specifically and has no inputs. Analog input on this generation of Fanuc hardware is a separate module type.

Decoding the order code

A03B: Fanuc’s own product scheme for CNC peripheral and I/O hardware. This is a Fanuc number, not a GE Fanuc IC-prefix number; the two catalogues are separate and are frequently confused. Fanuc built these in Japan. 0801: the Fanuc Series 11 / Series 15 CNC PLC I/O module range. C055: the specific module within that range, DA03A. DA03A: the module type name marked on the board, where DA is digital-to-analog (analog output), 03 is three channels and A is the version.

Published specifications

Module type: DA03A. Function: analog output (digital-to-analog conversion), output only. Channels: 3. Platform: Fanuc Series 11 and Series 15 CNC PLC. Internal circuit board carried by this module: A16B-1310-0181. Manufactured in Japan by Fanuc.

What these specs mean in practice

Three channels is the practical planning figure. Each analog reference — a spindle speed reference, a pressure setpoint, a tension reference — consumes one channel, so a machine wanting four analog references needs two of these modules and two slots. Analog output cards are usually the scarcest module type in a legacy Fanuc rack, because a machine tool typically has many digital points and only one or two analog references, so they were bought in small numbers.

The signal form the receiving device expects governs the wiring and the scaling: a drive that wants a 4–20 mA current reference behaves differently from one that wants a 0–10 V or bipolar ±10 V voltage reference. The digital value the ladder writes is scaled to the physical range of the device, and that scaling lives in the PMC program rather than on the card.

Analog references are the part of a machine most sensitive to electrical noise, because a few tens of millivolts of induced noise on a 10 V span is a visible speed wobble.

What is included

Module as pictured. This listing does not include the CNC rack, base unit or backplane; the interface or master module; a power supply; field wiring, connectors or connector kits; a terminal board; the internal A16B-1310-0181 circuit board as a separate spare; the receiving drive, valve or amplifier; PMC programming software or cables; or documentation. This is one module out of a populated rack and cannot function on its own.

Interchange guidance

A03B-0801-C055 is the DA03A three-channel analog output module. Other A03B-0801-Cxxx numbers are different module types and are not equivalents; the 0801 range covers digital inputs, digital outputs, analog inputs and analog outputs on one platform, and only the analog output cards serve this function. The visually similar A03B-0807 range is the later FANUC I/O Unit-MODEL A platform, a different system; its analog output modules are ADA02A (12-bit) and ADA02B (14-bit), and those are not drop-in replacements for a Series 11/15 DA03A. Also searched as A03B0801C055, A03B 0801 C055, DA03A, DA-03A, A16B-1310-0181, Fanuc analog output module, and Fanuc 15 D/A module. Sold as 1 piece.