— ESC 211 | Complete Industrial Robot Safety Controller
Complete Safety,
Direct Compliance with ISO 10218-1
ESC 211 is a safety robot controller built for robot manufacturers, so you don't have to develop the safety logic yourself — letting your robots quickly meet the safety function requirements of ISO 10218-1:2025.
SIL 3, HFT = 1 / PL e, Cat. 3 ISO 10218-1:2025 / -2:2025 TÜV Rheinland Certification In Progress
Engineering samples available now · Functional safety certification coming soon
— Who It's For
No Need to Develop Safety Logic Yourself —
Meet Certification Requirements Directly
ESC 211 is a complete solution designed for robot manufacturers who want to build robots without developing their own safety controller.
Small / Startup Robot Makers Without a Functional Safety Team
Deploy a validated, certified safety solution directly — no need to build a functional safety development team from scratch.
Established Robot Brands Expanding Their Lineup
Launch new models that meet ISO 10218-1:2025 quickly, without re-investing in safety application development for every model.
Robot Manufacturers Supporting Collaborative Applications
Under the new standard, collaboration is an application-level capability — once claimed, it triggers a cascade of safety function requirements. You don't need to scope and validate this from scratch.
— Why ESC211
2025 Changed the Rules of Robot Safety
In February 2025, ISO 10218-1 underwent its first major revision since 2011 — the most significant regulatory shift in robot safety in 14 years. Three changes matter most for robot manufacturers:
01
Safety Function Requirements: From Implied to Explicitly Listed
The old standard was vague about safety function requirements, leaving manufacturers to interpret and justify them on their own. The new standard explicitly lists every safety function in Annex C, marking each as Mandatory (required) or Conditional (required depending on the application).
02
Collaborative Safety Requirements Are Now Part of the Main Standard — and "Collaborative Robot" No Longer Exists
Collaborative robot safety requirements used to live in a separate standard (ISO/TS 15066:2016). They're now integrated directly into the ISO 10218 series. The new standard also drops the term "collaborative robot" — only "collaborative application" remains. Every robotic arm is an industrial robot; the only distinction is whether it additionally supports a collaborative application.
03
One Declaration Can Trigger a Cascade of Requirements
Annex C explicitly marks each safety function's Mandatory/Conditional status, and Conditional items are often interlinked — claiming support for one capability can mean committing to a whole chain of dependent requirements.
A key terminology shift: ISO 10218-1:2025 clause 3.1.1.6 defines a "collaborative application" as "an application that contains one or more collaborative tasks." The standard no longer uses the terms "collaborative operation" or "collaborative robot" — only the application can be developed, verified, and certified as collaborative.
| Clause |
Mandatory / Conditional |
Safety Function |
Key Point |
| 5.5.3.1 |
Mandatory |
reduced-speed |
Not explicitly required as a safety function under the old ISO 10218-1:2011 — now an explicit Mandatory item in the new standard |
| 5.10.4 |
Conditional |
power and force limiting (PFL) |
Not every robot has to provide it, but once a robot claims to support PFL-based collaborative application, it also triggers Conditional requirements for monitored-speed (5.5.3.2), software-based limiting (5.7.4), and monitored-standstill (5.5.5) |
ESC 211 has already developed and validated these safety functions item by item, per the Mandatory/Conditional requirements in Annex C — so you don't have to build this checklist from scratch, or prove that every function is implemented correctly.
— Built-in Safety Functions
We've Already Validated This Safety Logic For You
ESC 211 comes with 20 built-in safety functions, developed per ISO 10218-1:2025 and ISO 10218-2:2025. A few representative functions are listed below — see the full list in the specifications table.
SF1 · ES
Emergency Stop
Immediately halts all hazardous robot motion when triggered.
SF2 · PS
Protective Stop
Safely stops hazardous motion, for example when a safety door opens.
SF3 · ED
Enabling Device
Three-position enabling control that ensures safe operation in manual mode.
SF4 · OM
Operation Mode
Manages safe switching between manual, automatic, and other operating modes.
SF6 · CB
Collaborative Function
Safety monitoring logic for collaborative application states.
SF17 · PFL
Power and Force Limiting
Limits robot output power and force to reduce contact risk.
SF18 · SSM
Speed and Separation Monitoring
Dynamically adjusts safe speed based on the distance between personnel and the robot.
SF20 · SHOM
Safe Home
Confirms the robot has returned to a predefined safe posture.
— How It Integrates
From Hardware to Safety Application — All in One
ESC 211 has a fully built-in Robot Safety Application Software (RSAP) — the hardware and low-level mechanisms are the same as, and validated the same way as, ESC 210's. It integrates into your robot system right out of the box, with no need for further development or validation.
System Integration Example
In a typical industrial robot system, ESC 211 acts as an EtherCAT Slave and FSoE Master, tying together the safety servo drive, safety digital I/O, teach pendant, and emergency stop switch to manage the entire safety loop.
— How to Use It
Set Parameters with the Safety Configuration Tool — No Coding Required
Safety Configuration Tool (Safety CT) is a browser-based safety-parameter configuration tool that communicates with the controller via EtherCAT (SDO, CoE). No coding required — just set safety parameters through the interface to complete deployment.
Parameterize safety functionsISO 10218-1:2025 §5.3.5
Software-based manual parameterizationISO 13849-1:2023 §6.3
Browser-based interfaceNo installation — configured over an EtherCAT connection
Operating Flow
1
Select the EtherCAT NIC
Choose the network interface card (NIC) the EtherCAT master will use, on the Settings page.
2
Create a Project
Create a new project from the main page to start the setup process.
3
Import the ENI File and Verify Safety Device Topology
Import the ENI file on the Topology page and confirm devices are correctly identified as safety devices.
4
Verify FSoE Connection Status
On the Connection page, confirm the FSoE device connection topology and check that Assign Status shows Assigned.
5
Edit Safety Parameters
Configure safety function parameters on the Parameter page according to your application.
6
Write to the Safety Controller
Click Write to send the configured parameters to ESC 211.
Custom Frontend, Certified Backend
Safety CT is split into a frontend and a backend: the backend is validated and handles communication with ESC 211 and the safety-parameter logic; the frontend can be your own branded interface — use NexCOBOT's ready-made UI, or build your own custom look, so your customers only ever see your brand, with no sign that the safety controller underneath is a NexCOBOT product.
Frontend: build your own or use NexCOBOT's interface | Backend: provided and validated by NexCOBOT
— How to Choose
ESC 210 or ESC 211?
Both share the same validated safety foundation — the difference is how much development flexibility you want.
| |
ESC 210 |
ESC 211 |
| Development Approach |
Develop your own safety application logic |
Complete safety application software built in |
| Best For |
Engineering teams that want custom safety logic |
Robot manufacturers that want to meet the standard directly |
| Time to Deploy |
Requires your own development and validation time |
Deploy right out of the box, shortening integration time |
| Standards Compliance |
Depends on the application you develop |
Maps directly to ISO 10218-1:2025 / -2:2025 |
| Safety Level |
SIL 3, HFT = 1 |
SIL 3, shares the same hardware foundation |
