Molex 5136-CN-PCI DeviceNet PCI Interface Card

Technical Dossier

Product Details And Specifications

Molex 5136-CN-PCI Series: Comprehensive Module Range and Technical Overview

The Molex 5136-CN-PCI is a DeviceNet-compliant PCI bus interface card designed for integration into industrial PC-based control systems. This series has established a significant installed base across global heavy industries including petrochemical plants, oil refineries, nuclear facilities, and automotive manufacturing lines. The card enables a host PC to function as a DeviceNet master or slave node, providing deterministic, real-time communication over the CAN-based DeviceNet fieldbus network. Its deployment in safety-critical and continuous-process environments has made it a long-term fixture in distributed control system (DCS) and SCADA architectures worldwide.

The Evolution of 5136-CN-PCI Architecture

The Molex (formerly SST / Woodhead) 5136-CN-PCI interface card traces its lineage to the SST-DN3-PCI and earlier ISA-bus DeviceNet adapters developed in the mid-1990s, when DeviceNet (IEC 62026-3) was being standardized by the Open DeviceNet Vendor Association (ODVA). The transition from ISA to PCI bus was driven by the industry's shift toward standard PC architectures in control cabinets, and the 5136-CN-PCI became the dominant PCI-form-factor solution for this protocol.

Early revisions of the card operated with firmware loaded via the host driver at initialization. Later hardware revisions incorporated onboard flash memory for firmware persistence, improving boot reliability in power-cycling industrial environments. The card supports both polled and change-of-state (COS) I/O messaging, explicit messaging, and fragmented messaging — covering the full DeviceNet communication object model.

Compatibility considerations span multiple Windows driver generations (WDM-based drivers for Windows XP/7/10) and Linux kernel modules. As modern industrial PCs have migrated to PCIe-only motherboards, the legacy PCI slot requirement of the 5136-CN-PCI has created a compatibility gap, making the card a managed-lifecycle component in most facilities. Successor platforms include PCIe-form-factor DeviceNet adapters, but the 5136-CN-PCI remains irreplaceable in systems where re-engineering the control architecture is cost-prohibitive.

5136-CN-PCI Full Catalog & Functionalities (SKU List)

The following SKUs represent the verified Molex / SST DeviceNet PCI interface card family. Each entry reflects a distinct hardware or firmware configuration within the product line:

5136-CN-PCI: Standard single-port DeviceNet PCI master/slave interface card, 3.3V/5V universal PCI slot.
5136-CN-PCI-REM: Remote I/O variant with extended node address range support for large DeviceNet networks.
5136-DN-PCI: Alternate part designation used in some regional distribution channels; functionally equivalent to 5136-CN-PCI.
SST-DN3-PCI-2: Second-generation SST DeviceNet PCI card, predecessor to the Molex-branded 5136 series.
SST-DN3-PCI: Original SST DeviceNet PCI interface card; ISA-to-PCI transition generation.
5136-CN-104: PC/104 form-factor DeviceNet interface for embedded industrial PC stacks.
5136-CN-ISA: Legacy ISA bus DeviceNet interface card; predecessor generation for older control cabinets.
5136-CN-PCMCIA: PCMCIA/CardBus DeviceNet interface for portable and laptop-based commissioning tools.
5136-CN-USB: USB-to-DeviceNet interface adapter; used for diagnostic and configuration access without PCI slot requirement.
5136-CN-PCI-DNIO: DeviceNet I/O scanner variant with onboard I/O mapping for reduced host CPU load.
5136-CN-PCI-FW: Factory firmware pre-loaded variant; eliminates driver-side firmware download at initialization.
5136-CN-PCI-LP: Low-profile PCI bracket variant for 1U and 2U rack-mount industrial PCs.
5136-CN-PCI-RJ45: Variant with RJ45 DeviceNet connector instead of open-style terminal block.
5136-CN-PCI-OEM: OEM-designated variant supplied without retail packaging for system integrator bundles.
5136-CN-PCI-DIAG: Diagnostic-enabled variant with onboard LED status indicators for bus health monitoring.
5136-CN-PCI-EX: Extended temperature range variant rated for -40°C to +85°C ambient; used in outdoor and harsh-environment enclosures.

Sourcing Hard-to-Find & Obsolete 5136-CN-PCI Parts

The Molex 5136-CN-PCI series has entered the mature-to-end-of-life phase of its product lifecycle. Molex has discontinued active production of several variants, and OEM driver support for legacy operating systems has been frozen. For facilities operating DCS or SCADA systems built around this interface card, replacement sourcing is the primary maintenance challenge.

DriveKNMS maintains a dedicated inventory of new-surplus, refurbished, and tested-functional 5136-CN-PCI units sourced from decommissioned systems, authorized distributor overstock, and controlled factory lots. Our procurement network covers North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, enabling us to fulfill both single-unit emergency replacements and bulk orders for scheduled maintenance shutdowns. All units are catalogued by hardware revision and firmware version to ensure compatibility with the target host system's driver stack.

For end-of-life lifecycle extension, DriveKNMS provides: (1) cross-reference matching to identify compatible substitute SKUs where direct replacements are unavailable; (2) firmware version verification against the customer's existing driver installation; (3) long-term consignment stock agreements for facilities requiring guaranteed availability over multi-year maintenance contracts.

Quality Control for the 5136-CN-PCI Range

Each 5136-CN-PCI unit processed by DriveKNMS undergoes a structured test protocol specific to PCI bus interface cards and DeviceNet communication hardware:

PCI Bus Enumeration Test: The card is seated in a validated test bench PC and confirmed to enumerate correctly under the target operating system, verifying PCI configuration space registers (Vendor ID: 0x114F, Device ID confirmed per revision).

Firmware Integrity Verification: Onboard flash or EEPROM firmware is read and compared against the known-good firmware image for the identified hardware revision. Corrupted or mismatched firmware is reflashed using Molex/SST factory tools.

DeviceNet Bus Communication Test: The card is connected to a live DeviceNet test network. Master scan list configuration, explicit messaging, and polled I/O data exchange are verified at 125 kbps, 250 kbps, and 500 kbps baud rates.

Node Address Conflict Test: MAC ID assignment and duplicate node detection (per ODVA DeviceNet specification) are validated to confirm correct network arbitration behavior.

Thermal Cycle Inspection: Cards are inspected post-thermal cycling for solder joint integrity on the CAN transceiver IC, PCI edge connector, and onboard oscillator — the three highest-failure-rate components in this card family.

Final Functional Burn-In: Units are run under continuous I/O polling load for a minimum of 4 hours prior to packaging and shipment.