Inclusive Terminology | Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation remains committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion and to changing – for the better. Inclusive language, the words that we use with our customers, our partners, our employees, and our communities, is part of that effort.

In August 2020, Rockwell Automation launched the Adopting Inclusive Terminology initiative. The goal of this initiative is to identify, review, and replace non-inclusive terminology. We define non-inclusive terms as terms that are profane or derogatory; terms that contain unconscious bias in relation to race, ethnicity, age, gender, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, health or abilities, socioeconomic status, or political views; and terms that evoke violent metaphors.

The list includes replacements for non-inclusive terms that we have identified to date. This list is not final. We continue to work with subject matter experts (SMEs), industry peers, and standards organizations to continue identifying suitable replacements.

If you have any questions about the terms on the list or have come across a different non-inclusive term in our software, web or printed content, please email our Inclusive Terminology Review Board at RATerminology@ra.rockwell.com.

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Domain	Instead of	Use
Componentization	master	main
Componentization	slave	secondary
Cybersecurity	blacklist (to) blacklist blacklisted	deny list (to) deny denied/disallowed
	graylist (to) graylist graylisted	track list or inspect list (to) track or (to) inspect tracked or inspected
	whitelist (to) whitelist whitelisted	allow list (to) allow allowed
	black hat hacker	malicious actor
	gray hat hacker	hacker
	white hat hacker	computer security expert/specialist, cybersecurity expert, or ethical hacker
	Chinese Wall	firewall
Engineering	product infant mortality	early life anomaly
Finance	cannibalized revenue	migration revenue
General use	(to) blackball	(to) reject
	(to) blackmail blackmail	(to) extort extortion
	black market	illegal market
	groom grooming	backlog refinement story refinement knowledge transfer skill transfer
	native	in technical language, replace with an appropriate term in context
	refugee	displaced person
	senior moment	memory lapse or absentmindedness
	tribal knowledge	undocumented knowledge, ingrained knowledge, institutional knowledge, organizational knowledge, historical knowledge, group knowledge, tacit knowledge, experiential knowledge
	tribe	team or squad
	whitewash	avoid using metaphorically
Hardware	male connector	plug (preferred), convex, pin, or prong
	female connector	socket (preferred), concave, receptacle, or slot
	kill switch	power disconnect switch
	mating connector	pairing connector
	midget fuse	13 x 38 mm fuse
	molested/unmolested	modified/unmodified
	penetration test	ingress test
Legal	grandfather clause	legacy clause, exempt, or exempted
Motion Control, Integrated	master high-level controller (HLC)	server high-level controller (HLC)
	slave high-level controller (HLC)	client high-level controller (HLC)
	master board	motor controller
	slave board	driver board
Motion	master^*	leader
	master board	main board
	master card	primary card
	slave board	secondary board
	slave card	secondary card
	slave*	follower
Software/programming	(to) abort	cancel (preferred) or close (app, program, connection)
	(to) cripple crippled	degrade/limit performance degraded/limited performance
	dummy value	placeholder value
	(to) hang	stop responding, stop working, become unresponsive, stop
	(to) kill	cancel (preferred), close (app, program, connection), stop, or end (avoid, except with ‘session’ or ‘call’)
	master branch	main branch
	orphan (to) orphan)	abandoned (to) abandon
	sanity test sanity check	test, validation, or verification (as appropriate)
	(to) segregate segregation	separate, partition, assign, isolate, or categorize (verb) assignment, isolation, or partitioning (noun)
	STONITH	isolate failed mode
	(to) terminate	close (app, program, connection, or client), exit or end (avoid, except with ‘session’ or ‘call’)
Redundancy	master	primary
Redundancy	slave	secondary
Replication (data)	master	source
Replication (data)	slave	replica
Time hierarchy/synchronization	master	timeTransmitter
	slave	timeReceiver
	grandmaster	grandmaster

Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI)

New signal names:

Serial Data Out (SDO)
Serial Data In (SDI)
Serial Data In/Out (SDIO)
Chip Select (CS)

Deprecated signal names:

Master Out Slave In (MOSI)
Master In Slave Out (MISO)
Master Out Master In (MOMI)
Slave Out Slave In (SOSI)
Slave Select (SS)

Unchanged signal name:

Serial Clock (SCK)

* The terms ‘master’ and ‘slave’ are two of the most challenging terms that we are currently working on. Guidance in the Motion context has been approved. However, the guidance for replacing these terms is still being developed in these contexts: Time hierarchy and synchronization, and Communications hierarchy and control.

Important: The word ‘master’ is completely acceptable when it is used in some meanings, such as proficiency or excellence. For example, we are not replacing terms master class, Master of Arts, master performer, master of ceremonies, and similar others.

This list is not final. We continue to work with subject matter experts (SMEs), industry peers, and standards organizations to continue identifying suitable replacements.