ABB's System 800xA to use OPC UA standard

ControlGlobal.com
06/29/2006

ABB has announced that the recently released OPC UA (Unified Architecture) standard helps third-party components, devices and systems quickly and easily integrate with System 800xA Extended Automation. OPC UA works with System 800xA's unique object management infrastructure when integrating these third-party systems to provide customers reliability, security, and ease of integration. 

"The OPC UA standard works with System 800xA's object management infrastructure to facilitate simpler and more secure integration with third-party systems and devices for our automation customers. This will help them achieve even greater visibility into and control of their manufacturing enterprise by making it easier to broaden and deepen their system reach," said Jeff Harding, Chief Software Architect, Process Automation, ABB Inc. "In addition to this improved visibility and information access, OPC UA helps increase the reliability and security of third-party systems through the standardization of state-of-the-art technology."  

OPC UA is an expansion of the basic OPC communication protocol; it enables data acquisition and information modeling/communication between the plant floor systems and enterprise systems. The Unified Architecture is designed specifically to allow object and information models defined by others (vendors, end-users, other standards ...) to be exposed without alteration by OPC UA Servers. OPC UA works with System 800xA's object-based architecture to provide deep integration with disparate plant systems and other third-party devices and components via a standard interface, eliminating the need for additional configuration. It essentially automates third-party integration with System 800xA. The standard interface also integrates third-party servers securely and reliabily.

ABB's patented Aspect Object framework is the enabling technology for System 800xA's data access, storage, and management. Aspect Objects relate all plant data, the Aspects, to specific plant assets, the Objects. This eliminates the task of locating information spread between different people, locations, computers, and applications. Aspect Object navigation presents the entire production facility in a consistent, easy-to-view fashion, accessible from a single user interface that is configured to present information and provide interaction in a context appropriate to all user disciplines.

System 800xA extends process control and enterprise visibility beyond essential process control to include production management, safety, smart instrumentation, smart drives and motor control, information management, asset optimization, simulation and documentation.