Product category:
Fieldbus systems, Fibre-optic systems
News Release from: Fieldbus Foundation | Subject: Version 6.0
Edited by the Processingtalk Editorial
Team on 15 February 2006
FF releases updated specifications
The new specification defines features that enhance fieldbus functionality and provide additional incentives for automation equipment suppliers to get on the 'Fast Track to Fieldbus'
The Fieldbus Foundation has announced that an updated version of its Foundation fieldbus specifications is now available The new specification defines features that enhance fieldbus functionality and provide additional incentives for automation equipment suppliers to get on the 'Fast Track to Fieldbus'
This article was originally published on Processingtalk on 18 Nov 2003 at 8.00am (UK)
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The Fieldbus Foundation specifications define the open, non-proprietary Foundation fieldbus protocol.
The technology provides an all-digital, two-way, multi-drop communications link among smart field devices and automation systems.
It serves as the Local Area Network (LAN) for instruments used in process automation, and has a built-in capability to distribute the control application across the network.
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According to Stephen Mitschke, Fieldbus Foundation product manager-fieldbus products, the updated specifications are an essential tool for controls and instrumentation manufacturers wanting to take advantage of the rising demand for fieldbus-based control solutions around the world.
'Foundation fieldbus is recognised as an industry-standard for plant automation applications, and leading suppliers are responding to the end user market by offering a wide range of compliant products and support services,' said Mitschke: 'Now is the time for companies to become involved with fieldbus product development and start realising the business benefits offered by the technology'.
Specification 6.0 includes powerful new features standardised in Device Description Language (DDL) technology.
Implemented in millions of installed instruments around the world, DDL is a text-based language describing the digital communication characteristics of intelligent devices and equipment parameters in an Operating System (OS) and User Interface (UI)-neutral environment.
DDL enables a host system manufacturer to create a single engineering environment capable of supporting any device, from any supplier, using any communications protocol, without the need for custom software drivers for each device type.
The updated DDL specification extends the concept of interoperability to the HMI and diagnostic data level with improved visualisation and graphical features.
New features focus on device data organisation, graphical visualisation consistency, and support for persistent data storage.
These enhancements are backward and forward compatible due to the nature of the IEC 61804-2 standard.
Fieldbus Foundation members purchasing or renewing a specification maintenance agreement will automatically receive a complete copy of the Foundation fieldbus H1 and HSE Specification 6.0, including all updates to these specifications.
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