Saturday, January 12, 2008
The OPC Foundation has announced support for Analyzer Devices Integration into the OPC Unified Architecture. The OPC Foundation has created a working group composed of end-users: Pfizer, GSK, Abbott and vendors: ABB, Mettler-Toledo, Umetrics representing both Process Analytical Technology (PAT) and laboratory industries to develop the information model for all analyzer devices facilitating plug-and-play multivendor interoperability. The Analyzer Device Integration Working Group will develop a common method for data exchange and an analyzer data model for process and laboratory analyzers. The model will be developed as a logical extension of the OPC UA specifications. Analyzer integration based on standards will offer unique opportunity in Data Management & Integration for solutions such as Process Analytical Technology (PAT).
"The OPC Unified Architecture through its pluggable information model provides the solid infrastructure for the configuration, diagnostic, and operation information of the wide variety of analyzer devices." according to Jeff Harding, ABB. "This is a logical extension of the information model development for the industrial Ethernet field devices (EDDL/FDT/FDI), allowing all the vendors who are building analyzer devices to capitalize and focus on building the functionality of the analyzer devices without being burdened with the complex details of developing configuration / diagnostic software applications;" adds Harding.
"In the same way that field device standards have driven the widespread adoption of intelligent field devices in the process industries, this working group will develop the companion specification to facilitate integration of high level analyzers in manufacturing processes." according to Thomas Buijs, ABB. "The OPC Unified Architecture Analyzer Device Specification will provide a single model for analyzer vendors to create and distribute device drivers that expose the capabilities of process and laboratory analyzers using the universally accepted, platform-neutral OPC UA standard;" adds Buijs.
"Standard interfaces drive down the validation costs for project implementation in the pharmaceutical industry, OPC has clearly demonstrated its ability to facilitate interoperability for industrial field devices, such as PLCs, and by modeling the information of the analyzer devices our industry will be able to integrate analyzer devices into the external systems of today and tomorrow.", according to Phil Litherland of GlaxoSmithKline.
The OPC Unified Architecture is a complete architecture and the OPC Foundation is providing the specifications and technology that embodies the OPC Foundation's vision of providing secure, reliable interoperability for discovering, and providing data and information acquisition services. OPC Unified Architecture is designed to facilitate building complex systems that are composed of products from multiple vendors and providing the infrastructure for integration to solve both simple and complex information integration opportunities.
"The OPC Foundations Unified Architecture is a technology that expands the existing OPC successfully adopted technology to facilitate integration of complex devices seamlessly into a total interoperable solution. Analyzer devices will be able to be plugged in as part of the standard infrastructure allowing generic applications from multiple vendors to be able to configure diagnose and acquire runtime information." according to Tom Burke, OPC Foundation President and Executive Director. "OPC recognizes the opportunity to provide the technology that Analyzer device manufacturers can leverage to comprehensively describe their devices, and to take advantage of the best-of-breed existing applications suites to really show off the functionality of the analyzer devices."
OPC Unified Architecture provides a base foundation of services for discovery, read/write and subscription for information that is described by industry standards organizations focused on information modeling. The OPC Unified Architecture Analyzer Device Specification will leverage the information model architecture of OPC UA facilitating complete data access and exchange services with secure transactional capability via the SOA for configuration data, diagnostic data, and runtime operational data for all analyzer devices.
About The OPC Foundation The OPC Foundation, dedicated to interoperability in automation and enterprise computing, is an independent, non-profit organization that comprises leading manufacturers and solution providers in factory and process automation as well as enterprise solutions. The OPC Foundation's charter is to develop worldwide industry-standards for data transfer offering multi-vendor interoperability and seamless connectivity of measurement and automation devices, systems, networks, and enterprise computing solutions used in the manufacturing and process industries, by leveraging open computing technologies. Board members and Officers are unpaid volunteers. Development of specifications is undertaken by volunteers from 500+ members worldwide. For more information about the OPC Foundation visit www.opcfoundation.org.
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The OPC Foundation is dedicated to ensuring interoperability in automation by creating and maintaining open specifications that standardize the communication of acquired process data, alarm and event records, historical data, and batch data to multi-vendor enterprise systems and between production devices. Production devices include sensors, instruments, PLCs, RTUs, DCSs, HMIs, historians, trending subsystems, alarm subsystems, and more as used in the process industry, manufacturing, and in acquiring and transporting oil, gas, and minerals.
The OPC Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors elected by the membership. The Board, in turn, appoints the Foundation's Officers and the OPC Chief Architect. A Marketing Committee and A Technical Steering Committee have been established, as have various working groups.