The OPC UA protocol represents a significant advancement in the realm of industrial automation and device communication. This article aims to introduce its features, benefits, and practical applications.
What’s the OPC UA Protocol?
OPC UA, which stands for Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture, denotes a standard designed to manage seamless information flow among heterogeneous devices.
Specifically, the OPC UA protocol has emerged as a key system for ensuring data interoperability in advanced industrial automation, commonly known as Industry 4.0.
By leveraging this protocol, industrial machinery can seamlessly communicate with the management system of manufacturing companies, streamlining the automated organization and management of production processes, and enhancing work efficiency.
The rules and technical specifications embedded in OPC UA facilitate seamless communication between the various components of automated systems, eliminating the need to develop custom codes to handle complex scenarios.
Consequently, devices and applications from different manufacturers can effortlessly exchange data, irrespective of the platform or programming language used.
This streamlines the integration of new devices and the upgrading of existing systems, ultimately reducing costs and enhancing operational efficiency. All this is facilitated through an intuitive and user-friendly human-machine interface, aligned with the principles of Industry 4.0.
Advantages of OPC UA Standard for Automation Systems
The OPC UA standard finds applications across numerous industries, spanning from traditional manufacturing to advanced industrial automation and the medical sector.
As mentioned earlier, its purpose is to ensure interoperability between devices and control systems, providing a standardized communication protocol.
Among the advantages of the OPC UA protocol are:
- Advanced Data Management: OPC UA is equipped with powerful tools for data management. Its functionalities enable real-time publishing, historical storage, and the retention of information related to alarms and past malfunctions.
- Open Standards: OPC UA is built upon open-source standards, allowing easy integration with systems like SCADA and MES (Manufacturing Execution Systems), facilitating a seamless flow of information across different levels of automation.
- Enhanced Security: OPC UA delivers robust security features to safeguard data exchanged between devices. It employs end-to-end encryption, certificate-based authentication, and digital signature mechanisms to ensure data integrity and privacy—particularly critical in industrial automation, where data protection and access control are paramount to thwart security breaches.
- Scalability and Flexibility: OPC UA offers high scalability and can be seamlessly deployed in networks of any size, from small local setups to large, multi-site infrastructures catering to larger enterprises. Furthermore, it is adaptable to various industrial sectors and compatible with a diverse range of devices, including PCs, servers, mobile technologies, and even embedded devices.
The OPC UA protocol also enables efficient production monitoring and analysis, providing companies with not only automation benefits but also valuable, up-to-date insights for decision-making and operation optimization.
In light of these characteristics and benefits, more business has chosen to integrate the OPC UA standard across all its machines.
Applications of the OPC UA Standard in Industrial Machines
The integration of the OPC UA standard in machines is achieved through a plug-and-play system.
This minimizes operator intervention during the initial setup, as detailed hardware knowledge or manual installations are unnecessary.
As mentioned, the protocol enables centralized control and supervision of the production system from a single control point.
Operators within the management system can issue orders to the system, which the machines execute automatically through OPC UA protocols.
This enables the following functionalities:
- Activation of machines involved in various processes, such as conveying, dosing, drying, grinding, and storage.
- Configuration of parameters, including temperature, dew point, flow rate, load, and others.
- Data retrieval on production efficiency for optimized organization.
For example, the Vismec FW 50 is a control system capable of managing up to 48 conveying stations per empty line, with an optional emergency reserve system.
It operates with all components internally connected via the VisiBus protocol and externally linked via the universal OPC UA interface.
Additionally, the FW50 control features a user-friendly display and supports connectivity to the Vismec 4.0 supervisory system.
