Data Acquisition and Distribution

In any modern and efficient industrial plant, it has now become a competitive necessity to ensure that both instantaneous (real-time) and historical (logged) data relating to one or more processes is presented in a variety of forms to plant operators, supervisors and management departments. To achieve this effectively is a matter of defining and implementing a hierarchical structure of data flow, where the primary measurements and states from sensors and actuators act as the data source, and where the data passes through intermediate tiers of real-time display and data storage, up to the high level destination of inventory control and management data analysis.


	Visualisation and reporting based on historical data. Execution of batch production processes. [Min-hours] - Large amount of data.
	Standard interface based on OLE2 Automation.
	Visualisation of the process using on-line data. Up to the minute equipment status. [ms-s] - Small and large size of data
	VIGO and Visual VIGO components are used to optimise the bandwidth on the P-NET Fieldbus and use of the functions available in the controllers on the network. [ms] - small size of data

Sensor to I/O Module

Industrial sensors and actuators produce and require a wide variety of signal types ranging from the complex analogue type needing signal conversion and linearisation, to the simpler digital device requiring controlled timings and monitoring facilities. PROCES-DATA provides a wide range of intelligent I/O module typesto deal with all such signal types and requirements. Being remotely configurable, means that measurement data required by other devices on a network will have already been processed into engineering units. This significantly reduces the amount of programming required when designing a control system.

Data Acquisition using a PC

Visual VIGO provides a number of graphical SCADA type components to display and control system variables. The Data Acquisition (local) component provides the ability to log data from a specific measurement source such as an I/O module channel, and store this on the hard disc of a PC. Such a data buffer can then be utilised by other components for plotting curves and displaying tables.

Data Acquisition using a DPI

Another way to collect data from many variables is to use a dedicated Distributed Process Intelligence (DPI) module, incorporating up to 100 DataCollect channels. The main benefit of using this method is that a PC does not need to be connected and switched on at all times, as is the case when using the Data Acquisition (local) component. Here the Visual VIGO Remote Data Acquisition component is used to define and configure a particular DataCollect channel in terms of specifying the measurement source from anywhere in the network, independently defining the sample rate and setting logging parameters. Thereafter the DPI will store all such data until a PC is used to offload logged data and store this on the PC hard disc.

The PROCES-DATA Data Buffer

Both the above methods use the PROCES-DATA Data-Buffer Engine (PDDE) to store logged data on the PC hard disc. Unlike standard database formats, stored logged data derived using this method cannot be edited or fraudulently manipulated.

Display of Data with Visual VIGO

Visual VIGO provides a number of components to display both real time and historical logged data. A group of Data Acquisition (DAQ) components include the means to display data in a time based scrollable chart form incorporating as many colour-coded curves that match one of two scalable axis. Alternatively, stored data can be displayed textually as a scrollable tabular grid. Both forms use the data stored on the local or a remote PC, whether the data has been collected directly or via a Data Collection enabled DPI. This means that a number of PCs can simultaneously display data from one common source.

Importing Collected Data to OLE Clients

It is sometimes necessary to convert and transfer logged data into a form used by popular database applications such as Excel, Access or SQL. Since such applications are OLE2 Automation clients and VIGO is an OLE Server, means that data can be exported from the PD Data Buffer into these databases without affecting the integrity of the original stored data.

Exporting Collected Data to SQL/ERP

The fact that VIGO supports interfaces for dial in/out modems, Ethernet for LANS and WANS, and the Internet via TCP/IP, means that collected plant data can be immediately exported to local or remote third party MIS (Management Information Systems) or ERP inventory control and batch process scheduling systems.