Integration of the Future FDI Device Packages into FDT Based Systems

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DÜPERTHAL Sicherheitstechnik GmbH & Co. KG

TURCK GmbH

Italvacuum, Srl

The current Version 1.2.1 of the FDT specification uses COM and ActiveX as its basis technologies. FDT 2.0 replaces these technologies with .Net. Figure 2 shows the system architecture of FDT 2.0. An important difference compared to FDT 1.2.1 is that communication between the components always takes place via the FDT Frame Application.

This means that direct communication between the DTM User Interface and DTM Business Logic and between different DTMs as with FDT 1.2.1 is no longer possible. This simplifies the architecture and reduces the complexity of the systems. This simplification also improves openness and scalability. Communication and Gateway DTMs can still be combined as required in order to set up heterogeneous communication systems with any number of protocols. With coupling taking place via the Frame Application, it is now also possible to implement distributed systems easily.

The FDI and FDT architectures reflect the different requirements in the areas where they are used and they are thus both perfectly valid. However, from the point of view of users and device manufacturers, system architecture plays a subordinate role. The main focus is on open and standardized integration of devices. The “silver bullet” that the manufacturers of distributed control systems and field devices have now agreed upon not only allows integration using the OPC-UA-based FDI architecture but also supports the much more simple and universal architecture of FDT.

It shall therefore also be possible to integrate FDI Device Packages into FDT Systems based on FDT 2.0 without difficulty (Figure 3). The solution for achieving this is provided by a special FDI Interpreter DTM (iDTM). As for every Device DTM, this consists of a DTM Business Logic and a DTM User Interface. The Business Logic of the iDTM FDI contains the future, standardized EDD-Interpreter and is thus the equivalent of the Server Engine in an FDI System. In order to execute the User Interface Descriptions and User Interface Plug-ins, the UID Interpreter and a UIP Host are integrated in the DTM User Interface of the iDTM FDI.

The question remains of how to ensure compatibility with existing DTMs and EDDs. Interoperability between FDT 1.2.x DTMs and FDT 2.0 DTMs is initially defined and made technically possible by the FDT 2.0 specification. Every FDT Frame Application complying with FDT 2.0 must ensure backwards compatibility. This means that both FDT 2.0 DTMs and FDT 1.2.x DTMs are supported.

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