remote site security: protecting critical infrastructure & key

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Contents

Remote Site & Equipment Management February/March 2011 3

Volume 11, Issue 1

Editor & Publisher, David Webster

Director of Content, Shannon Given

Associate Editors, Nick DepperschmidtHeather Krier

Manager of Administration & Customer Service, Marsha Grillo

Fulfi llment Services & Circulation Marc Vang, Ross Webster

Director of Sales, Jessi Albers

Advertising, Sales & Marketing Laura Mayo, Jeremy Fleming,

Jennifer Graham, Sue Hannebrink

Production Julie Hammond, Production Manager

Julie Williams, Offi ce Manager

REMOTE SITE & EQUIPMENT MANAGEMENT magazine (ISSN #1535-0347) is a publication of Webcom Communications Corp. Subscrip-tion price for one year (six issues) is free for qualifi ed subscribers, $44 in the US for non-qualifi ed subscribers; $60 in all other countries. Single copies are $20 each. Back issues are available. Payment must be made in US funds in order to process the order. Direct all subscription inquiries, orders and address changes to Fulfi llment Services.

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Editor’s NoteIn any given issue of Remote Magazine

you’ll likely fi nd information on the newest and greatest technology advancements in the fi elds of remote site monitoring and control. The advent of faster and more reliability communications has made advances such as smarter grids, facilities and pipeline infra-structure possible. However, it also leaves managers with massive amounts of data to store and discern.

Now that you’re collecting all of this data, the problem is where do you store it? To help ICP DAS has contributed an article on selecting database technology for better data analysis and control. It provides some useful information on the different types of database

technology currently available. You can fi nd it on page 6.

For 2011 we’re also working on bringing our readers more information on applications in the remote industry. On page 8 we have a piece on how a major European oil pipeline company designed and picked a new SCADA system. Additionally, Paul Merrcier from Phoenix Contact has written an article on how the Rancho Santa Fe Irrigation District and Pendleton Air Force Base leveraged wireless for their new SCADA and telemetry systems. You can fi nd that on page 16.

Also be sure to check out our Remote 2011 Conference information on page 27.

Nick Depperschmidt, Associate [email protected]

4 The Best of Remote | 711 HPW Working on Device to Remotely Monitor Health in the Field

5 The Best of Remote | Survalent Technology Releases MultiSpeak AMR Interface to SCADA

6 Feature | Selecting Database Technology for Real-Time Analysis and Control by Maria Lemone, Technical Sales Engineer, ICP DAS USA, Inc.

8 Feature | Major European Oil Pipeline Company Deploys New SCADA Controllers by Can Kabalak, SPP Engineering, Control Microsystems’ Distributor

10 Feature | SCADA Innovation Begins Now by Samuel Sciacca, CEO, CG Automation Systems USA

12 New Products & Services | Enhanced Process Control Solution From GE Puts Power, Water And Oil & Gas Customers In Control

16 Feature | Wireless Helps Municipal and Military Agencies Hang-Up on Hardwire Circuits by Paul Mercier, Manager of Business Development, Phoenix Contact, Inc.

18 New Products & Services | eDevice Introduces New Network Converter for M2M Applications

21 New Products & Services | Lantronix Launches ManageLinx 3.0 to Extend the Reach of Cloud Computing to Virtually Any Device

22 Feature | Remote Site Security: Protecting Critical Infrastructure & Key Resources by Jason Benedict, Marketing Manager, Iveda Solutions

24 New Products & Services | Longwatch Introduces XLP Low Power Video Surveillance System for Remote Areas

26 New Products & Services | Nextreme’s eTEG HV37 Advances Energy Harvesting for Self-powered Distributed Sensors and Sensor Networks

28 Industry News | Hart Communication Foundation Releases HART 7 Update

30 Calendar of Events | Conferences, Industry Events and Symposiums

31 Advertiser Index | Connect with Remote Magazine’s Advertisers

Editor’s Choice

SCADA

Networking

Onsite Power

Security

Departments

Editor’s Choice

4 www.RemoteMagazine.com

RF Micro Devices Teams with Freescale on ZigBee Solutions for Smart Energy Applications

RF Micro Devices, Inc. has teamed with Freescale Semiconductor to deliver ZigBee solutions for a broad range of smart grid applications. RFMD’s newly introduced RF6535 ZigBee front end module (FEM) has been combined with Freescale’s MC1321x System-in-Package (SiP) to create the RF6535/MC1321x reference design. The RF6535/MC1321x reference design simplifi es RF design requirements, while reducing product cost and complexity.

The reference design is targeted at ZigBee Smart Energy and home area network (HAN) applications that require high RF performance to ensure a robust and reli-able operation in varying environments. Working together, RFMD and Freescale address the need for aggressive size reductions in IEEE 802.15.4 designs with a reduced solution footprint and minimized component count.

RFMD’s highly integrated RF6535 features a 2.4 GHz to 2.5 GHz +22 dBm power amplifi er, Tx harmonic output fi lter, double-pole double-throw (DPDT) diversity switch and a low-noise amplifi er (LNA).The RF6535 is housed in a 3.5 by 3.5 by 0.5 mm package that is three times smaller than other offerings, thus reducing discrete component requirements while mini-mizing footprint and assembly costs. The transceiver interface is a two-port Rx/Tx integrated balun.

RFMD’s portfolio of ZigBee FEMs enables customers to accelerate new ZigBee products to market while reducing component count, size, cost and power consumption. RFMD’s RF6535 single-chip ZigBee FEM is specifi cally optimized for Smart Energy/AMI applications including smart meters, and HAN devices including home energy gateways, in-home displays and appliances.

Freescale’s MC1321x family incorporates a low-power 2.4 GHz radio frequency transceiver and a microcontroller into a single LGA package to meet cost and limited product space budgets while providing added RF system performance. Coupled with RFMD’s RF6535 FEM, the MC1321X fi ts with most ZigBee applications including energy management, building and industrial automation and telecommunication services.

711 HPW Working on Device to Remotely Monitor Soldier’s Health in the Field

Soon pararescue jumpers (PJ) and other medical personnel will be able to remotely determine a warfi ghter’s health status on the battlefi eld with sensors designed to be worn and ingested. The Battlefi eld Automatic Life Status Monitor, or BALSM, is being developed by QinetiQ North America’s Technology Solutions Group in coordination with the Air Force Research Laboratory, 711th Hu-man Performance Wing, Human Effectiveness Directorate. The device provides remote physi-ologic life status monitoring for triage, rescue or recovery, and provides a health status history over time for each person being monitored.

The primary sensor is a wireless pulse oximetry unit that measures the amount of oxygen in the blood, and estimates heart rate and respiration. The other sensor is a wireless capsule that when ingested, measures core body temperature. The information is sent to the PJ or medic through a radio receiver and monitoring software to a computer.

“The key was to make monitoring devices that were small enough, rug-ged enough and able to perform remotely,” said Dr. Dianne Popik, program \manager with the Human Effectiveness Directorate, Warfi ghter Interface Division, Battlespace Acoustics Branch.

“By working closely with the Human Effectiveness Directorate, we were able to tailor the BALSM system to the particular needs of the Battlefi eld Airman,” said Peter Neumann, Senior Scientist with QinetiQ North Amer-ica’s Technology Solutions Group. “This type of physiological monitoring can serve as another tool the Air Force can use to protect the warfi ghter.”

The pulse oximetry sensor is worn against the forehead. The sensor emits both visible and infrared light that refl ects off the skull to obtain the pulse oximetry.

“Normally pulse oximetry is read through the fi nger,” explained Dr. Popik. “We wanted to fi nd a location for the sensor where it would not interfere with someone’s arms or hands. The BALSM pulse oximetry sensor can be worn as a headband or can be integrated into a helmet.”

The pulse oximetry sensor also contains an accelerometer that deter-mines if a person is standing, sitting, lying down or moving.

“The accelerometer gives the PJ or medic some valuable information,” said Dr. Popik. “If a warfi ghter is moving really fast, and their heart rate and respiration are really high, the person is probably running uphill, which makes sense, so the PJ or medic does not have to be concerned that the warf-ighter’s health is in jeopardy, he or she is just on the move. If the warfi ghter has an elevated heart rate and respiration rate and seems to be inactive or prone, this paints a different picture for the PJ or medic and may indicate the warfi ghter is injured.”

The capsule that measures core body temperature is the other part of the remote monitoring system. It is an ingestible, medi-cal-grade, FDA approved sensor that reports a person’s core body temperature shortly after being swallowed.

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Popik explained.“A PJ or medic cannot see if a person has been shot or if they are hypo-

thermic and need immediate help,” said Dr. Popik. “With BALSM they can understand a warfi ghter’s health status right away. Also, a warfi ghter may not be aware that he or she is suffering from a condition such as dehydra-tion, hypothermia or hyperthermia.”

The device is especially advantageous for special operations forces, who may be in an area where they cannot communicate out loud. It can help commanders decide if they have enough healthy troops to continue a mission or if they need to change their plans. BALSM also would assist in determining rescue versus recovery efforts.

Survalent Technology Releases MultiSpeak AMR Interface to SCADA

Survalent Technology has released its MultiSpeak Automatic Meter Read-ing (AMR) interface to SCADA. The SCADA system obtains meter data by interrogat-ing the AMR system using the MultiSpeak protocol. The user can request readings from any meter and display the data on-demand in the WorldView map. Users can also defi ne schedules for the SCADA system to automati-cally interrogate the AMR system for specifi c meter data, which is stored in the SCADA database. This data can be used by other applications such as voltage readings for voltage reduction algorithms.

“The current release supports on-demand and sched-uled reads of all meter data,” said Cornel Munteanu, VP of Software Development. “It also supports the ability to ping a meter, and perform service connect/disconnect from within the WorldView map. Users can turn-on the secondary network layer to display distribution trans-formers and meters, and then click on a specifi c meter to ping, read, connect/disconnect the meter. The user can also click on a distribution transformer or line section to ping all the meters connected to the transformer or the line section. The next release will include the ability to import the transformer database from GIS, and meter database from the AMR system.”

Future enhancements for the system include load control via HAN (home area network) devices, and the ability to send messages to IHD (In-Home Displays). Interoperability between SCADA and AMR has the op-portunity to greatly improve voltage reduction, Volt/Var control and demand response applications.

Opengear Pioneers New Class of Smart Cellular Router with Launch of ACM5004-G

Opengear has debuted the ACM5004-G, a new line of smart cellular routers. ACM5004-G routers go well be-yond previous generations of cellular routers by unifying Opengear’s advanced router, fi rewall, power manage-ment, environmental monitoring and advanced console server functionality.

While previous generations of wireless routers and fi rewalls were limited to managing distributed Ethernet devices, Opengear has created a new category with its smart cellular routers. The Opengear ACM5004-G moni-tors all devices with serial, USB, Ethernet and digital I/O interfaces. Opengear also allows for UPS monitoring and management for PDUs and RPS. Environmental

monitoring includes internal temperature sensors and optional support for attaching sensors for smoke, fi re, vibration, water detection and door contacts. The Opengear ACM5004-G is a secure cellular smart router by offering with RSA certifi cation and FIPS140-2 compliance.

Smart cellular routers are particularly useful for managing new types of distributed smart infrastruc-tures being built to manage gas pipelines, traffi c fl ow and utilities. These deployments require secure, full-proof remote connection and management across all the devices at the remote site.

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SCADA - Feature


Maria Lemone, Technical Sales EngineerICP DAS USA, Inc.

Driven by ever-changing market demands and increasing competition, enterprises such as large-scale manufacturing, sewage treatment and power generation are required to leverage increased process visibility for better and faster decisions, increased productivity and reduced costs for a sustain-able competitive advantage. Enterprises clearly want to determine key factors and criteria that organizations consider important towards managing, measuring and controlling production processes and costs. Process historian database technology, vast protocol connectivity, and intelligent analysis ap-plication are all important to enterprise decision making.

What’s the Best Solution for Your Industry - Relational Database, Historian Database, or Both?

Most enterprises need to store massive amounts of process and com-mercial data, so a question arises about what database to choose, and a relational database and process historian database may need to work together. Learning the differences between these two databases will help you to make your choice.

Limited storage capacity of computers is increasingly becoming a bottleneck of the IT system. There are two main rea-sons, fi rst, the information revolution has led to far more data than in the past. Large database systems are generating a fl ood of new data all the time. Second, with the growth of computer storage capacity, people tend to permanently save all data. Early in the information revolution, se-curities trading systems often only stored recent transaction details. Today, people tend to save everything that can be saved, every transaction, every phone call, each click on the web site and each switch back to communications.

Following this trend, computer storage will bear the increasingly heavy pressure. Especially in enterprise-level applications, the cost of saving mas-sive data is often shocking.

Relational databases are common for most commercial applications. They are widely applied in many industries, such as business management, intelligence testing, decision support and other aspects. They’ve become the basic technologies of realization and optimization of information and appli-cation systems. We cannot exclude relational databases, but we can choose the right database based on environments and conditions.

Compared with the relational database in the industrial enterprise the de-scription of the production data is relatively much simpler, but the point is commonly very large. Real-time and historical data processing are far more than the processing ability of a relational database. A great advantage of the process historian database is simple massive production data and historical data generated.

We have converted data into a process historian database from a relational database that has ever been used for an environmental protec-tion management information system. It was based on a GIS system that accomplished the visualization, mapping, and intelligent monitoring of the data, and comprehensive management of the environmental monitoring data and space map data. The back-end database of the original system was a re-lational database (Oracle). Because relational databases have the bottleneck on data compression of storage and quick data querying, after only three years, the database data claimed 90 percent space of the system hard disk. Querying curves have been as slow as to “query before a meal, and get the

results after the meal.” The entire system became intolerable, and needed to be changed as soon as possible. The database was substituted with process historian database. The compression of the process historian database cut down the storage space 25 percent to 95 percent. The space the database occupied was reduced and the querying was much faster than it was with using the relational database.

How the Process Historian Database Compresses Data – Multiple Compression Algorithm

The changes of industrial production process data in the fi eld often have certain laws of the waveform. There are only a small portion of the tags (variables) that change value frequently. The values of the other tags (variables) change slowly, and users can allow the accuracy of the data loss within a certain range. For process real-time/historical databases, data compression is a very important implementation technology.

CHANGE (0) Compression Algorithm CHANGE (0) algorithm is available

for any type of variable compression. It only detects the time-out of compression and verifi es the same value detection (store the value when it has changed). For any kind of compression algorithm, the fi rst step is to check the time-out and the quality stamp, but it is simpler for CHANGE (0) algorithm:

IF Current value < > Previous saved value THEN Save current value. (Through compression) ELSE Discard current value. (Without compression)END IF

Dead Banding Compression AlgorithmThe principle of dead banding compression algorithm is very simple,

that is, only to store the data when the value change reaches a certain threshold. So for many variables that change slowly in the actual production process, it can dramatically reduce the amount of data to be stored.

IF Abs (Current value - Previous saved value) > Dead compression biasTHEN Save current value. (Through compression)ELSE Discard current value. (Without compression)END IF

Swinging Door Compression Algorithm -The swinging door compression algorithm was fi rst proposed by OSI

Soft PI (and patented), but because the algorithm itself is relatively simple, the PI has opened the entire algorithm to the public. Now, almost all process historian databases have adopted this compression algorithm, and added new technologies to make it better.

The principle of the swinging door algorithm can be described in one sentence, to judge whether a data point needs to be saved, one only needs to draw a straight line between the data from a previous save point P to the next data point N, and to check the absolute bias of those data points (including A) between two points (P, N) and the data points on that line corresponding to the time stamp, if there is bias of the point exceeds the compression bias, that point A should be saved.

All these compression technologies can help you to save the storage space, and to enhance the data querying by using querying algorithms such as based on variable name, start time and end time, or using SQL statement querying, etc.

Selecting Database Technology for Real-Time Analysis and Control

SCADA


A Vast Connectivity of Data Collection Today, with acquisitions/mergers and consolidation, companies inherit a

variety of control hardware and instruments in their plants. Data collection is the data source for the industrial database. There are many industrial communication protocols in different industries, such as the BACnet and LonWorks Technology for HVAC systems, 102 Protocol in power plant, OPC and other industrial interfaces. So a vast connectivity of data collec-tion is very important for the intelligent information system.

Intelligent AnalysisAll industries need not only collect the data from hardware, store the data

to the database whether on a relational database or process database, they all need to convert the massive data to be the information for decision-making.

As the kernel of the enterprise information system, the process historian database combines industry and infor-mation. Data can be converted into information through process historian database analysis tools.

“Calculation” can convert data into quantitative statistical information. For example, compute how many tons of water is treated in a sewage treatment plant in the past week.

The historical data analysis tool can predict the future events, or estimate uncertain events in the past.

“Alarm and Event” can convert calculated informa-tion into alarms and events. For example, calculation of historical data on gas concentration can produce alarms to tell managers gas is leaked and the time it will explode.

The tools can record the best practices. For example, in chemical industries, a count on the output of each track and energy consumption can identify the most effi cient teams and groups. In the process of beer fermentation, look up a batch of high-quality product curves on record, and consistently it can summarize experiences, reduce costs and improve quality products.

By analyzing a devices lifetime based on start times, length of each run, fault times, or other indicators may help decide whether to replace a device with a new one or repair the old one.

Data Integrity and Security – Load Balancing

For large information systems, data security and availability of the database system are required. Data security of the entire enterprise information system often requires good redundancy. Previous industrial database redundancy solutions were dependent on Cluster redun-dant functions of the Windows Server operating system. They were dependent on disk array redundancy. On such master-slave modes, actually, only one Historian database server provides services outside; it wastes 50 percent of the server resources and cannot achieve hot standby and load balancing. This approach can only achieves dual re-dundancy but not N redundancy (N> 3), so it cannot meet customer’s demand for multiple redundancy.

N (N> 3) redundancy -For redundancy, the historian database uses the N-Way

Buffer technology and asynchronous transaction/Syn-chronization Services technology. It is not dependent on the disk array hardware and operating system software. When a single database fails, it is requested to cache data for this database Buffer. After the data of the database is recovered, it will complement the data into the database. It is required to restore the historical data priority after the database being recovered. For all the write operations of the non-collector, strict synchronization transaction

services are adopted to ensure the consistent confi guration of the redundant Historian database servers. The redundancy of the process historian data-base ensures the availability of 7x24 hours, the data integrity and no data loss for the customers.

Dynamic Load balancing –Dynamic load balancing is implemented to adjust the load to make

the system balance based on three different standards: the number of the connections, network access fl ow and hardware-based server CPU (disk, memory, utilization, etc).

Please see ICP DAS Continued on page 31

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SCADA - Feature


Can Kabalak, SPP EngineeringControl Microsystems’ Distributor, Turkey

Established in 1974, a major European petroleum pipeline company that currently owns and operates its entire country’s natural gas grid and takes part in transporting natural gas to Europe, had to update its SCADA system. The company owns a large network consisting of two parallel pipelines, 40 inch and 46 inches in diameter, and runs a total length of 650 km. The fi rst line was built in 1976 to transport oil to a terminal on the Mediterranean coast. The second line was completed in 1987 to increase capacity to 71 million tons per year. Six pump stations, one pig (pipeline cleaning device) station, nineteen valve stations and eight cathodic protection stations are located along the pipeline. Its existing control system was built by ABB and included a DCS system that covered the pump and pig stations, tank fi eld and command center at the terminal on the Mediterranean coast. The DCS communication to the pump stations is handled by a microwave radio link.

The ChallengeDue to the pipeline’s advanced

age and necessity to operate under the continual threat of theft, it is critical that pipeline leakages are detected, reported and dealt with in a timely and effective manner. However, the system’s initial de-sign lacked remote control capabili-ties over line-valves. Therefore, the company’s main requirement was for a new SCADA system that could remotely close valves to isolate seg-ments of pipeline and collect live data from as many locations as possible. This would form the backbone of a future leak detection system.

Another consequence of the system’s age and security concerns was the absence of system communication due to the lack of data cabling along the pipeline.

Any new SCADA system would need to support current wireless com-munication technologies in order to pass data back to the host safely and securely. Several technologies were considered including UHF radio (not feasible due to the vast coverage area required) and satellite (typically vulnerable to equipment damage due to fi eld exposure), with the customer selecting GPRS communications technology. As a result of the possible non-availability of the GPRS signal it became a requirement that any con-trollers used in the new system had to:

• Support redundant GPRS communications over two different GSM operators; and

• Support report-by-exception communication in order to minimize modem traffi c and optimize GPRS costs.

From a protocol perspective, each controller in the fi eld communicated with the closest pump station and command center in a multi-masterconfi g-uration. The pipeline company also requested that pump station controllers support data exchange over a Modbus link with the local DCS system, while simultaneously handling GPRS communications. From a communica-tions hardware perspective, the existing DCS system communicated over a radio link with the pump stations.

When this link failed, the command center lost station control and criti-cal data. Back-up control was required when this occurred.

With these issues in mind, the company put together a comprehensive list of requirements for their critical SCADA system platform, beginning with redundant servers for data backup, dualhead operator stations, and

engineering stations for system development and management. Controllers and SCADA software had to support redundant communication channels and the GPRS communications had to be handled by two different GSM operators over two different GSM networks.

For SCADA system engineers and developers it was essential that the engineering activities be served up from any client and accomplished on-line, without the need to restart the servers whenever confi guration changes were made. Development and runtime capabilities were requested to be available in one complete package.

Although not requiring the same degree of functionality as the engineers and developers, the company’s managerial staff still needed access to live data, KPI screens, and reports in an effi cient and timely manner. It was determined that this task would be best provided by a Web interface.

Expansion plans for a future leak detection system were given due consideration, with system scalability and OPC server support being selected as key features of the new system. For the company to seriously consider any SCADA system platform, its hardware and software components would need to be fl exible and open to work together effi ciently and also power-ful enough to deliver the goods on their own.

The SolutionThe European pipeline com-

pany chose SPP Engineering, an Istanbul-based company provid-ing engineering capabilities, to

develop and implement their new SCADA system based on SCADAPack 300E-series fi eld controllers together with ClearSCADA host management software servers.

While sharing the same communication and processing capabilities, the SCADAPack 350E and 357E differ in their selection of onboard IO. The SCADAPack 357E was selected to handle the valve and cathodic protec-tion station duties while the smaller 350E was chosen to handle the pump station tasks.

The 300E-series controllers boast a number of features that made sensefor this pipeline project including:• Integrated GPRS driver: no need for smart GPRS modems or

special scripting.• Redundant communications: dual com ports can be confi gured to com-

municate over two different GSM networks simultaneously.• Native DNP3 protocol backbone: features report-by-exception, event

generation, and local controller time-stamping. Data fl ow and related costs are greatly reduced and there is no data loss during communication failure.

The SCADAPack 300E-series allows:• Each controller reports data to the control center and area pump station.• Simultaneous Modbus Master and DNP3 slave modes: pump stationcontrollers can exchange data with the existing ABB DCS system.• Tight integration with ClearSCADA: reduced setup and maintenance

costs with support for confi guration fi le and ISaGRAF application down-load, 350E/357E outstation objects, and point-level confi guration with automatic update to outstation.

SCADA system management, data archiving, and reporting require-ments were met by ClearSCADA. The product provides a dedicated object-based database, server, and two clients: ViewX; a full-feature devel-

Major European Oil Pipeline Company Deploys New SCADA Controllers

SCADA


opment and display environment, and WebX; a web-based monitoring and operation environment.

To address data integrity and security concerns, ClearSCADA’s support for dual and triple server redundancy ensured that all critical data was automatically maintained on multiple server machines, installed either within the same facility or geographically dispersed. Loss of the primary server would result in a seamless transfer of control to the secondary server with virtually no reduction of overall system performance. In the event of a failure in any segment of the system’s communication infrastructure, ClearSCADA utilizes redundant communication channels to mitigate data loss during these types of outages.

For control stations requiring multiple monitors, each displaying its own specifi c information and operational screens, ClearSCADA supports up to fi ve ViewX client “heads” running from a single server machine or computer. This eliminated the need for multiple computers thereby reducing IT procurement and maintenance costs.

With system engineers and developers clearly in mind, the ViewX client provided a full-featured environment in which to confi gure the servers, create all display screens, object templates, trends and reports. Multiple engineers were now able to make changes to the ClearSCADA database from multiple locations and not require a restart of the server. For casual managerial users, the WebX true thin client served up full access to the system through a zero-confi guration, built-in web server.

Future leak detection expansion plans were instrumental in the selection of ClearSCADA, with its built-in OPC Server, (DA, HDA, A&E, XML) providing effi cient access to the database and the ability to create templates and instances of any database object.

The ResultsThe company expectations are solidly met by the combination of SPP

engineering expertise and Control Microsystems SCADA products. In addition to now having live data providing real-time system information to

operators and engineers, archived data integrity is ensured during times of communication outage thanks to the native DNP3 protocol and redundant servers. It is now possible to monitor and record any interruptions, benign or intentional, in pipeline fl ow and thereby act accordingly.

Further reducing the likelihood of malicious interference with the SCADA system are ClearSCADA’s built-in security features, including system access permissions, password aging and management, user group management, and operator action tracking.

System redundancy is not only applied to server installations, but can also be found in the management of redundant communication paths, including Ethernet, GPRS, and radio. Critical data is not lost when prob-lems occur.

To satisfy the diverse needs of engineers and management personnel alike, SCADA system accessibility is securely handled by both ViewX and WebX clients, providing all the necessary tools to make maintenance and monitoring tasks a user-friendly and effi cient experience.

From a system growth standpoint, ClearSCADA’s object-based archi-tecture enables quick and easy SCADA system expansion, with innovative template and instance capabilities. And fi nally, signifi cant cost savings are the main result of this project, with the reduction of lost pipeline revenue and system maintenance and expansion costs.

Control Microsystems, a Schneider Electric company, is a global sup-plier of automation products for supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems. The product line includes Accutech wireless instrumen-tation, SCADAPack controllers and gas fl ow computers, Trio long-range data radios and ClearSCADA enterprise software. Control Microsystems’ products are engineered to operate in harsh, unattended environments de-livering higher productivity and effi ciency while reducing operational costs. For more information, visit www.controlmicrosystems.com.

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SCADA - Feature


Samuel Sciacca, CEOCG Automation Systems USA

The massive 1965 outage that left tens of millions without power in Canada and the northeastern US spurred myriad changes in the systems, processes and regulations undergirding electricity delivery. It can be said that the event was effectively the beginning of the smart grid, that electric-ity delivery has grown more intelligent in the years since.

Supervisory control and data acquisi-tion (SCADA) and advanced analyti-cal tools known collectively as energy management systems (EMS) were two of the innovations that grew out of the response to the 1965 outage. EMS/SCADA’s arrival was transformative for utilities, enabling remote monitoring and control of utility infrastructure and providing a better foundation of data on which to base generation allocation and network planning.

For the next 30 years, however, EMS/SCADA systems and how utilities employed them didn’t change much. It wasn’t for a lack of good ideas for using the information that SCADA might make available. Rather, more data couldn’t be pushed through the communications lines between substations and utility operations. A circular stagnation settled in. EMS/SCADA didn’t evolve dramatically because communications didn’t grow, and there wasn’t enough incentive

to grow communications because SCADA was adequately performing the tasks expected.

The explosion of high-speed, cost-effective communications capabilities in the past 15 years and the contemporary smart grid movement promise de-velopment around EMS/SCADA. The introduction of more robust, secure, two-way communications will enable SCADA to extract a lot more data on what’s happening across the grid, and in turn, allow utilities to get a lot

more creative in how they use EMS that rely on SCADA for useful and reliable data to inform better decision-making.

What Took You So Long?From an engineering standpoint, the

electricity grid’s modernization has been an ongoing pursuit of the power industry over years. Electrical-mechanical relays, for example, have given way to solid-state devices with the intelligence to accept more and more inputs. Various monitors for transformers have emerged. And since the late 1970s, utilities have been deploying tremendous computing horsepower and algorithm capabilities to fuel EMS/SCADA systems.

SCADA’s issue is that it has been starved for incoming data. Until the mid-1990s, the predominant interface for linking a utility’s operations cen-ter SCADA with remote substations was low-speed, 1,200-baud communi-cations. Meanwhile, complex data was being compiled on protective relays,

voltage regulators and other intelligent electronic devices in substations. This enabled a utility to undertake a deep investigation into, for example, why a relay might have tripped, the precise moment and current level at which it tripped, whether it occurred out of proper sequence, etc. But because of the those 1200-baud communications lines’ limitations, developers of that substation data didn’t focus on shipping information to other locations and cor-relating it via SCADA with data from other points in the utility’s sphere of operations. The amount of information that could be pushed through the communications lines at frequent intervals was so limited that there was no point.

This is why today’s smart grid drive is different. Typi-cally, SCADA has been limited to data that is between 2 and 5 seconds old. Planners and system integrators now ask, “What could be done with EMS/SCADA fueled by data that is only a quarter of a second old? Or 5 millisec-onds old?” We are about to fi nd out. Putting a two-way communications-and-control overlay fueled by real-time information fl ow on top of the power grid promises a host of innovations, not only in empowering a utility’s custom-ers to make more intelligent decisions about energy use but also how EMS/SCADA interacts with the utility’s power generation, transmission and distribution systems.

Push and PullIn the smart grid drive, a relationship is taking shape

between the data that is compiled on utility operations and how utilities leverage the data to improve operations.

We have seen examples already. Fault-record fi les pro-viding signifi cant detail on the nature and magnitude of a fault on the system have grown out of an increased ability to carry information from substations. Similarly, because of increased deployment of global positioning system (GPS) and time-synchronization technologies, SCADA

SCADA Innovation Begins Now

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SCADA


can bring back more useful data fi les on what happened when and where, and then place the events in their proper sequence. This has precipitated EMS applications for better managing and optimizing a utility’s systems across a larger geographical area.

Synchrophasor deployment has picked up only recently; consequently, utilities’ don’t have a lot of real-time EMS applications that rely on the time-stamped current and voltage measurements from locations across the grid that synchrophasors produce. But the potential of that capability is revolutionary. Another area of development is the potential impact on real-time, dynamic rating of transmission lines. The capacities of transmission lines typically are rated for their worst-case limits, when a lot more power could be carried per line in extreme heat or cold when customer demands on a utility are highest. Deployment and improvements in other sensor and communications technologies could enable transmission lines to be rated and monitored dynamically. Utility assets and power fl ow could be man-aged more effi ciently, and the likelihood of blackouts when customers need power most would be reduced dramatically.

In addition, with the ongoing build out of advanced metering infrastruc-ture (AMI), a utility can create an increasingly granular profi le of voltage measurements from across its entire service territory. This will free EMS application developers to be creative in using those measurements once they are fed back into SCADA. What could a utility do with high-quality, dependable phasor measurement unit (PMU) data for two points at opposite ends of its service territory? Or, what could a utility do with the capability to compare its measurements with those of another utility, between Los Angeles and New York, for example?

Until now, the lack of robust, reliable communications impeded the creativity with which utilities employ SCADA. In the contemporary smart grid movement, this is changing rapidly.

Standards work around the smart grid is focused on the unprecedented integration of power, communications and information technology. The IEEE’s P2030 Working Group, for example, is striving to uniformly defi ne

elements and functional requirements encompassed in the pursuit of en-abling two-way communications and control over electricity generation and delivery, ubiquitously across markets. This process fi gures to illuminate a host of areas, AMI, cybersecurity, data networking, electric vehicle support, information modeling, renewable energy integration, sensor networking and wide-area situational awareness, among them, where new or improved standards are needed.

The introduction of more powerful, fl exible, reliable and secure com-munications infrastructure across the power grid means big changes for EMS/SCADA, which utilities have relied upon for decades. As the quality and nonrepudiation of data fl owing through SCADA improves, utilities will trust the system more and design new algorithms and EMS applications that use the data. Meaning the smart grid rollout points to innovation in ways utilities employ SCADA.

Samuel Sciacca is chairman of IEEE’s P2030 Working Group Task Force 1 on power engineering technology and chief executive offi cer of CG Automation Systems USA Inc. CG Automation provides a wide variety of Automation Products and services to the Electric Utility Industry. CG Auto-mation’s customers are a mixture of major utilities, government and military agencies as well as global Electrical Transmission and Distribution OEM’s. For more information please visit www.microsol.com.

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SCADA - Products & Services


You’ve Got Mail, from Your Data LoggerCAS Data Logger’s new dataTaker

DT82EM is an intelligent, low power data logger designed for remote ap-plications that features an integrated GSM/GPRS modem. Combining the functions of signal condition-ing, a DMM, a PC and a modem, the DT82EM provides a turn-key solution to capturing data, uploading data via email or FTP and sending alarms as email or SMS messages.

Based on the DT80 line of data loggers, the DT82EM has four universal analog input channels that allow it to connect to most sensors and data measurement sources. It supports temperature, voltage, current, resistance, strain gauge and frequency mea-surements. Its dual channel isolation allows four 2-wire differential or six single ended analog inputs. With four digital I/O channels, four high speed counters and 12 V regulated power output the DT82EM is ready for any remote application.

The DT82EM can store up to 10 million data points in internal memory with control over the amount of historical data and storage mode. The logger also has a USB memory stick port to upload programs or download data. The internal modem is preconfi gured for common cellular providers to simplify start-up. An Internal FTP and email server can send data to a desktop without the need to poll the logger or install software on a com-puter. The DT82EM has a built in Web interface that utilizes the new dEX user interface software management of the logger. With dEX, no special PC software is required, just a Web browser to confi gure the data logger, view real-time data and download stored data.

With a rugged design, an extended operating temperature range and the ability to operate off of battery or solar power, the DT82EM is well suited for a wide range of data logging projects including agriculture, weather stations, hydropower, water and wastewater, alternative energy or other ap-plications that lack standard communications infrastructure, are diffi cult or inconvenient to access or are mobile.

Enhanced Process Control Solution From GE Puts Power, Water and Oil & Gas Customers in Control

GE Intelligent Platforms has released the Profi cy Process Sys-tem 2.0, a fl exible process control platform suited for power, water and Oil & Gas applications that will help lower customers’ total cost of ownership by reducing the costs associated with designing, commissioning, operating and maintaining their process opera-tions and providing them with a sustainable competitive advantage for their business. Applications include main steam cycle, municipal water treatment and well-to-tank control.

Profi cy Process Systems 2.0 simplifi es the design and maintenance of a system with features that enable users to capture, standardize and maintain their control strategies. With the introduction of user-defi ned control mod-ule capabilities, customers will be able to create reusable process control solutions that will take engineering effi ciency to a new level. Integration of Profi cy iFIX with the PAC8000 controllers is another major feature of this release. This allows users the complete freedom to choose the HMI and controller technologies they want to use in their systems.

“One of the key differentiators we provide our customers is a system with a fl exible architecture, that is easy to use and user expandable,” said Kam Yuen, Profi cy Process product manager. “In Profi cy Process Systems Version 2.0 users have the ability to add their own function blocks and faceplates in addition to the extensive list of ones provided with the system. This allows System Integrators, OEMs, and end users to create re-

usable blocks and graphics specifi c to their own process applications, that will accelerate their engineering process and reduce commissioning and training overhead.”

Wago Ethernet 2.0 Program-mable Fieldbus Controller

Wago Corp.’s new high-speed 750-881 Ethernet 2.0 Programmable Fieldbus Controller processes 1,000 instruc-tions/235 μS. The fi rst from WAGO’s upcoming Ethernet 2.0 line, 750-881 provides signifi cant amounts of memory for PLC programs and Web applications, as well as an integrated dual-port Eth-ernet switch. To keep pace, independent Ethernet ports respond in 1ms, transmit-ting real-time information to production and enterprise management.

The 750-881 PFC interfaces with standard network protocols including unique support for both EtherNet I/P and MODBUS TCP. The Ethernet switch streamlines costs and system footprint by facilitating a line topol-ogy for fi eldbus wiring, eliminating additional switches and hubs. An onboard DIP switch confi gures the last octet of IP address/assignment, expediting commissioning.

Keys to the 750-881’s high-frequency processing are a 32-bit CPU and 1 Mbyte of program memory. A 2 Mbyte fast fi le system supervises both a Web-based management system and substantial data logging. E-mail capability (updates/alarms) is also provided for authorized personnel. The 750-881’s standard CoDeSys V2 programming environment is IEC 61131 compatible, and features all fi ve programming languages. The PFC supports up to 250 I/O modules, and allows users to tailor solutions from the 400+ analog, digital and specialty modules in the WAGO-I/O-SYSTEM.

The 750-881’s new housing design departs from Wago’s traditional ar-chitecture. The slotted housing optimizes heat dissipation while maintaining a 0°C to 55°C operating temperature range and IP20 rating. Certifi cations include UL 508, cUL, GL and CE.

Extech Reveals Compact New Electrical Dataloggers for In-Depth Diagnostics

Extech Instruments has released the new DL150 single-channel and DL160 dual-channel true RMS AC voltage and current data loggers. The compact new tools are designed for electri-cal, industrial plant maintenance and predictive maintenance professionals who need extended recording of in-depth readings for electrical motors, components or circuits.

The compact true RMS data log-gers measure and log AC voltage to 600 V and current to 200 A, with sampling rates ranging from 1 per second to 1 per 24-hour period and recording capacity of 100,000 (DL150) or 256,000 readings (DL160). Readings can be downloaded via USB to a laptop or PC for analysis, trending or exporting to Excel format using the data loggers’ software application. The two-line LCD displays time/date, current measurement and min/max values. The loggers can operate in both continuous (overwrite) or stop-when-full recording modes.

The DL150 single-channel data logger offers users three operating modes: normal, peak and capture. In capture mode, triggers can be defi ned to capture in-rush and transients lasting less than 0.25 milliseconds. The peak button briefl y displays peak values while still operating in normal mode. The two-channel DL160 is useful for simultaneously logging both the current and voltage of one component or one metric from two components. A chan-nel button alternates the display between each channel’s values.

SCADA


Elecsys Releases New Watchdog VIP Remote Monitoring Product

Elecsys Corp. has released the Watchdog VIP, the most recent addi-tion to the company’s remote monitoring products. The Watchdog VIP is highly fl exible, equipped with four confi gurable analog inputs, one digital input and an AC power detection probe, which enables it to perform a wide variety of remote monitoring functions for pipeline operators, gas, water and electric utilities, highway departments and energy exploration and production companies.

The system is deployable worldwide communicating via either quad-band GSM/GPRS cellular telemetry or the Inmarsat global satellite system. The Elecsys Watch-dog Web monitor internet portal allows secure, immediate access to measurements and provides web-based remote control of measurement ranges, confi gurations and alarm notifi cation settings. The Watchdog VIP simplifi es installation and system com-missioning with integrated fi eld diagnostics and web-enabled confi gurability, making it easy to deploy, thereby reducing travel to remote sites.

For corrosion protection monitoring applications, Watchdog VIP units ship from the factory pre-confi gured to measure volts, amps, pipe-to-soil voltage potential and to detect the presence of AC power. The product pro-vides reliable wireless remote monitoring of cathodic protection rectifi ers used to protect transmission and distribution pipelines, storage tanks, oil and natural gas well casings, bridges, pier and other critical infrastructure assets from corrosion. Operators can improve structure integrity and extend asset operational life with reliable measurement reporting, timely event

alarms and data trend analysis.Elecsys also recently deployed a variant of the Watchdog VIP, specifi -

cally designed for international markets, for fi eld testing trials on pipeline, bulk storage and offshore platform sites in the Middle East. These fi eld tri-als are part of a pilot program for a future project in the Persian Gulf region.

IMI Sensors Releases 4-20 mA Vibration Transmitters for Monitoring Gas Pipeline Pumping Stations

IMI Sensors, a division of PCB Piezotronics, Inc., has announced the availability of hazardous area-ap-proved versions of the company’s series 640 industrial vibration transmitters for monitoring motors and pumps at natural gas pipeline pumping stations. These rugged and reliable two-wire, loop powered, 4-20 mA vibra-tion sensors are manufactured to meet specifi c natural gas industry design requirements, including certifi ca-tion in accordance with ATEX and CSA for use in hazardous areas.

Vibration monitoring of motors and pumps at natural gas pipeline pumping stations has proven effective for determining machinery health, planning maintenance intervals, reducing downtime and avoid-ing catastrophic loss. IMI’s series 640 provides a 4-20 mA output signal that is proportional to the overall vibration level of the machine being monitored. Powered by a 12-30 VDC source, the output wire can be connected to any existing PLC, DCS and SCADA systems.

The series 640 vibration sensors are enclosed in welded, hermetically sealed, stainless steel housings. Explosion-proof versions of these transmit-ters are also available. Sensors that offer hazardous area certifi cations are widely used on gas and oil well heads, supply lines, natural gas reciprocat-ing engines, multi-stage gas compressors and other machinery operating in hazardous environments.

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SCADA - Products & Services


MicroStrain Launches Wireless Sensor System Offering Network Sampling Capacity and Timing Synchronization

MicroStrain has in-troduced the extended range, synchronous wireless sensing system, combining precision wireless time synchronization and enhanced system scal-ability accommodating hundreds of wireless sensor nodes with extended range communication.

The MicroStrain Extended Range, Synchronized (mXRS) wireless sensing system currently includes a WSDA-Base, the Node commander 2.0 software and a range of wireless sensor nodes. The WSDA-Base is a central base station that coordinates and synchronizes data collection with timing accuracy of up to +/- 31 microseconds. The Node Commander 2.0 software offers a wide range of user adjustable sample rates as well as the ability to facilitate high channel count data acquisition, and the a range of wireless sensor nodes offer onboard precision timing and user confi gurable options for extended range communication to 1 kilometer.

Addressing the needs of a range of industries, these systems enable information to be acquired from multiple sensors, either simultaneously, on varying schedules or in bursts (to 100 KHz). All of this data is aggregated using time as a unifying variable. Applications include advanced condition based maintenance and structural health monitoring of heavy equipment, industrial machines, aircraft, civil structures, vehicles and wind turbines.

CygNet Enterprise Operations Platform 7.3 Improves Effi cient Collection and Distribution of Field Data to Oil and Gas Applications

CygNet Software has unveiled CygNet Enterprise Operations Platform (EOP) 7.3, delivering a solution for the collection and sharing of opera-tional data across the oil and gas enterprise. With platform enhancements including more pre-built connectors to the latest versions of industry fi eld devices, as well as effi cient integration with industry software pack-ages, users can leverage real-time operations data within their systems and applications of choice. Additionally, continued enhancement of core management functions en-sures even higher system availability.

“CygNet EOP enables companies to turn the ocean of data locked in isolated operational systems into easily accessible information for both operations and business users,” said Steve Robb, vice president of business development and marketing for CygNet Software. “EOP delivers the capa-bility for companies to optimize production, drive costs down and leverage key investments. Now with EOP 7.3, we are extending SCADA and opera-tions information to the enterprise. The standards-based interfaces eliminate the ‘heavy lifting’ typically required by IT, enabling customers to rapidly unlock the value of optimization, performance analytics and KPI tracking from operations to the enterprise.”

CygNet EOP is used on thousands of desktops across North America, from super-majors to independent producers, as well as within the larg-est gas pipeline companies. It is a unifi ed information platform enabling companies to collect, manage and distribute the terabytes of real-time operations data generated daily for operations, IT and business users across the enterprise. Information coming from fi eld devices, network nodes and

third-party applications can be delivered in context to users, enabling them to make better business decisions.

CygNet’d 7/3 provides pre-built connectivity to the latest versions of fi eld devices. Oil and gas enterprises deal with thousands of fi eld devices producing vast amounts of data every second. The CygNet platform ships with pre-built connectors, referred to as Equipment Interface Engines, or EIEs, for the most widely used data-producing fi eld devices. Now version 7.3 provides enhanced EIEs for the latest fi eld devices from Weatherford, ABB Totalfl ow, Emerson RAS and others.

CygNet Enterprise Integration Suite (EIS) connects a company’s exist-ing business applications to this data by leveraging open, standards-based interfaces, such as XML, JMS and HTTP, as well as connectivity via APIs and other open integration methods. With version 7.3, CygNet introduces business objects, which provide IT and operations the ability to express data attributes using their naming conventions of choice, for example, using terms such as meters and wells instead of points and devices. Version 7.3 also supports the Microsoft Extensible Storage Engine (ESE), improving interface startup time and the speed of service replication.

New Compact Temperature Data Logging with IrDA Downloading

TandD US has introduced its TR-5i compact data logging system. New for this series is the IrDA communications capability with the expanded handheld data shuttle. The expanded handheld data shuttle, TR-57DCi has been updated with IrDA capability and the compatibil-ity to act as a graphing data shuttle with all TandD TR-7U data loggers.

The infrared communications function makes it possible to download re-corded data from the loggers without ever having to physically gather them. This new series with its new features replicates the TandD TR-5S series functions at the same selling price. The loggers in the series are capable of measuring a wide range of temperatures from -60°C to 155°C. Additional features include waterproof data loggers, visible alarm indicator, 1 or 2 point adjustment functions and a battery life of up to four years.

eWON Releases Access Solution for Remote Equipment

eWON has released the Talk2M Pro, a new, smart Internet based remote access solution. With the Talk2M, eWON has added value-adding features to its latest offering by enhancing its ability to facilitate integration with a large variety of PLCs and automated devices.

Fully compliant with most of the leading PLC manufacturers, Talk2M Pro is designed to enhance traditional management and mainte-nance of industrial assets with new remote capabilities. The Talk2M Pro services not only provide time saving and enhanced professional access control to reach remote machines, but also promises added value to the bottom-line by reducing traveling expenses and time and minimizing the security of staff that have to travel extensively to do customer support, maintenance and physical upgrades.

Without Talk2M, problem diagnostics on PLC controlled machines are mostly dependent on a technician’s ability to have physical access to the machine. In exceptional cases a diagnoses can be made by phone with the user, but this is the exception to the rule. Talk2M Pro now allows users to identify and solve complex problems remotely and in real time, with no disruption in operations.

Talk2M Pro provides secure VPN on-demand access for any number of remote machines and devices, ranging from several units to several thousand. This will go a long way to assist OEM and system integrators to improve remote diagnostic and product management capacities, while

SCADA


reducing warranty and support costs and even creating new operational and service revenue streams.

The ease of access in no way compromises the security of the systems as access is restricted by unique login to each approved users with adequate access rights and security authorization. The control and screening of ap-proved access is entirely at management’s discretion. The technology offers fully detailed monthly connection reports, itemized by machine and device to facilitate management and control. All remote accesses are comprehen-sively traced and logged. This is particularly important in strictly regulated industries such as water and defense.

Talk2M Pro application provides the intuitive user interface for access-ing a large number of devices over the Internet in a highly user-friendly manner. Users can work independently and manage their own accounts, including users and machines, without the assistance of IT experts. This enables almost unlimited possibilities to do support, troubleshooting and upgrades without unduly interrupting normal operational functions. Talk2M becomes the engineer’s machine address book and one-click access tool for his machines worldwide.

New Energy Monitoring Appliance Helps Track and Reduce Energy Consumption

Opto 22 has introduced the OptoEMU sensor, the fi rst component of Opto 22’s packaged, networkable OptoEMU system, which lets small to medium-sized commercial and industrial customers gather energy consump-tion data from their facilities’ electrical panels, metering devices and other equipment. The OptoEMU sensor also provides easy-to-implement commu-nications interfaces and data integration capabilities to deliver the acquired energy data to enterprise business systems so it can be viewed, archived and used to develop effective energy management strategies that reduce costs.

Designed for maintenance engineers, plant managers, business owners, energy consultants and others looking for ways to better understand and reduce their facility’s energy consumption, the OptoEMU system comprises

two powerful hardware components-the OptoEMU sensor and the upcoming OptoEMU server. The sensor provides three distinct types of monitoring in-terfaces. First, it can directly connect to and measure the electrical loads of both individual power panels and subpanels, and key facility equipment, such as manufacturing machinery, pumps, motors, refrigera-tion systems, boilers, chillers and HVAC units.

Next, to provide connectivity to existing monitor-ing devices and instrumentation (as well as larger building automation systems), the OptoEMU sensor has serial and Ethernet interfaces and can monitor and communicate via the widely-used Modbus and BACnet protocols. Finally, the sensor can monitor and accept pulses from utility meters and other sub-metering devices. The sensor can then send all acquired building data to on-line energy monitoring software portals-including Google PowerMeter and Pulse Energy’s Pulse, for presentation and analysis, or to local databases for integration with business systems.

Because the OptoEMU sensor is based on the same technology as Opto 22’s SNAP PAC System, customers are able to deploy additional sensors at any time, or even expand their capabilities to gain equipment management and control functions simply by adding a few additional off-the-shelf com-ponents, thereby providing an easy way to participate in load curtailment and demand response programs.

The OptoEMU Sensor accomplishes all this by applying standard, well-understood information and communications technologies, such as analog, digital and serial signal processing, and Ethernet, wireless LAN, and Internet network connectivity. This standards-based approach allows the sensor to exist in a wide variety of industrial and business architectures and perform with with high levels of power while maintaining reliability.

Networking - Feature


Paul Mercier, Manager of Business DevelopmentPhoenix Contact, Inc.

Countless reasons exist for going wireless, recent fi res in California have motivated several water utility agencies including Rancho Santa Fe Irriga-tion District in San Diego County, to move away from using hard-wired or telephone based communication for SCADA and Telemetry applications. Also, the military has been upgrading their infrastructure at bases like Camp Pendleton which is vast and sprawling complexes where maintaining and expanding wired infrastructure is costly and more labor intensive than going with wireless solutions. The purpose of this article is to compare and contrast traditional wired sensor and pump/valve controller applica-tions with wireless alternatives for engineers, operators and maintenance personnel to consider as they face the challenge of migrating from old to new technologies.

Today’s engineers and specialized technicians are not as interested in the technology that makes wireless work, but rather in the proper applica-tion and use of radio technologies. In basic terms, “What do I use, where do I use it, and how do I use it?” are right up there in most frequently asked questions alongside “How far will it go?” and “Is it reliable, trustworthy and secure?”

Wireless technology is part of our everyday lives in the home and offi ce. In recent years, this technology has made the logical progression from the home and offi ce into the municipal and military facilities world, onto the treatment plant fl oor and into the fi eld. It adds convenience, reduces installation time and provides solutions to common problems. Replacing or eliminating cables with wireless technology has many at-tractive features beyond the obvious installation speed (hours versus days/weeks) and cost savings (labor, permits, material). However, there is still an ongoing debate about the level of trust in using wireless products for a control-based application.

Wireless ReliabilityWireless modems and radio telemetry devices have been used in control

systems of mission critical pumps for more than 30 years, yet fear of the un-known remains. There have been thousands of successful wireless SCADA implementations for water/wastewater, gas pipeline and utilities that require data delivered in an acceptable one to two seconds. It is important to note the difference between a deterministic, or time-critical, application and one that requires only high data reliability.

The nature of the RF environment dictates that there is no absolute guarantee that any given piece of data will successfully be transmitted and received over the air. However, a well-designed radio will have built-in error checking and retry capabilities that continue sending a piece of information until it is successfully received. This makes it possible to send important data over a wireless link, as long as the entire system can tolerate some amount of latency or delay.

Wireless AdvantagesA wireless hybrid network, or combination of technologies like that

used at RSFID can provide technical advantages and cost benefi ts for pump monitoring and pressure reducing valve control applications. Installing wireless systems to replace both communication and sensor signal cabling can reduce the time it takes to engineer and develop the expansion or construction of a pumping plant. The Witch Creek fi re in North County took out phone lines into critical sites in the RFSID system leaving them without communication to check and control when needed most.

“We wanted to go wireless in numerous areas and applications so we would be autonomous from telephone company in case of wildfi res and earthquakes,” said Eli Standing Warrior, RSFID Maintenance Supervisor.

Jim Gingrich, Lead Maintenance specialist at the District, stated, “There is a ROI of less than two years as each leased line to remote sites averaged

$120 a month. We also saved over $15,000 using wireless over installing a fi ber link to provide a LAN bridge of the SCADA HMI from the R.E. Badger Treatment plant to the district maintenance yard three miles away.”

The operators at the yard can now keep tabs on their critical pump stations, improving response times and maintenance effi ciencies.

The up-front cost of a wireless system is often immediately lower than cabling and con-duit costs, and the savings in labor and permits are enormous. A signal that previously took days to bring online using traditional wiring can now be commissioned within hours. With this time savings and fl exibility, maintenance crews can deploy wireless nodes for temporary troubleshooting or adding stranded measure-ment points and streamlining asset manage-ment strategies.

To monitor and control pumps remotely, most companies communicate over fi ber, copper or some hard-wired cable. Ideally, important sensors that monitor suction/discharge pressure, tank levels, system pressure, fl ow rates and temperatures can be tied back to the pump controller via wire. A hard-wired network of pump control panels is also ideal, if it can communicate cost-effectively.

But in a world that isn’t always ideal, wireless can be the next best thing to wire. In fact, many locations have found wireless connections provide a more reliable connection than a wired circuit.

Managing lift stations is one of the biggest problems water utility opera-tors face. Lift stations are built-in remote locations spread out around cities and business areas. A lift station typically includes two pumps that pump sewage into massive underground tanks. Over time, clogging or infi ltration can reduce a pump’s effi ciency, until eventually the pump stops operating.

When a pump stops, the old-fashioned, fl ashing light system alarms the site, however, at this point, it might be too late. Diagnosing and repairing the problem might take too long, causing spillage to occur. Often the pumps do not completely fail, rather they lose effi ciency. Older systems will allow the anomaly to go unnoticed until a spill is detected by residents or some other means. Spills reported by the public often lead to fi nes, lawsuits and even criminal charges for the wastewater engineer or superintendent.

Tougher EPA and Clean Water legislation have dramatically increased the need for the monitoring and control of sewage collection systems.

A spill occurs every day somewhere in America. It can cost $50,000 to $100,000, not to mention the seemingly irreparable environmental damage. The cost includes the price of pumping out the lift station, new pumps, rush shipping of parts, area cleanup, overtime and other ancillary charges. Wire-less pump control products can prevent a spill altogether, which reduces down times and keeps a “lid” on a problem before it hits the headlines.

For example, Camp Pend-leton faced a challenging data communications problem. The base has pumping equipment and wastewater units at approxi-mately 129 unattended locations. It used chart recorders, obsolete RTU’s and a telephone link to a single computer to monitor and control all of these sites. Offi cials needed better information about the status of the remote

Wireless Helps Municipal and Military Agencies Hang-Up on Hardwire Circuits

WLAN antenna at Rancho Santa Fe Maintenance yard three miles from plant. Extending SCADA workstation.

New RTU at Camp Pendleton sewage lift station replacing chart recorders and phone telemetry with wireless solution.

Networking


facilities to prevent spills and protect the environment. The base has begun to install a license-free, frequency-hopping spread-

spectrum, radio monitoring system. This achieved the desired control and security. The system paid for itself by not only avoiding potential fi nes, but also by saving thousands of dollars in annual telephone expenses and associated fi eld service trips.

Field instrumentation signals are hard-wired into a localized PLC or I/O system, and then sent to a central monitoring location or dispatcher via a telemetry link. The advent of wireless devices to eliminate the hard-wire to the fi eld transmitters has made it possible to reduce costs even further in development, installation, engineering, mounting, startup and maintenance in this type of application.

Understanding the environment and application of the wireless network plays a crucial part in choosing what wireless technology will perform best. Many technologies, both vendor-specifi c proprietary and standards-based, have been developed and time-tested over the past decade.

Today, proprietary license-free radio devices are most commonly used in municipal and military wireless installations. The radio technology is unique to the device manufacturer and will not operate with another manu-facturer’s devices, adding an element of security. Proprietary radios can be customized to fi t a specifi c application, ranging from Ethernet connectivity down to sensor signals, making them suitable for both in-plant and remote site applications. These devices are often much more effi cient at transfer-ring data, as the radio platform is optimized for the types and quantities of data that it will transmit. The device can be adjusted to the maximum levels allowed by the local governing body (FCC, IC, etc.,), so longer range RF links can be achieved.

Licensed radios are proprietary systems that require a frequency license from the local regulatory body to operate on a single fi xed frequency. The agency issues these licenses to mitigate interference. Licensed radios are considered high power, typically up to 5 watts. This power translates to a long transmission range, often up to 40 miles, that can be required in large facilities like Camp Pendleton which includes 125,000 acres of hilly terrain.

GSM/GPRS is commonly known as cell phone technology. It transmits process data via the cellular network infrastructure. A GSM/GPRS device works like a cell phone, requiring a SIM card and consequently, a monthly billing plan. With this technology, pump management systems can maintain communications even with locations on the opposite side of the globe.

Securing the NetworkDespite the increasing acceptance of wireless technology, security is still

a primary concern. While data encryption is often the top security concern, there are other security facets to consider.

Physical security is also important to prevent damage to antenna systems and radio equipment. A radio network is only as strong as its weakest RF link. RF security is possibly the most important, and most frequently over-looked, aspect of security. A well-designed wireless network will pay close attention to the types of antennas that are used and where they are mounted.

Implementing a Wireless SystemThe use of wireless technology in municipal, military and industrial

applications will proliferate over the next fi ve years, as will the variety of devices and technologies. There is not a “one-size-fi ts-all” wireless technol-ogy available. A variety of radio platforms exist for specifi c applications.

A careful analysis of the operational and maintenance requirements is very important before implementing any wireless project. A detailed feasi-bility analysis of the environment, application needs, security concerns and possible technologies will save the time, dollars and headaches later during the design and implementation of the project.

Paul Mercier is a manager of business development for Phoenix Con-tact, Inc. with a focus on wireless (Bluetooth, HART, WLAN, Cellular and 900 MHz proprietary) technologies. He has over 25 years experience in instrumentations and controls, spending the past 17 years with an emphasis on developing and applying wireless products and networks for mission critical applications. For more informaiton visit www.phoenixcontact.com.

www.thermalnews.com

Networking - Products & Services


eDevice Introduces New Network Converter for M2M Applications

The growing penetration of DSL and Cable networks and the growing popularity of the mobile phone as a replacement for fi xed line phones has resulted in less availability of fi xed phone lines that are compatible with traditional analog modems. According to the US-based Harbor Research analysts fi rm, more than 15 million devices may need to be upgraded due to this trend. The new WireX converter from eDevice is de-signed to solve this problem by allowing legacy equipment with embedded analog modems to immediately be switched from connecting through the traditional phone line to connecting through a cel-lular GSM/GPRS wireless network.

WireX is an analog-to-wireless con-verter designed for self installation by the end-user. it does not require any changes on the existing legacy device, the user only needs to disconnect the phone cable from the wall and plug it into the WireX dial-up connector. The data previously transferred over the phone link is then automatically transmitted using phone line emulation over a GPRS or GSM data cellular network.

“This unique product offers wireless carriers and OEMs a new opportu-nity for installing several thousands of solutions providing their end-users with a quick ROI,” said Marc Berrebi, eDevice’s CEO. “With 1 Mb of data per month, WireX can lower prices by more than 50 percent when replacing a dedicated phone line.”

WireX allows wireless carriers to gain market share in the promising connected device category that encompasses M2M applications. End-users can then take advantage of subscriptions adapted to M2M data usage levels

and also enjoy mobility outside the home including internationally with worldwide cellular coverage. This solution can provide a boost for growing the M2M market at cellular carriers and will be a key growth driver over the next couple of years.

New ConnectPort X3 H Cellular Gateway from Digi Connects Remote Devices in Harsh Environments

Digi International has introduced the ConnectPort X3 H, a programma-ble cellular gateway for monitoring remote assets in harsh environments. Featuring advanced battery power features and a NEMA 4X/IP66 en-closure to protect the gateway from water, dust and dirt, the ConnectPort X3 H is designed for tank monitor-ing, pipeline, agriculture and utility applications. The ConnectPort X3 H is integrated with the iDigi platform, a cloud computing service that makes it easy to remotely manage devices and integrate device information into a company’s back-end systems.

The ConnectPort X3 H provides global connectivity to remote devices and device/sensor networks via GSM GPRS cellular networks. It is Class 1, Division 2 certifi ed and features multiple power options including mains power, battery power or battery power with solar charger panel for harsh environments where power may not be available. It has power management features including a sleep function which shuts down the device when it is not running to conserve battery power.

The ConnectPort X3 H is available with an optional embedded XBee ZigBee module allowing the gateway to connect to a small network of ZigBee-enabled wireless devices or sensors for local data aggregation over a cellular network. It also features an optional analog I/O, digital I/O or RS-232 serial port for direct wired connectivity. Optional internal GPS is also available for asset tracking.

Featuring an easy-to-use development environment, the ConnectPort X3 H can be programmed using open-source Python or the iDigi Device Inte-gration Application (iDigi Dia). It also includes a familiar Eclipse-based integrated development environment that allows Web developers to rapidly develop embedded applications.

Red Lion Dual Ethernet Expansion Card Simplifi es Machine-to-Enterprise Integration

Red Lion Controls, Inc. has developed a new Ethernet expansion card for the Data Station Plus and Modular Controller series products. The XCENET Ethernet expansion card al-lows operators to isolate machine level network traffi c from the enterprise level network, benefi ting both automation process engineers and IT managers. The engineer can simply assign a fi xed IP ad-dress for the port connected to PLCs and drives, while the IT manager can either select their own IP address or use DHCP to confi gure the enterprise port. This allows for communication on separate networks, increasing platform functional-ity and fl exibility.

Already supporting 10 simultaneous Ethernet protocols, as well as three serial protocols, the Data Station Plus and Modular Controller series provide unprecedented protocol conversion and device integration. Providing a second Ethernet port for communica-tion, the XCENET card increases bandwidth and allows communication on two distinct Ethernet networks simultaneously without the addition of an industrial router.

The XCENET card can be fi tted to any Data Station Plus, as well as the LE, SX or GT versions of the Modular Controller series Master. Users

Networking


install the card by removing the blank expansion port cover of the Modular Controller or Data Station Plus, and plugging the card into the expansion port, adding an additional 10 Base T/100 Base-Tx Ethernet port. The Data Station Plus, Modular Controller and the XCENET card are easily con-fi gured with Red Lion’s free Crimson software. Crimson’s drag-and-drop interface is an effi cient technology that allows operators to set up control application devices, collect and log performance data, display data or trig-ger PLC functions.

Red Lion’s Data Station Plus is an industrial data collection and manage-ment tool that provides multiple protocol conversion, data logging and remote machine access. With the ability to support numerous protocols simultaneously, the Data Station Plus Ethernet connection allows commu-nication to an unlimited number of devices. Featuring a built-in Ethernet gateway and an integrated Web server, the Data Station Plus allows remote monitoring and operation for continuous communication.

The Modular Controller series offers a cost-effective solution to integrat-ing multi-zone PID control, data acquisition and I/O into a PC, DCS or PLC control system. Providing point-and-click data mapping, users can quickly drag and drop controller data to PLC registers, eliminating the need to write tedious PLC code. Red Lion’s Modular Controller reduces programming costs and additional add-ons, including I/O and analog cards.

Adaptive Network Solutions Releases ZigBee Module Based on Atmel’s Newest Single Chip

Adaptive Network Solutions has release its new @ANY2400SC IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee RF module for 2.4 GHz ISM band. With a small foot-print of just over 3 square centimeters, the module offers a combination of receiving sensitivity and an optimal output power level in a small form factor. Built on Atmel’s latest single chip platform, the module comes in two modifi cations: @ANY2400SC-1 featuring integrated chip antenna and @ANY2400SC-2 with a U.FL connector.

@ANY2400SC modules present a fully integrated standards-based solu-

tion that contains all the digital and analog circuitry required for tiny wireless devices and eliminates the need for in-house RF expertise. @ANY2400SC-1 module with an integrated chip antenna is well suited for limited space applications, while @ANY2400SC-2 with a built-in U.FL antenna connector enables rapid design-in, using a different external antenna for every application. Both @ANY2400SC modifi cations are designed to work with various wireless sensing and control applications, using IEEE 802.15.4-based standards, such as ZigBee® and 6LoWPAN. The 2.4 GHz RF modules are designed for building and industrial automa-tion, energy management, smart metering and other application areas, requiring high RF performance.

@ANY2400SC modules are built around Atmel’s ATmega128RFA1. This IEEE 802.15.4-compliant single chip combines the AVR microcon-troller and a 2.4GHz RF transceiver, resulting in high RF performance for single-chip devices, with a link budget of 103.5 dBm. The modules are fully compatible with other @ANY RF modules for 2.4 GHz band, as well as other Atmel-based devices.

Developers can maximize the inherent advantages of Atmel’s hardware platform by tapping into a wide range of RF design and customization ser-vices now available at Adaptive Network Solutions. In addition, Adaptive Network Solutions provides Smart MAC Suite (SMS) networking software that allows easy control of @ANY platform’s functionality via AT com-mands supporting all IEEE 802.15.4-based functions, as well as facilitates the addition of numerous custom features.

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Networking - Products & Services


Intellicom Launches Plug’n’Play M2M Remote Gateway Intellicom Innovation AB

has launched a true plug’n’play M2M gateway. The EasyCon-nect EC150 is a small remote gateway in the EasyConnect family that connects any Mod-bus device with the Netbiter Ar-gos server over Ethernet. This makes it possible to remotely monitor and control Modbus devices and networks.

The Netbiter EasyConnect series is always used together with the Net-biter Argos server to make the remote monitoring and control solutions easy to install, confi gure and maintain. This unique combination provides true plug’n’play installation with no fi re wall issues, no static IP, no IT expertise, no VPN required and no programming.

“The new EasyConnect EC150 product is solving a number of installa-tion issues most people experienced within M2M have come across,” said Henrik Ebeklint, managing director, Intellicom Innovation AB. “To be able to minimize the time and complexity for the installation and commission-ing does not only bring peace of mind but also immediately cut cost and improves the level of quality.”

Advantech Launches New Rugged and Compact Ethernet Switches

The Industrial Automation Group of Advantech has introduced a new series of compact Ethernet switches to focus on machine and factory automation applications. These switches include full Gigabit (EKI-2728MI, EKI-2748FI, and EKI-2748CI) and 10/100M Ethernet (EKI-2548I, EKI-2548SI and EKI-2548MI) models. They are compact and able to meet a wide range of communication needs.

To enhance the connection reliability, the EKI-2748 modules are equipped with DMI (digital moni-toring interface) that can monitor the status of the SFP module, including temperature, voltage, current, and Tx and Rx power. To simply the confi guration process and port alarm, the EKI-2548 modules feature DIP switch confi guration. These compact and wide temperature compliant systems are easily installed in small places and support X-Ring (recovery time <10 ms), providing secure data communication, reliability and high-speed network infrastructures.

Westermo Releases New i-line FamilyWestermo has launched the i-line family of

Ethernet products optimized for machine building, building automation, factory automation and CCTV surveillance applications. The range includes stan-dard and compact Ethernet switches, media convert-ers and Power over Ethernet (PoE) switches.

The i-line offers industry grade components, easy-to-use features and reliable and consistent operation. All i-line devices are DIN rail mount-able and have dual 24 VDC power screw terminal inputs making them suitable for applications where a secondary power source is used to maintain high system integrity. Each device in the range incorporates a confi gurable relay that triggers an alarm signal for port or power events. The IP-31 rated aluminum alloy enclosure is designed to dissipate heat and enables a wide operating temperature range.

Among the products being introduced is a standard eight port 10/100TX Fast Ethernet switch (SDI-880). This is equipped with a 2 Gbit/s packet switch engine that supports two priority queues so as to provide optimum data forwarding performance. A second eight port Ethernet fi ber switch (SDI-862) has six 10/100TX ports and a choice of either two multimode or

single mode fi ber ports, enabling data to be transmitted for distances up to 2 km or 30 km respectively.

Two compact (111.8 mm by 30 mm by 98.2 mm) fi ve port switches are also available. The SDI-550 is a simple fi ve port 10/100Base-TX Ethernet switch, whilst the SDI-541 is a fi ve port industrial fast Ethernet switch with four 10/100Base-TX ports and a 100Base-FX port supporting both single and multimode fi ber. Both models can operate with variable power sources including a 24 VAC supply.

The i-line family also includes two PoE switches designed to ensure high-bandwidth uplink connection for large-scale surveillance in transporta-tion system networks. Models with either four or eight IEEE 802.3af Fast Ethernet PoE ports are available, both offering 2 Gigabit uplink ports. An integrated 12 V to 48 V power booster makes the units well suited to sup-port the deployment of standard PoE IP cameras on buses.

Completing the i-line range is a selection of Ethernet media converters. The MCI-211G converts 10/100/100TX to Gigabit fi ber and its hot swap-pable Small Form-factor Plugable (SFP) fi ber receiver allows the unit to operate over almost any type and distance of fi ber supported by SFP. The MCI-422 model is not only a two channel RJ45 to fi ber media converter, but also a compact four port 10/100 Mbit/s Fast Ethernet switch. The unit is simply confi gured as either device using a DIP switch. The device supports either multimode or single mode fi ber.

Banner Offers Compact Metal Housing for Intrinsically Safe DX99 Wireless Nodes

Banner Engineering has introduced a compact metal housing rated for Class I, Division 1 hazardous locations for its intrinsically safe DX99 wireless node product line. A DX99 node provides power to sensors directly within a haz-ardous area, with an integrated battery power supply that produces an intrinsically safe (IS) power source for the radio transceiver and external third party sensors. Equipped with its new housing, the DX99 node is more versatile while main-taining its convenient single chamber design by placing the battery, wiring terminal and radio together for easy mounting and connection to sensors.

Designed with industrial process applications in mind, DX99 nodes create a secure and reliable wireless network with features such as a built-in site survey tool that allows the installer to easily determine the quality of the wireless link. DX99 nodes additionally offer a combination of input op-tions including discrete, analog, thermocouple and RTD.

DX99 node radios transmit and receive wireless data up to 3 miles, 150 mw with 2 dBi antenna, while consuming very little power. Low-power electronics combined with unique sampling technology provide a stand-alone solution that operates for years on a single battery. Additional acces-sories, including fl ange and pipe mounting brackets, are also available.

FieldServer Technologies’ QuickServer BAS Gateways Awarded BTL Mark

FieldServer Technologies’ QuickServer build-ing automation gateway has received a BTL Mark under device profi le B-ASC. This is the fi rst fully-confi gurable building automation gateway to be BTL certifi ed. The QuickServer gateway can interface up to 250 points utilizing BACnet/IP, BACnet MS/TP, LonWorks, JCI Metasys N2, Modbus TCP, Modbus RTU and SNMP.

BACnet International BACnet Testing Laboratory (BTL) certifi cation is the highest level of BACnet conformance tests available for BACnet products. Products that are BTL certifi ed are viewed by the BACnet community as the highest quality and most reliable products on the market today.

Networking


Beckhoff Automation Releases WLAN Solution for Industrial Applications

In order to provide cost-effective wireless solutions to machine builders and manufacturers in North America, Beckhoff Automation has introduced the new CU8890 WLAN adapter. With the recently FCC certifi ed CU8890, Beckhoff has expanded its range of Industrial PC accessories with a WLAN module for industrial use.

The USB-to-WLAN adapter permits wireless integration of Industrial PCs into an Ethernet network. With regard to its electromagnetic compatibility, the DIN rail mounted WLAN box complies with rigorous industrial standards making it well-suited for use in harsh manufacturing environments.

The FCC certifi ed Beckhoff CU8890 supports the WLAN standard IEEE 802.11 b/g. An integrated DIN rail adapter allows convenient installation in control cabinets. When connected to an Industrial PC with USB port, the controller facilitates the fi eldbus-neutral exchange of all UDP/TCP-based data and can be used both as an access point and as a client. Client drivers are available for Windows XP, Embedded Standard and Windows CE and, therefore, for all Beckhoff Industrial PC and Embedded PC series. Software drivers for Windows XP and Embedded Standard make it possible for the CU8890 to also be operated as an access point.

The CU8890 features a reverse SMA plug, to which various radio anten-nas to suit the respective environment can be attached. Beckhoff offers a complete range of antennas and cables for the most diverse applications and conditions. Depending on ambient conditions, the free-fi eld distance between two CU8890 modules may be up to 984-ft. The user can choose between 11 channels in the 2.4 GHz band, to adhere to country-specifi c regulations where necessary.

Lantronix Launches ManageLinx 3.0 to Extend the Reach Of Cloud Computing to Virtually Any Device

Lantronix, Inc. has released ManageLinx 3.0. The previous version of ManageLinx provided simple and secure remote access and management for virtually any piece of equipment behind fi rewalls. This new release extends the reach of cloud-based computing to machines, devices and applications which may be located behind fi rewalls. ManageLinx 3.0 brings cloud-based computing to machine-to-machine (M2M) and machine-to-application communications. Rather than the ongo-ing investment in hardware and software needed to run applications in the enterprise, machines can now access the cloud to take advantage of robust computing technology.

ManageLinx 3.0 offers improvements in the user experience, a tenfold increase in the total number of devices supported, and numerous enterprise-class improvements in features and functionality, particularly in secu-rity and redundancy. ManageLinx 3.0 is the key enabling and building block technology for AccessMyDevice.com. AccessMyDevice.com is an enterprise-grade, Internet-based remote access service enabling business and technology professionals to easily view, manage, control and service virtually any device from a web browser.

The new product supports the addition of VIP Access to microprocessor-based designs and 3rd party networked equipment. Throughput and scal-ability has been enhanced by the re-design of the infrastructure to support 10 times the number of devices. The new unit is also fully compatible with all existing ManageLinx equipment in the fi eld and was designed in collaboration with customers to delivers value immediately with a marked increase in functionality.

www.remotemagazine.com

Security - Feature


Jason Benedict, Marketing ManagerIveda Solutions

As a remote site operator, supervisor or fi eld technician you’ve seen your fair share of disparate geographical sites, each with varying levels of safety and security concerns along with extreme weather conditions. However, one concern that is not often kept top-of-mind, mostly due to competing essential needs and low operating budgets, is the emergency response and preparedness to terrorist attacks.

Catastrophic FailureAlthough it may seem lofty and far-fetched for some remote site opera-

tors to believe their site might be targeted as part of an interconnected threat, directors and operators of key resource facilities must maintain their vigilance to the risk prevention, protection and preparedness to the seriousness of these potential threats.

Poised to cause catastrophic failure to our na-tion’s critical infrastructure, one malicious attack to a remote critical site or key resource can be devastating to an entire population. It can leave residents and commercial businesses without water, electricity, gas or other precious resources. Michael Chertoff, secretary of Homeland Security has iden-tifi ed the risk to catastrophic failure as a complex mix of manmade and naturally occurring threats and hazards, including terrorist attacks, accidents, natural disasters and other emergencies. Not only can an initial attack cause harm to the targeted sector and its physical location of the incident, but it can also produce a cascading effect on all other sectors due to their dependency and interdepen-dency upon each other’s resources.

For example, the energy infrastructure is divided into three interrelated segments: electric-ity, petroleum and natural gas. This sector alone fuels and breathes life into the heart of all other resources. The incapacity or destruction of this sec-tor would leave a debilitating impact on our safety, security, public health, economy and the continuity of our everyday life. And, although there are many safety and security measures available today, our nation’s critical infrastructure has become directly and indirectly vulnerable, pushing key resource directors to advance towards innovative security measures such as Qualifi ed Anti-Terrorism Technology (QATT).

Qualified Anti-Terrorism TechnologyMesa, Arizona’s Energy Resource Department, who provides electric

utility service to approximately 15,000 residential and commercial custom-ers along with natural gas to more than 52,000 homes and businesses within a 365-square-mile area have already jumped on-board and begun capital-izing on cloud-based video surveillance services that offer Qualifi ed Anti-Terrorism Technology. QATT is any technology that is designed, developed, modifi ed or procured for preventing, detecting, identifying or deterring acts of terrorism or limiting the harm such acts might otherwise cause.

Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, congress enacted The Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies Act of 2002 (SAFETY Act). This federal law provides unprecedented immu-nity, liability caps, defenses and other incentives available to private or governmental entities who use products, technologies or services, whether for protecting themselves or protecting others, that attempt to deter, identify, protect against, prevent or mitigate a terrorist act. In short, a company that implements technology designated or certifi ed per the SAFETY Act has the right to seek immediate dismissal of civil claims if sued following an act

of terrorism. That company also has the same right if sued for property or personal injury damages caused by failure of the QATT.

Although Mesa has not experienced any interconnected threats that warrant a matter of national security, its remote site operators and directors have found comfort knowing their key resources and critical infrastructure is safe and protected by qualifi ed anti-terrorism technology. “The comfort of knowing that a location with tens of thousands of dollars of equip-ment is safe and secure is one less item to be anxious about,” said Frank McRae, director of Energy Resources Department for Mesa. McRae quickly recognized the benefi ts of (QATT) and employed Iveda Solutions a DHS SAFETY Act Designated provider of real-time remote video surveillance and centralized video hosting services.

Implementing Innovative ServicesIveda Solutions’ enterprise class video hosting

architecture, utilizing a secure, remote, data center, allows customers like Mesa’s Energy Resource Department to access and manage their security sur-veillance systems from any Web browser anywhere in the world there is Internet-connectivity. Prior to installing surveillance cameras and using managed video services, remote access to Mesa’s critical site proved challenging due to an understaffed depart-ment and lean city budgets. This in turn forced McRae to rely on Mesa’s over extended Police De-partment to patrol the area at random, an expensive alternative that highlighted the need for live video surveillance through cloud computing.

Cloud computing is not a new concept. Howev-er, live video surveillance through cloud computing is new. Instead of using physical security or on-site digital/network video recorders, surveillance video is centrally hosted at a remote data center. This allows end-users immediate access and retrieval of live and archived video footage; much like online banking and E-mail is accomplished through a Web browser. When using video surveillance hosted in the cloud, customers simply log in, customize

their settings, and start watching their cameras no matter where they are geographically located. Cloud computing allows remote site operators to increase their safety and security measures based on immediate needs and without having to invest in new infrastructure or training new personnel. The result is usually lower cost and greater effi ciencies, not to mention rapid deployment of proven and effective technology.

“It is now 2011, not 1999. Technology has evolved. There are innovative approaches to accomplishing many tasks that we would not have been able to economically or effectively see work in the past. What’s important here is that organizations need to give these innovations a try and then develop policies for scalable and continued success,” said David Ly CEO and founder of Iveda Solutions.

“We have a unique capability to be able to support our nation’s critical infrastructure safety and security needs through Iveda Solutions’ hosted services,” added Ly.

Using Internet-accessible cameras, hosted by Iveda Solutions, McRae, his staff and the Mesa Police Department are now able to simultane-ously gain live visual verifi cation of events as they unfold a proactive versus after-the-fact solution. “Initially, the services were planned to catch perpetrators. Since several initial responses by PD to suspicious behavior, the potentially criminal activity has diminished,” said McRae. When asked what McRae believes to be the key success to the diminishing presence of criminal or suspicious activity at his remote site, he said, “continuous sur-veillance.” Although continuous surveillance may seem cost prohibitive for some remote site directors, McRae implemented a solution that he and his

Remote Site Security: Protecting Critical Infrastructure & Key ResourcesImplementing Qualified Anti-Terrorism Technology Through Live Video Surveillance

Security


staff have found to be a success while operating within their budget. Mesa’s Energy Resource Department has employed the help of Iveda

Solutions’ intervention specialists to watch their critical site in real time, from a remote location during designated hours. Because operators in McRae’s department are extremely busy running critical systems and moni-toring existing alarms their personnel does not have the time to effectively oversee any more sites, equipment or much less watch a live streaming video feed from their cameras, 24 hours a day. Instead, McRae established a protocol that allows his department to keep an eye on the cameras during the day while Iveda Solutions’ intervention specialists watch the cameras at night. Depending upon the seriousness of a situation, and the type of activity occurring on the site, interven-tion specialists notify his staff or the Mesa Police Department.

When McRae goes home for the night intervention specialists take over to watch his cameras in real time. When he returns to work McRae is able to quickly review any incidents through a daily surveillance report (that he receives via email) with time and date stamped snapshots, including detailed descriptions of events that were captured the night before. This solution has not only allowed McRae, his staff and the Mesa Police Department to reduce false alarms and the cost associated with dispatching personnel or police offi cers to the site, but has also increased the safety and security of the neighboring vicinity resulting in diminishing criminal activity and fewer graffi ti vandals.

McRae’s innovative strategy for implementing the use of Qualifi ed Anti-Terrorism Technology to protect Mesa’s critical infrastructure and key resources has proven itself so effective that McRae is now committed to in-stalling between 10 and 20 self-contained, wireless surveillance units to per-

form simultaneous spot checks at an increased number of critical sites and high-need areas. Since most of these disparate sites have limited Internet-connectivity these portable surveillance units are well-suited because they run on leading broadband cellular networks and come pre-confi gured and ready for deployment. All that is needed is power and a cellular data card.

Real-Time Security SolutionsWhether you’re a remote site operator

with one critical site or a director oversee-ing hundreds of disparate geographical resources throughout the globe, you need a security solution that provides live visual verifi cation and situational assessment of each site at a moment’s notice. With the advancement of high-speed, broadband technology and the convergence of physi-cal security melding with Internet-based services, live video surveillance and centralized video hosting through cloud computing may be the answer. Remember, the key to preventing threats and mitigating risks is having the technology to detect and

deter acts of terrorism before it happens. Vendors that display the SAFETY Act designation logo offer products and services approved as anti-terrorism technology, providing proven levels of liability protection to its users.

Jason Benedict is the marketing manager for Iveda Solutions, a pro-vider of online security technology including video hosting and real-time video-surveillance services. Iveda Solutions was awarded the SAFETY Act designation by the US Department of Homeland Security as a qualifi ed anti-terrorism technology provider. For information call 800-385-8616 or visit www.ivedasolutions.com.

Security systems using cloud computing allow for data and video to be stored securely and sites to be monitored 24/7 through any internet enabled device.

www.batterypoweronline.com

Security - Products & Services


New Key Differ Database Improves Iso-Lok Effi ciencyCastell Safety International has

launched an improved and more effi cient padlock differ recording database for its Iso-Lok range of lockout tagout (LOTO) products. The Iso-Lok padlock range is designed to uphold the integrity of the user’s LOTO safety system by guarantee-ing that each padlock on any one site is unique; that each one ‘differs’ from the others so that it can only be unlocked by the specifi c key meant for it. This is achieved by supplying each padlock with a distinct barrel which has a differ (key) number associated with that barrel.

Every differ number is stored on the Iso-Lok database, referenced against the customer and the site it was delivered to. This enables the com-pany to very simply and reliably identify differs previously supplied in the past and therefore prevent any padlock differ duplication.

Iso-Lok is the only company to automatically record differs on a site or company-wide basis rather than just per order, ensuring the validity of and enhancing their customers’ safety systems over time. The newly developed database allows the company to process orders more effi ciently, trace differs per site more easily and gather more data more quickly.

Longwatch Introduces XLP Low Power Video Surveillance System for Remote Areas

Originally developed for a major oil and gas company to monitor remote wells in North America, the Longwatch XLP low power video surveillance system is powered by solar cells and batteries. The system hibernates in a low-power standby mode until an external sensor, such as a motion detector or intrusion alarm, or a command from the central control room sends it a signal to wake up. The system immediately records a short video alarm clip, transmits it to a remote operator at a central HMI/SCADA system and con-

tinues to record video on its disk until commanded to return to hibernation.The XLP system is well suited for well sites currently operating with

traditional instrumentation network communications. These well sites typi-cally use low-bandwidth line-of-sight VHF radios with industrial protocols such as Modbus. The XLP system can transmit its video clip to the control room using an RF data link, where it can be viewed using the Longwatch Viewer or integrated into the HMI/SCADA system. The Longwatch soft-ware makes minimal use of the available bandwidth, so it does not interfere with control and instrumentation data. The XLP can also use Ethernet, wireless, cell phone or satellite communications when power consumption or bandwidth is not a concern.

Once the operator sees the alarm video clip and message on the HMI screen, he or she can then command the Longwatch system to transmit live video and remotely pan, tilt and zoom the site cameras to further investi-gate process or intrusion alarms. This allows the operator to see exactly what is happening at the remote location and determine the next course of action, such as dispatching a maintenance crew to repair a leak or summoning the local police to deal with intruders. Video enables the opera-tor to quickly decide the best action to take to provide safety and reduce downtime or environmental impact.

The low-power video surveillance system is designed to operate on a minimal power budget. At many remote well sites, the instrumentation, controls, RF communications and the video system are all powered by a solar system and batteries. Each component has to conform to a rigid power budget. For that reason, the Longwatch XLP system goes into hibernation mode to conserve power.

In hibernation mode, the Longwatch XLP system’s processor, solid-state disk and most peripherals are inactive, so that it consumes very little power while waiting for a wakeup signal. The wakeup signal can be an intrusion alarm, process alarm, or a request from a remote system, such as the central HMI/SCADA system. The Longwatch system can be confi gured to return to hibernation mode either automatically or on command after a period of activity.

For such an application, where the video surveillance system must re-spond instantly, digital cameras can’t be used. Not designed for hibernation, digital cameras take a minute or longer to “boot up,” and can miss valuable video coverage. For that reason, Longwatch recommends using traditional analog video cameras, which turn on almost instantly. With analog video cameras, the low power Longwatch XLP video surveillance system can begin capturing live video within six to seven seconds of an intrusion or process alarm, up to 10 times faster than a digital camera.

The XLP uses an Advantech UNO 2173 Atom-based computer. The UNO 2173 has a 1.6 GHz Atom processor, 1 GB of memory, Windows XP/E operating system, and battery-backed SRAM. When operating, the fanless UNO requires only 12 W of power.

Based on Longwatch’s requirements, Advantech’s DTOS group created a custom digital I/O board for this application so that it could monitor digital inputs even in hibernation mode. It takes inputs from gate sensors, motion detectors and intrusion alarms or digital inputs from the site’s RTU, such as leak detectors and pressure switches. When it detects one of the digital inputs, it wakes up the XLP video system. When the XLP’s computer and UNO I/O board are in hibernation mode, the entire system consumes less than 2.5 W.

New JPTMC-01 IP Based PWM PTZ ControllerThe JPTMC-01 PWM PTZ controller is an IP based, proportional speed

four channel motion controller. The unit’s features include a closed loop DC servo system with tunable PID and a virtual joystick Web interface allowing variable speed control across a LAN, WLAN or the Internet.

This compact PC/104 form factor controller has been designed to provide pan-tilt and zoomfocus positional control for a camera and power zoom lens combination. The control’s precise Jog capability allows large

www.remotemagazine.com/atenga.html

Security

Remote Site & Equipment Management Febraury/March 2011 25

focal length power zoom lens adjustments to be made easily.

Other features include 20 user defi ned presets, MiniPage display for integration with NVR software, visual and digital positional display, DC supply voltage and ambient temperature display and an Aux relay which can be turned On, Off or Pulsed for a period of time. With its built in RS-232 and RS-485 interface, the controller can also be used with a video server, camera or joystick that supports Pelco D protocol.

EarthCam Unveils New Free Control Center 7 Application Customized for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch Users

EarthCam has released their Control Center 7 application for their clients who use the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. This app is available for free in the Apple App Store and allows the user to immediately view and control their public and private video cameras around the world in real-time over WiFi, 3G and Edge.

Features include the ability to remotely operate the pan, tilt, zoom controls, access presets and view any archived images from a graphical calendar interface. Additionally, users are able to utilize the built-in camera on the iPhone to take pictures and videos from project sites and automati-cally upload them into EarthCam’s online system and share progress and comments with team members. EarthCam clients can also monitor connec-tion speed, solar power status, battery charge, weather data and view the camera’s position on Google maps. With this app password details are saved securely allowing the camera to be accessed quickly with just one touch.

“With our new Control Center 7 app, our clients can now monitor any-thing securely from anywhere in the world with their Apple device,” said

Brian Cury, founder and CEO, EarthCam. “This unique app extends the control our clients desire giving them access to their cameras in real-time no matter where they are.”

CyberLock High-Security Electronic LocksCyberLock provides electronic access control and accountability

solutions nearly anywhere a mechanical lock is present. Each CyberLock cylinder is an electronic ver-sion of a standard mechanical lock cylinder. Retrofi tting lock hardware is as simple as removing a mechanical lock’s key-cylinder and replacing it with the electronic cylinder.

With more than 270 electronic lock cylinder designs, CyberLocks can be used to secure interior and exterior doors and cabinets, cargo activity, man-age access to computer carts and servers. CyberLock electronic cylinders, programmable keys, and access management software offer a variety of solutions that can quickly provide the physical security and key control an organization needs.

CyberLock provides tight control of overall access as each person’s key can be programmed with the specifi c access permissions they need to do their job; what locks they can open and when. Both the electronic key and lock record openings and exceptions including unauthorized attempts to enter. This detailed audit reporting and email alerts increase accountability and can be valuable when management needs to know who and when some-one has accessed an area.

The system’s electronic keys cannot be duplicated or copied at the local hardware store which literally erases the threat of unknown keys in circulation. If someone loses a key it can be quickly blocked from accessing any locks. Once installed, CyberLock completely eliminates the time and considerable expense of re-keying a facility.

Onsite Power - Products & Services


Nextreme’s eTEG HV37 Advances Energy Harvesting for Self-Powered Distributed Sensors and Sensor Networks

Nextreme Thermal Solutions has released the new eTEG HV37 thermoelectric power generator, the next entry in the high-voltage (HV) series of clean energy generators based on thin-fi lm thermoelectrics. The eTEG HV37 converts waste heat into electrical energy for a variety of self-pow-ered applications in the wireless sensor, aerospace and industrial device markets.

The eTEG HV37 is capable of producing 1.0 mW of output power and an open circuit voltage of 170 mV at a 10 T in a footprint of only 6 mm2. At 50 K T, the HV37 produces 24 mW of power and an open circuit volt-age of 850 mV. The module is thin at 0.6 mm high, and can be confi gured electrically in series to produce higher voltage and power outputs.

Nextreme’s eTEG devices generate electricity via the Seebeck Effect where a voltage is produced from the temperature differential produced by heat fl ow through the device.

“Deployment of distributed sensors and sensor networks have led to an increased interest in renewable and autonomous power sources,” said Dave Koester, vice president of engineering at Nextreme. “The use of waste heat is an attractive source of energy for many applications where power on the order of W-mW is required.”

The high voltage output of the HV37 is enabled by Nextreme’s micro-scale thermoelectric technology. Certain applications (e.g., generating power for wireless sensors) require a high density of thermoelectric ele-ments in order to generate power at low temperature differentials. Nex-treme’s patented thermal bump fabrication process can achieve thousands of elements per square centimeter.

The eTEG HV37 is a replacement module for the eTEG UPF40, Nextreme’s fi rst thin-fi lm power generator. The HV37 has similar power characteristics to the UPF40, but with much higher output voltage in a smaller footprint. The module is RoHS-compliant and manufactured using eutectic gold-tin (AuSn) solder, which enables assembly temperatures as high as 320°C.

Rice University Designs Better Batteries from the Bottom Up

Rice University researchers have moved a step closer to creating robust, three-dimensional microbatteries that would charge faster and hold other advantages over conventional lithium-ion batteries. They could power new generations of remote sensors, smart cards and fl exible electronics.

The batteries employ vertical arrays of nickel-tin nanowires encased in

PMMA, a widely used polymer best known as Plexiglas. The Rice labora-tory of Pulickel Ajayan found a way to reliably coat single nanowires with a smooth layer of a PMMA-based gel electrolyte that insulates the wires from the counter electrode while allowing ions to pass through.

“In a battery, you have two electrodes separated by a thick barrier,” said

Ajayan, professor in mechanical engineering and materials science and of chemistry. “The challenge is to bring everything into close proximity so this electrochemistry becomes much more effi cient.”

Ajayan and his team feel they’ve done that by growing forests of coated nanowires, millions of them on a fi ngernail-sized chip, for scalable micro-devices with greater surface area than conventional thin-fi lm batteries.

“You can’t simply scale the thickness of a thin-fi lm battery, because the lithium ion kinetics would become sluggish,” said Ajayan.

“We wanted to fi gure out how the proposed 3D designs of batteries can be built from the nanoscale up,” said Sanketh Gowda, a graduate student in Ajayan’s lab. “By increasing the height of the nanowires, we can increase the amount of energy stored while keeping the lithium ion diffusion dis-tance constant.”

The process builds upon the lab’s previous research to build coaxial nanowire cables. In the new work the researchers grew 10-micron-long nanowires via electrodeposition in the pores of an anodized alumina template. They then widened the pores with a simple chemical etching tech-nique and drop-coated PMMA onto the array to give the nanowires an even casing from top to bottom. A chemical wash removed the template.

The researches have built one-centimeter square microbatteries that hold more energy and that charge faster than planar batteries of the same electrode length. The team feels the PMMA coating will increase the num-ber of times a battery can be charged by stabilizing conditions between the nanowires and liquid electrolyte, which tend to break down over time.

The team is also studying how cycling affects nanowires that, like sili-con electrodes, expand and contract as lithium ions come and go. Electron microscope images of nanowires taken after many charge/discharge cycles showed no breaks in the PMMA casing, not even pinholes. This led the researchers to believe the coating withstands the volume expansion in the electrode, which could increase the batteries’ lifespans.

Eaton 9395 UPS Achieves SMaRT Gold Certifi cation, Helps Earn LEED Credit Points

Eaton Corp.’s 9395 uninterruptible power system (UPS) is the fi rst power quality product to receive a Sustainable Materials Rating Technology (SMaRT) Gold certifi cation. This makes the 9395 the fi rst UPS certifi ed to contribute to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) points for projects seeking LEED certifi cation from the US Green Building Council (USGBC).

SMaRT is the consensus sustainable product standard developed and administered by the non-profi t Institute for Market Transformation to Sus-tainability (MTS). SMaRT products must offer multiple environmental and economic benefi ts such as cost savings, design innovation, product differen-tiation and also meet life cycle environmental performance requirements.

The SMaRT Gold certifi ed 9395 can contribute to points in two LEED Credit Categories. For the Innovation in Design Credit, projects can use SMaRT certifi ed building materials and products that account for 2.5 per-cent of the total value of all building materials and products, based on cost. The 9395 can also contribute toward the Energy and Atmosphere Credit, which requires facilities demonstrate a percentage improvement in the proposed building performance rating compared with the baseline building performance rating.

“Data center managers, engineers and architects have realized the 9395 is a smart choice when it comes to three-phase power protection for large facilities due to its leading energy effi ciency, compact footprint and customizable design options,” said Jim Davis, director, product manage-ment, Eaton Power Quality and Control Operations. “Eaton’s SMaRT Gold certifi cation is the next step in documenting the green benefi ts associated with the production and use of our UPS.”

The 9395 SMaRT certifi cation resulted largely from Eaton’s commis-sioned life cycle assessment that compared everything from the materials used in manufacturing, to energy used during construction, to costs associ-ated with transporting the product.

www.remoteexpo.com

Industry News


Laird Technologies Acquires CattronLaird Technologies has acquired the Cattron Group International, Inc.

The purchase expands the scope of Laird Technologies’ wireless machine-to-machine (M2M) product offering and the markets those products serve. Cattron is a designer and supplier of high-reliability wireless remote control systems serving the railroad, mining and industrial markets globally. In addition to providing custom wireless Remote Control (RC) systems that enable external operation of heavy equipment and vehicles as well as ongo-ing service for these RC systems, Cattron provides fully hosted networked applications software enabling customers to monitor their remote controlled assets in real-time.

Cattron’s headquarters are in Sharpsville, Penn., and they have ad-ditional facilities in North America (Toronto, Montreal and Escondido, Calif.), Europe (Mönchengladbach, Germany; Walton-on-Thames, UK), South America (Campinas, Brazil), Africa (Johannesburg, South Africa), and Asia (Shanghai, China).

“Cattron’s leading position in the rail, mining and industrial markets that Laird Technologies does not currently serve will help us grow more broadly in these markets,” said Martin Rapp, CEO of Laird Technologies. “Their experiences and capabilities in providing broad applications software and full systems will help Laird Technologies continue to expand our offering in the large and rapidly growing M2M market.”

North American Energy Alliance (NAEA) Protects SCADA Systems with CipherOptics Network Encryption Solution

CipherOptics has announced that the North American Energy Alliance has deployed CipherOptics’ Advanced IPSec Network Encryption Solution as part of their NERC compliance process. NAEA owns a portfolio of 1755 megawatts of clean and effi cient electricity producing power stations located in the Northeastern United States.

“We had a need to encrypt our SCADA information to comply with the current North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) guidelines,” said Dominick Birolin, Network Engineer, NAEA. “We were looking for a solution that could protect our critical cyber assets and meet our unique deployment requirements when we found CipherOptics.”

“Latency was our biggest concern as we looked to protect our control data. Once we began evaluating the various options for encrypting our data, we found that point-to-point IPSec tunnels would have had a negative impact on network performance and latency,” said Birolin.

Capable of protecting data over any Layer 2, Layer 3, or Layer 4 network, CipherOptics solutions allow companies to encrypt data with standards based solutions that eliminate the need for IPSec tunnels or infra-structure modifi cations. With CipherOptics, companies can easily meet the demands for increased network security while maintaining the any-to-any low latency performance required by communication and business process-ing applications.

Hart Communication Foundation Releases HART 7 Update to DD Development and Testing Tools

The HARTÒ Communication Foundation has released Version 4.0 of the HART Device Description Integrated Development Environment (DD-IDE). The new DD-IDE Version 4.0 supports the HART enhanced Device Description Language (DDL) specifi cation, HART 7 and the development of device descriptions (DDs) for WirelessHART devices. The HART DD-IDE tool suite is a set of integrated software tools for effi cient development, testing and maintenance of enhanced HART DDs.

“The release of the DD-IDE Version 4.0 is part of the Foundation’s continuous improvement process and effort to enhance the development and testing of HART DDs for new or upgraded fi eld devices,” said Ed Ladd, Hart Foundation director of Technology Programs. “As the Hart standard for DD development and testing, the new DD-IDE tool set is receiving widespread support from device developers and system suppliers worldwide.”

Key components of the new DD-IDE Version 4.0 are: new HART 7 standard DDs; an updated reference host SDC-625 Smart Device Confi gu-rator including support for UTF-8 Unicode, an updated XMTR-DD device

simulator, an improved DDL Tokenizer that verifi es and encodes the DD source code into its advanced format; and new and improved Wizards for DD development. The DD-IDE Version 4.0 increases developer productiv-ity by simplifying DD development.

Device Description Language (IEC 61804-2, EDDL) has been a key ele-ment of the HART technology since 1990 and is the HART standard and the only technology endorsed by the HCF for confi guration of HART devices. The enhanced Device Description Language simplifi es and standardizes the presentation of intelligent device information for both automation suppliers and users worldwide.

Maestro Wireless Solutions and Telenor Connexion Form Global Partnership

Maestro Wireless Solutions, a provider of wireless solutions and indus-trial integration services and Telenor Connexion, a connectivity provider have formed a joint strategic partnership to answer to M2M market needs. Under this new agreement, Telenor Connexion will provide embedded connectivity solutions to Maestro Wireless Solutions’ portfolio of wireless industrial modems and integration services for the machine-to-machine (M2M) markets.

“We are delighted over the partnership. Together we can offer complete and highly reliable wireless solutions with a global reach. Like us, Maestro Wireless Solutions applies more than 10 years experience and knowhow of M2M communication. Their team is entirely focused on the evolution of the M2M market and wireless technologies worldwide. In addition, with opera-tions in Asia, Europe and the US their footprint matches ours,” said Thomas Strandin, VP of Sales APAC, Telenor Connexion.

Lakeland Electric Selects Sensus as Smart Grid Technology Provider

Lakeland Electric has selected Sensus as the technology provider for its smart grid program, which marks the second largest smart grid investment in the state. By implementing the Sensus FlexNet advanced metering infra-structure (AMI) solution, Lakeland’s smart grid program will support meter reading, distribution automation, home area networking (HAN) and demand response applications. The utility will leverage the benefi ts of reliable and secure two-way communications to increase operational effi ciency, improve management of peak load power and provide customers tools to participate in proactive energy management.

The project launched in February with the installation of 120,000 electric endpoints; including 10,000 meters equipped with remote connect and disconnect capabilities, 3,000 HAN displays and the implementation of time-of-use rates and customer web portals with near real-time data on energy usage. The utility has partnered with the Department of Energy to conduct a yearlong consumer behavior study and will use those fi ndings to refi ne rate structures. In the future, Lakeland will introduce load control programs, including programmable thermostats.

Sensus’ FlexNet AMI system adheres to open standards and commu-nicates via dedicated, primary-use FCC-licensed spectrum. The FlexNet system has earned the internationally recognized Wurldtech Achilles cyber-security certifi cation and leverages long-range radio to transmit at a higher power, to a greater range and with a lean infrastructure that can support multiple applications for electric, water and gas utilities.

“After evaluating various AMI technologies, we found that Sensus’ technologies will best enable us to satisfy a foundational tenant of the smart grid, which is to engage our customers in the energy ecosystem by provid-ing tools and information that enable them to manage their own usage and have more control over their energy bills,” said Randy Dotson, project manager of the Smart Grid Initiative at Lakeland Electric.

Industry News


FDT Group and CC-Link Sign Cooperation AgreementThe CC-Link Partner Association (CLPA) has signed a coopera-

tion agreement with the FDT Group to promote the use of the FDT as an international standard. Under the agreement CLPA will support the development of an annex of the protocol for the FDT standard to support the CC-Link family of networks including its CC-Link IE Field Gigabit Industrial Ethernet.

CLPA’s participation is signifi cant for the growth of FDT technology because of its pre-eminence in the Asian markets. FDT standardizes the communication and confi guration interface between all fi eld devices and host systems. It provides a common environment for accessing the devices’ most sophisticated features. Any device can be confi gured, operated and maintained over the CC-Link networks through the standardized user interface – regardless of supplier or type. In addition to CC-Link, FDT sup-ports more than 13 network protocols including Hart, Profi bus, Foundation Fieldbus, DeviceNet, Interbus, AS-Interface and others.

“We fi nd increasingly that users are demanding common tools to enable them to access and integrate intelligent fi eld devices,” said Steve Jones, European general manager of the CLPA. “Implementing the common environment provided by FDT provides this, but also gives us the potential to add new functionality for users of CC-Link networks.”

Harris Corp. to Acquire Schlumberger Global Connectivity Services

Harris Corp. has entered into a defi nitive agreement to acquire the Global Connectivity Services (GCS) business from Schlumberger Information Solutions, an operating unit of Schlumberger Limited. The acquisition will extend Harris’ capabilities as a global provider of mission-critical, end-to-end managed satellite communications services for customers operating in remote and harsh environments. GCS will be combined with recently ac-quired CapRock Communications to form Harris CapRock Communications.

With customers in more than 50 countries, Schlumberger GCS provides

global communication services for a wide range of customers primarily in the oil and gas industries, including Schlumberger. With principal opera-tions in the United Kingdom, Norway, Singapore and the US, Schlumberger GCS has 400 employees in more than 25 countries, as well as 12 globally deployed teleports, a 24/7 Network Operations Center (NOC), worldwide terrestrial infrastructure, and Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) manu-facturing capabilities in the U.K. and Singapore.

“Combining Schlumberger GCS with CapRock Communications will create an organization with unsurpassed global satellite network capabili-ties, broad service offerings, and a large experienced service team to pro-vide customers with superior remote and in-the-fi eld support,” said Howard L. Lance, chairman, president and CEO of Harris. “Harris CapRock Communications will be able to use its capabilities and expertise to offer customers the most secure, reliable and effi cient solutions in the industry.”

Under the terms of the agreement, Harris will purchase the Schlum-berger GCS business for $397.5 million in cash, subject to post-closing adjustments. The goodwill arising on completion of the acquisition will be an allowable tax expense with an estimated net present value of $50 mil-lion, resulting in an effective purchase price of $347.5 million. Excluding acquisition-related charges, the acquisition is expected to have minimal impact on Harris non-GAAP earnings in fi scal 2011, be slightly accretive in fi scal 2012, and a signifi cant contributor to earnings and growth in fi scal 2013 and beyond.

“Schlumberger has successfully developed its Global Connectivity Ser-vices business over the past 10 years to reach an extensive global products and services offering. This acquisition by Harris will ensure continued growth and new technology deployment in a focused communications organization,” said Tony Bowman, president of Schlumberger Information Solutions. “Schlumberger will continue to take advantage of these capabili-ties once the transaction is concluded through a long-term contract with Harris CapRock Communications.”

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Industry News


InduSoft Secures Patent for Method and System for Communicating Between an Embedded Device and Relational Databases

InduSoft secured a patent for a “Method and system for communicating between an embedded device and relational databases” This patent encom-passes the communication of the InduSoft Web Studio SCADA software between an embedded device and a remote database. In addition to SCADA software, InduSoft Web Studio also provides communication between human machine interface, supervisory control, data acquisition and B2B applications and remote databases.

The technology developed and patented by InduSoft created a layer of abstraction between the HMI/SCADA application and the databases. The result was an interface with added fl exibility. With this feature, which is

unique to Indusoft, it is easy for customers to integrate their SCADA/HMI applications with virtually any standard SQL relational databases, like MS SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, SYBASE, or even Historians like OSI-PI. HMIs running Windows Embedded CE or mobile devices can save and retrieve data from external databases in an intuitive and seamless manner. Typical applications include OEE dashboards, statistical process control (SPC), recipe management and store-and-forward among many others.

The method covered by the patent (US Patent No, 7,840,594 B2) de-scribes an API (application program interface) that interfaces an application that is requesting access to a database that has been pre-determined. This database is one that operates on an operating system, but does not operate as a database driver program. Communications are translated with the API, and a protocol stack formats the resulting commands and data into commu-nication signals for a specifi c protocol. Another protocol stack receives the header formatted communications signals, removes header data, and gener-ates database communications signals. This is received, and then a plurality of database formatted SQL commands are generated. The database format-ted SQL commands are then interfaced with the predetermined database.

Axis Reveals Cost of IP Surveillance Has Dropped Below Analog for Mid-Sized Installations

Axis Communications has announced the results of an independent study comparing costs of an analog versus an IP video surveillance system. The study, conducted by Lusax, a research group at Lund University in Sweden, demonstrated that an IP-based system represents on average 13 percent lower cost than a corresponding analog system.

Lusax and Axis based the study on a survey of integrators who were actively selling and installing both analog and IP-based systems. The integrators were asked to provide bids for both types of systems for a retail store with 14, 25 and 40 cameras, and for all three scenarios the IP-based system returned a lower total cost than the analog system.

“The market for IP security products has developed rapidly and is much more mature than only a few years ago, said Professor Thomas Kalling, leader of Lusax. “Both integrators and installers have learned to benefi t from using standard, off-the-shelf products for recording and storage, which has a positive effect on the total system cost.”

A similar study conducted in 2007 showed that an IP-based surveillance system was more cost-effi cient in installations, but only when the number of cameras exceeded 32.

“We are continuing to see the increasing benefi ts that modern IP technol-ogy brings to its customers, including scalability, quality and total cost of ownership,” said Fredrik Nilsson, general manager, Axis Communications Inc. “As IP adoption grows, cost-effectiveness needs to grow as well. This study validates the efforts Axis has made to deliver products that support that belief. We expect to see this cost advantage increase in the future as IP innovation continues, especially with the rise of hosted solutions.”

Calendar of EventsFebruary 2011 1-3, Distributech, San Diego, Calif. Contact www.distributech.com

7-9, Utility Telecom Forum, Reno, NV. Contact www.UTC.org

7-10, ARC’s 2011 World Industry Orlando Forum, Orlando, Fla. Contact www.arcweb.com

8-11, 2011 Utility Mangement Conference, Denver, Co. Contact www.awwa.org

16-18, Smart Remote Service Implementation, San Deigo, Calif. Contact www.remoteservicesevent.com

21-24, NATE 2011, Oklahoma City, OK. Contact www.natehome.com

23-March 2nd, SANS North American SCADA Summit 2011, Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Contact www.sans.org

March 20111-2, National SCADA Summit, Sydney, Australia. Contact www.scada-conference.com.au

7-11, IWCE Expo, Las Vegas, NV. Contact www.iwceexpo.com

8-10, OFC/NFOEC 2011, Los Angeles, Calif. Contact www.ofcn-foec.org

14-17, Satellite 2011, Washington DC. Contact www.satellitetoday.com

21-24, CTIA Wireless 2011, Orlando, Fla. Contact www.ctia.org

30-31, Mile High Automation Fair, Denver, Co. www.mhiac.com

www.radi.com

SCADA


The premise of the load balancing is to have multiple copies of consis-tent data distributed on different servers, or to evenly distribute the data on multiple servers. It makes the number of visits and the requested amount of data relatively consistent with each server no servers are left idle while others are consistently used.

However, the current effi ciency of the distributed system sending data to servers, and the distributed management approach, cannot meet the require-ments of the industrial information systems, MES and other systems. Mean-while, the solution of RAID has been well implemented using splitting the data to complete a distributed deployment. Using multiple copies of the data redundancy is the key of load balancing technology, and it is required to ensure consistency between redundant data.

Load balancing is mainly for clients to read historical data, to balance the load of the data query on multiple historian database servers in redun-dant systems, and to ensure the latest querying client will be responded to by the historian database server with the least load. When one of the histo-rian database servers in the redundant system cannot provide services, the client applications linked on this server can be redistributed to the available server in accordance with the load balancing.

Remotely Control or Monitor the Intelligent SystemGraphics technology is needed in the intelligent system to display the

information through graphs, pictures, reports and other visualized views. More and more customers want to get the latest information through the Internet. The function of web publishing based on Web Services can ensure users can remotely control or monitor intelligent systems via web browser.

A Process Historian Database is used with PC based KingView and KingSCADA monitoring and control solution software. KingView is designed for small and medium scale projects. KingView software can help users build a data information platform in automation industries. KingView

provides a graphic library that helps operations management, control and optimization. KingView is used in power, water conservancy, buildings, coal mine, environmental protection and metallurgy applications. KingSCADA is designed for large projects. KingSCADA software is designed based on customer input and feedback and caters to automation application needs. KingSCADA provides reusable components that speed up application devel-opment. For more information, please visit www.icpdas-usa.com/king.php.

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remote site security: protecting critical infrastructure & key

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