Tool for applications integration

Software package (configurator and runtime) dedicated to create applications for automation and industrial control systems or office .

It can be used not only in manufacturing plants, building management systems, power stations, waste-water processing facilities, for connecting corporate and control systems, but also for integrating data from various sources in office applications. 

Runtime software has three main parts:

• OPC client to communicate with external OPC servers
• OPC server to provide handled data for external applications over OPC or web services or for graphical user interface provided by another our application OPCExplorer
• soft -controller for data and parallel running tasks handling.

Configurator enables creating of easy or also very complex applications for data exchange between various data sources - OPC servers, OPC client applications, device communication drivers for external devices as sensors, actuators, programmable machines, data handling, monitoring, storing into process databases, creating trends, alarms, logging, reports, integrating to the on SOA (services oriented architecture) based systems. The system enables parallel running of tasks for data collecting and processing, working with process databases using built-in configurable database functions or SQL commands, periodical or single-shot launching of external programs and scripts at specified time or according to specified conditions.

The application based on OpcDbGateway can be created either preferably by configuring using configurator with many powerful debugging features as historic trends wizard and external OPC server address space mapping tool or by programming using external DLL modules. It is possible to program complex algorithms, special communication drivers within these external DLLs and then to add to the configured application part. The flexibility of such a solution is enormous. Using of external DLL enables also third-party software integration - for example integration of a communication driver for PC I/O cards.

Usage of OpcDbGateway - examples

• Industrial company unit/plant - with more technological units controlled by own programmable logical controllers (PLC) from various vendors from which it is necessary to transfer acquired data into a corporate information system, store in database, visualise on intranet or internet, store information about alarms, call maintenance in case of a malfunction, store processed data in log files, analyse measured data trends for maintenance planning with the help of algorithms configured directly in OpcDbGateway or by launching an external program, monitor and log maintenance incidences, monitor and control the communication infrastructure (switches, routers, computers, WiFi devices) that means data transfer between technological units and the corporate information system...
• A building in that many sensors (temperature, humidity, ...) are installed, it is necessary to control the air conditioning, analyse access to particular rooms...
• A machine or technoloogical device that is necessary to monitor and control and where sensors and actuators of various vendors are used.
• Testing of complex algorithms programmed with the help of specialised software utilities for modelling and simulation of dynamic systems and their interconnection with real data from/to a technological process.
• Data cross connection of different applications that have an OPC client interface.

OpcDbGateway has next basic features:

• internal OPC client can communicate synchronously or asynchronously with multiple local or remote OPC servers compliant with OPC DA 3.0, 2.05, 1.0 specifications at the same time. It can read from one external server and write to another. It's easy to create a bridge between two or more OPC servers.
• internal OPC server implements OPC DA 3.0, 2.05, 1.0, OPC Alarms and Events Version 1.0 a 1.10 specifications and  offers chosen data to external applications trough OPC interface or web services using according to the OPC XML DA specification. It enables for example  to create bridge between two or more OPC client applications or to offer data from external OPC servers to web services consumers.
• internal soft-controller enables to start tasks asynchronously or synchronously - alike as in PLC keeping the consistence of input and output data. The input and output data can be not only from external devices but also from connected process databases.
• to access databases the OpcDbGateway uses ODBC or other drivers that are installed in the computer. 
• configurator enables:
• create or edit configuration (application) also using graphical viewer
• effectively execute repaeting tasks using specialized wizards
• integrate external DLLs to the configuration, display information about DLL-functionality
• setup structure of process databases
• dubugging - settup of various logging levels , viewing system data of the running application
• watching data from internal OPC server 
• viewing of log-files
• checking of created configuration