FIELDBUS SUPPORT FOR PROCESS ANALYSIS

Fieldbus support for the analysis of process and control system operat ion is addressed in the Fieldbus Foundation's specification. Devices b ased on this specification will, as an integral part of their design, allow process inputs and outputs to be precisely sampled by the device without aliasing or skewing. This information may be accessed over an H1 or H2 fieldbus in an efficient manner without impacting control di stributed between field devices, An overview of the features defined b y the Fieldbus Foundation's specification for the support of process a nalysis is presented. Considerations given to filtering, variable samp le rates, and communication of process measurements are discussed. Als o, the manner in which fieldbus may influence future implementations, such as process identification for controller self-tuning, is reviewed . Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.