Introduction to SCDA Systems

INTRODUCTION

SCADA is “Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition”. Real-time industrial process

control systems used to centrally monitor and control remote or local industrial equipment
such as motors, valves, pumps, relays, sensors, etc. SCADA is Combination of telemetry
and Data Acquisition.

Previously without SCADA software, an industrial process was entirely controlled by

PLC, CNC, PID & micro controllers having programmed in certain languages or codes.
These codes were either written in assembly language or relay logic without any true
animation that would explain the process running. It is always easy to understand the
status of the process if it is shown with some animations rather than written codes. Hence
SCADA software came to existence and with some exclusive features it became internal
part of automation system.

SCADA is not just hardware but also software. It’s a concept. It’s a system as a
combination of special hardware, software and protocols. SCADA is used to control
chemical plant processes, oil and gas pipelines, electrical generation and transmission
equipment, manufacturing facilities, water purification and distribution infrastructure, etc.
For example, in a SCADA system a PLC can be used to control the flow of cooling water
as part of an industrial process. At the same time the supervisor can use the Host control
function to set the temperature for the flow of water. It can also have alarms and can
record the flow of water temperature and report back to The RTUs and PLCs are
responsible for data collection such as meter readings, equipment status etc and
communicate back to the SCADA system. This data can be stored in a database for later
analysis or monitored by a supervisor to take appropriate actions if required.

SCADA systems typically implement a distributed database, commonly referred to as a tag

database, which contains data elements called tags or points. A point represents a single
input or output value monitored or controlled by the system. Points can be either "hard" or
"soft". A hard point is representative of an actual input or output connected to the system,
while a soft point represents the result of logic and math operations applied to other hard
and soft points. Most implementations conceptually remove this distinction by making
every property a "soft" point (expression) that can equal a single "hard" point in the
simplest case. Point values are normally stored as value-timestamp combinations; the
 value and the timestamp when the value was recorded or calculated. A series of value-
timestamp combinations is the history of that point. It's also common to store additional
metadata with tags such as: path to field device and PLC register, design time comments,
and even alarming information

WHAT SCADA CAN DO FOR YOU?

SCADA is not a specific technology, but a type of application. SCADA stands for
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition — any application that gets data about a system
in order to control that system is a SCADA application.

A SCADA application has two elements:

1. The process/system/machinery you want to monitor a control — this can be a

power plant, a water system, a network, a system of traffic lights, or anything else.
2. A network of intelligent devices that interfaces with the first system through
sensors and control outputs. This network, which is the SCADA system, gives you
the ability to measure and control specific elements of the first system.

You can build a SCADA system using several different kinds of technologies and
protocols. This white paper will help you evaluate your options and decide what kind of
SCADA system is best for your needs.

WHERE IS SCADA USED?

You can use SCADA to manage any kind of equipment. Typically, SCADA systems are
used to automate complex industrial processes where human control is impractical —
systems where there are more control factors, and more fast-moving control factors, than
human beings can comfortably manage.

Around the world, SCADA systems control:

• Electric power generation, transmission and distribution: Electric utilities use

SCADA systems to detect current flow and line voltage, to monitor the operation of
circuit breakers, and to take sections of the power grid online or offline.
 • Water and sewage: State and municipal water utilities use SCADA to monitor and
regulate water flow, reservoir levels, pipe pressure and other factors.

• Buildings, facilities and environments: Facility managers use SCADA to control

HVAC, refrigeration units, lighting and entry systems.
• Manufacturing: SCADA systems manage parts inventories for just-in-time
manufacturing, regulate industrial automation and robots, and monitor process and
quality control.
• Mass transit: Transit authorities use SCADA to regulate electricity to subways,
trams and trolley buses; to automate traffic signals for rail systems; to track and
locate trains and buses; and to control railroad crossing gates.
• Traffic signals: SCADA regulates traffic lights, controls traffic flow and detects
out-of-order signals.
As you can imagine, this very short list barely hints at all the potential applications for
SCADA systems. SCADA is used in nearly every industry and public infrastructure
project — anywhere where automation increases efficiency.

What’s more, these examples don’t show how deep and complex SCADA data can be. In
every industry, managers need to control multiple factors and the interactions between
those factors. SCADA systems provide the sensing capabilities and the computational
power to track everything that’s relevant to your operations.

HOW DOES SCADA SYSTEM WORK?

A SCADA system performs four functions:
1. Data acquisition

2. Networked data communication

3. Data presentation

4. Control
These functions are performed by four kinds of SCADA components:
1. Sensors (either digital or analog) and control relays that directly interface with the
managed system.
 2. Remote telemetry units (RTUs). These are small computerized units deployed in
the field at specific sites and locations. RTUs serve as local collection points for
gathering reports from sensors and delivering commands to control relays.

3. SCADA master units. These are larger computer consoles that serve as the central
processor for the SCADA system. Master units provide a human interface to the
system and automatically regulate the managed system in response to sensor inputs.

4. The communications network that connects the SCADA master unit to the RTUs
in the field.
THE WORLD’S SIMPLEST SCADA SYSTEM

The simplest possible SCADA system would be a single circuit that notifies you of one
event. Imagine a fabrication machine that produces widgets. Every time the machine
finishes a widget, it activates a switch. The switch turns on a light on a panel, which tells a
human operator that a widget has been completed.

Obviously, a real SCADA system does more than this simple model. But the principle is
the same. A full-scale SCADA system just monitors more stuff over greater distances.
Let’s look at what is added to our simple model to create a full-scale SCADA system:

DATA ACQUISITION
First, the systems you need to monitor are much more complex than just one machine with
one output. So a real-life SCADA system needs to monitor hundreds or thousands of
sensors. Some sensors measure inputs into the system (for example, water flowing into a
reservoir), and some sensors measure outputs (like valve pressure as water is released from
the reservoir).

Some of those sensors measure simple events that can be detected by a straightforward
on/off switch, called a discrete input (or digital input). For example, in our simple model
of the widget fabricator, the switch that turns on the light would be a discrete input. In real
life, discrete inputs are used to measure simple states, like whether equipment is on or off,
or tripwire alarms, like a power failure at a critical facility.

Some sensors measure more complex situations where exact measurement is important.
These are analog sensors, which can detect continuous changes in a voltage or current
input. Analog sensors are used to track fluid levels in tanks, voltage levels in batteries,
temperature and other factors that can be measured in a continuous range of input.
 For most analog factors, there is a normal range defined by a bottom and top level. For
example, you may want the temperature in a server room to stay between 60 and 85
degrees Fahrenheit. If the temperature goes above or below this range, it will trigger a
threshold alarm. In more advanced systems, there are four threshold alarms for analog
sensors, defining Major Under, Minor Under, Minor Over and Major Over alarms.

DATA COMMUNICATION
In our simple model of the widget fabricator, the “network” is just the wire leading from
the switch to the panel light. In real life, you want to be able to monitor multiple systems
from a central location, so you need a communications network to transport all the data
collected from your sensors.

Early SCADA networks communicated over radio, modem or dedicated serial lines. Today
the trend is to put SCADA data on Ethernet and IP over SONET. For security reasons,
SCADA data should be kept on closed LAN/WANs without exposing sensitive data to the
open Internet.

Real SCADA systems don’t communicate with just simple electrical signals, either.
SCADA data is encoded in protocol format. Older SCADA systems depended on closed
proprietary protocols, but today the trend is to open, standard protocols and protocol
mediation.

Sensors and control relays are very simple electric devices that can’t generate or interpret
protocol communication on their own. Therefore the remote telemetry unit (RTU) is
needed to provide an interface between the sensors and the SCADA network. The RTU
encodes sensor inputs into protocol format and forwards them to the SCADA master; in
turn, the RTU receives control commands in protocol format from the master and transmits
electrical signals to the appropriate control relays.

DATA PRESENTATION
The only display element in our model SCADA system is the light that comes on when the
switch is activated. This obviously won’t do on a large scale — you can’t track a light
board of a thousand separate lights, and you don’t want to pay someone simply to watch a
light board, either.
 A real SCADA system reports to human operators over a specialized computer that is
variously called a master station, an HMI (Human-Machine Interface) or an HCI (Human-
Computer Interface).

The SCADA master station has several different functions. The master continuously
monitors all sensors and alerts the operator when there is an “alarm” — that is, when a
control factor is operating outside what is defined as its normal operation. The master
presents a comprehensive view of the entire managed system, and presents more detail in
response to user requests. The master also performs data processing on information
gathered from sensors — it maintains report logs and summarizes historical trends.

An advanced SCADA master can add a great deal of intelligence and automation to your
systems management, making your job much easier.

CONTROL
Unfortunately, our miniature SCADA system monitoring the widget fabricator doesn’t
include any control elements. So let’s add one. Let’s say the human operator also has a
button on his control panel. When he presses the button, it activates a switch on the widget
fabricator that brings more widget parts into the fabricator.

Now let’s add the full computerized control of a SCADA master unit that controls the
entire factory. You now have a control system that responds to inputs elsewhere in the
system. If the machines that make widget parts break down, you can slow down or stop the
widget fabricator. If the part fabricators are running efficiently, you can speed up the
widget fabricator.

If you have a sufficiently sophisticated master unit, these controls can run completely
automatically, without the need for human intervention. Of course, you can still manually
override the automatic controls from the master station.

In real life, SCADA systems automatically regulate all kinds of industrial processes. For
example, if too much pressure is building up in a gas pipeline, the SCADA system can
automatically open a release valve. Electricity production can be adjusted to meet demands
on the power grid. Even these real-world examples are simplified; a full-scale SCADA
system can adjust the managed system in response to multiple inputs.

ARCHITECTURE
In this section we are going to details which describe the common architecture required for
the SCADA products.

HARDWARE ARCHITECTURE

The basic hardware of the SCADA system is distinguished into two basic layers: the
"client layer" which caters for the man machine interaction and the "data server layer"
which handles most of the process data control activities. The data servers communicate
with devices in the
 field through process controllers. Process controllers, e.g. PLC’s, are connected to the data
servers either directly or via networks or field buses that are proprietary (e.g. Siemens H1),
or non-proprietary (e.g. Profibus). Data servers are connected to each other and to client
stations via an Ethernet LAN.

SOFTWARE ARCHITECTURE

The SCADA products are multi-tasking and are based upon a real-time database (RTDB)
located in one or more servers. Servers are responsible for data acquisition and handling
like polling controllers, alarm checking, calculations, logging and archiving) on a set of
parameters, typically to which those are connected.

However, it is possible to have dedicated servers for particular tasks, e.g. historian, data
logger, alarm handler.
COMMUNICATION
INTERNAL COMMUNICATION
Server-client and server-server communication is in general on a publish-subscribe and
event-driven basis and uses a TCP/IP protocol, i.e., a client application subscribes to a
parameter which is owned by a particular server application and only changes to that
parameter are then communicated to the client application.

ACCESS TO DEVICES
The data servers poll the controllers at a user defined polling rate. The polling rate may be
different for different parameters. The controllers pass the requested parameters to the data
CLASSIFICATION BASED ON GENERATION
servers. Time stamping of the process parameters is typically performed in the
controllers and this time-stamp is taken over by the data server. If the controller and
communication protocol used support unsolicited data transfer then the products will
support this too.

The products provide communication drivers for most of the common PLCs and widely
used field-buses, e.g., Modbus. Of the three field buses that are recommended are, both
Profibus and Worldfip are supported but CANbus often not. Some of the drivers are based
on third party products (e.g., Applicom cards) and therefore have additional cost
associated with them. VME on the other hand is generally not supported.

A single data server can support multiple communications protocols; it can generally
support as many such protocols as it has slots for interface cards. The effort required to
develop new drivers is typically in the range of 2-6 weeks depending on the complexity
and similarity with existing drivers, and a driver development toolkit is provided for this.

SCADA systems have evolved through 3 generations as follows:

• FIRST GENERATION: "MONOLITHIC"

 In the first generation, computing was done by mainframe systems. Networks didn’t
exist at the time SCADA was developed. Thus SCADA systems were independent
systems with no connectivity to other systems. Wide Area Networks were later
designed by RTU vendors to communicate with the RTU. The communication
protocols used were often proprietary at that time. The first-generation SCADA system
was redundant since a back-up mainframe system was connected at the bus level and
was used in the event of failure of the primary mainframe system.

• SECOND GENERATION: "DISTRIBUTED"

The processing was distributed across multiple stations which were connected through a
LAN and they shared information in real time. Each station was responsible for a
particular task thus making the size and cost of each station less than the one used in First
Generation. The network

protocols used were still mostly proprietary, which led to significant security problems for
any SCADA system that received attention from a hacker. Since the protocols were
proprietary, very few people beyond the developers and hackers knew enough to
determine how secure a SCADA installation was. Since both parties had vested interests in
keeping security issues quiet, the security of a SCADA installation was often badly
overestimated, if it was considered at all.

• THIRD GENERATION: "NETWORKED"

These are the current generation SCADA systems which use open system architecture
rather than a vendor-controlled proprietary environment. The SCADA system utilizes
open standards and protocols, thus distributing functionality across a WAN rather than
a LAN. It is easier to connect third party peripheral devices like printers, disk drives,
 and tape drives due to the use of open architecture. WAN protocols such as Internet
Protocol (IP) are used for communication between the master station and
communications equipment. Due to the usage of standard protocols and the fact that
many networked SCADA systems are accessible from the Internet, the systems are
potentially vulnerable to remote cyber-attacks. On the other hand, the usage of standard
protocols and security techniques means that standard security improvements are
applicable to the SCADA systems, assuming they receive timely maintenance and
updates.

A Human-Machine Interface or HMI is the apparatus which presents process data to a

human operator, and through which the human operator controls the process.

An HMI is usually linked to the SCADA system's databases and software programs, to
provide trending, diagnostic data, and management information such as scheduled
maintenance procedures, logistic information, detailed schematics for a particular sensor or
machine, and expert-system troubleshooting guides.

The HMI system usually presents the information to the operating personnel graphically,
in the form of a mimic diagram. This means that the operator can see a schematic
representation of the plant being controlled. For example, a picture of a pump connected to
a pipe can show the operator that the pump is running and how much fluid it is pumping
through the pipe at the moment. The operator can then switch the pump off. The HMI
software will show the flow rate of the fluid in the pipe decrease in real time. Mimic
diagrams may consist of line graphics and schematic symbols to represent process
elements, or may consist of digital photographs of the process equipment overlain with
animated symbols.
The HMI package for the SCADA system typically includes a drawing program that the
operators or system maintenance personnel use to change the way these points are
represented in the interface. These representations can be as simple as an on-screen traffic
light, which represents the state of an actual traffic light in the field, or as complex as a
multi-projector display representing the position of all of the elevators in a skyscraper or
all of the trains on a railway.

An important part of most SCADA implementations is alarm handling. The system

monitors whether certain alarm conditions are satisfied, to determine when an alarm event
has occurred. Once an alarm event has been detected, one or more actions are taken (such
as the activation of one or more alarm indicators, and perhaps the generation of email or
text messages so that management or remote SCADA operators are informed). In many
cases, a SCADA operator may have to acknowledge the alarm event; this may deactivate
some alarm indicators, whereas other indicators remain active until the alarm conditions
are cleared. Alarm conditions can be explicit - for example, an alarm point is a digital
status point that has either the value NORMAL or ALARM that is calculated by a formula
based on the values in other analogue and digital points - or implicit: the SCADA system
might automatically monitor whether the value in an analogue point lies outside high and
low limit values associated with that point. Examples of

alarm indicators include a siren, a pop-up box on a screen, or a colored or flashing area on
a screen (that might act in a similar way to the "fuel tank empty" light in a car); in each
case, the role of the alarm indicator is to draw the operator's attention to the part of the
system 'in alarm' so that appropriate action can be taken. In designing SCADA systems,
care is needed in coping with a cascade of alarm events occurring in a short time,
otherwise the underlying cause (which might not be the earliest event detected) may get
lost in the noise. Unfortunately, when used as a noun, the word 'alarm' is used rather
loosely in the industry; thus, depending on context it might mean an alarm point, an alarm
indicator, or an alarm event.
 Practical session

Introduction

For practically understand how SCADA systems work, students together with guide will try to
build the SCDA system using facilities like PLC, Arduino, Bluetooth modules USB cable and ni
LabVIEW.

With all above, it will be possible to monitor and control a task carried by a PLC, wirelessly or
by using a wired communication.

Building HMI

HMI, Human machine interface is the part of SCADA from where the user will interact with the
system.

Our HMI has been designed using LabVIEW.

Figure 1: HMI built using LabVIEW

What to cover in LabVIEW

1 Introduction

 Introduction to LabVIEW
 LabVIEW Environment
  Front Panel
 Block Diagram
 Acquiring a Signal VI
 Dataflow Programming
 Express Filter VI
 LabVIEW Documentation Resources
 Reduce Samples VI
 Debugging Techniques
 Debug Exercise (Main) VI
 Summary, Tips, and Tricks on Introduction to LabVIEW

2. Modular Programming

  Modular Programming
  Icons and Connector Panes
  Convert C to F VI
 Using SubVIs
 Thermometer VI
 Creating a SubVI from Sections of a VI
 Summary, Tips, and Tricks on Modular Programming

3. Repetition and Loops

 While Loops
 Auto Match VI
  For Loops
 Timed Temperature VI
 Accessing Previous Loop Data
 Accessing Previous Data VI
 Summary, Tips, and Tricks on Repetition and Loops

Example:

Complete the following steps to build a VI that measures temperature and displays it on a
waveform chart.

Front Panel
 1. Open a blank VI and build the front panel shown in Figure.

1. Place the vertical toggle switch, located on the Controls>>Buttons &

Switches palette, on the front panel. Label this switch Power. You use the switch
to stop the acquisition.
2. Place a waveform chart, located on the Controls>>Graph Indicators palette, on the
front panel. Label the chart Temperature History. The waveform chart displays
the temperature in real time.
3.  The waveform chart legend labels the plot Plot 0. Use the Labeling tool to
triple-click Plot 0 in the chart legend, and change the label to Temp.
4. The temperature sensor measures room temperature. Use the Labeling tool to
double-click 10.010.0 in the y-axis and type 9090 to rescale the chart. Leave the
x-axis in its default state.
5. Change −10.010.0 in the y-axis to 7070.
6. Label the y-axis Temp (Deg F) and the x-axis Time (sec).

Block Diagram

1. Select Window>>Show Block Diagram to display the block diagram.

2. Enclose the two terminals in a While Loop, as shown in the block diagram.

3. Right-click the conditional terminal and select Continue if True.

 4. Wire the objects as shown in Figure.

1.  Place the Thermometer VI on the block diagram. Select Functions>>All

Functions>>Select a VI and navigate to C:\Exercises\LabVIEW Basics
I\Thermometer.vi. This subVI returns one temperature measurement from the
temperature sensor.

Use the (Demo) Thermometer VI if you do not have a DAQ device available.

2.  Place the Wait Until Next ms Multiple function, located on

the Functions>>All Functions>>Time & Dialog palette, on the block diagram.
3.  Right-click the millisecond multiple input of the Wait Until Next ms
Multiple function, select Create>>Constant from the shortcut menu, type 500500,
and press the <Enter> key. The numeric constant specifies a wait
of 500ms500 ms so the loop executes once every half-second.

To measure temperature in Celsius, wire a Boolean True constant located on

the Functions>>Arithmetic & Comparison>>Express Boolean palette to the Temp
Scale input of the Thermometer VI. Change the scales on charts and graphs in
subsequent exercises to a range of 2020 to 3232 instead of 7070 to 9090.

5. Save the VI as Temperature Monitor.vi in the C:\Exercises\LabVIEW Basics I directory.

Run the VI

1. Display the front panel by clicking it or by selecting Window>>Show Front Panel.

2. Use the Operating tool to click the vertical toggle switch and turn it to the ON position.
3. Run the VI. The subdiagram within the While Loop border executes until the specified
condition is True. For example, while the switch is on (True), the Thermometer VI takes
and returns a new measurement and displays it on the waveform chart.
4. Click the vertical toggle switch to stop the acquisition. The condition is False, and the
loop stops executing.

Front Panel

1. Format and customize the x- and y-scales of the waveform chart.

1. Right-click the chart and select Properties from the shortcut menu to display
the Chart Properties dialog box.
2. Click the Format and Precision tab. Select Deg F (Y-axis) in the top pull-down
menu. Set the Digits of precision to 11.
3. Click the Plots tab and select different styles for the y-axis, as shown in Figure.

4. Select the Scales tab and select the Time (sec) (X-axis) in the top pull-down
menu. Set the scale options as shown in Figure. Set the Multiplier to 0.500.50 to
account for the 500 ms Wait function.
 5. In the Scales tab, select the Deg F (Y-axis) in the top pull-down menu. Set the
scale options as shown in Figure.

6. Click the OK button to close the dialog box when finished.

2. Right-click the waveform chart and select Data Operations>>Clear Chart from the
shortcut menu to clear the display buffer and reset the waveform chart.

When a VI is running, you can select Clear Chart from the shortcut menu.

3. Each time you run the VI, you first must turn on the vertical toggle switch and then click
the Run button due to the current mechanical action of the switch. Modify the mechanical
action of the vertical toggle switch so temperature is plotted on the graph each time you
run the VI, without having to first set the toggle switch.
1. Stop the VI if it is running.
2. Use the Operating tool to click the vertical toggle switch and turn it to
the ON position.
3. Right-click the switch and select Data Operations>>Make Current Value
Default from the shortcut menu. This sets the ON position as the default value.

4.  Right-click the switch and select Mechanical Action>>Latch When

Pressed from the shortcut menu. This setting changes the control value when you
click it and retains the new value until the VI reads it once. At this point the
 control reverts to its default value, even if you keep pressing the mouse button.
This action is similar to a circuit breaker and is useful for stopping While
Loops or for getting the VI to perform an action only once each time you set the
control.

Run the VI

1. Run the VI.

2. Use the Operating tool to click the vertical switch to stop the acquisition. The switch
changes to the OFF position and changes back to ON after the conditional terminal reads
the value.
3. Save the VI. You will use this VI in the Temperature Running Average VI.

RTU

An RTU is a “microprocessor-controlled electronic device that interfaces objects in the physical

world to a distributed control system or SCADA system by transmitting telemetry data to the
system and/or altering the state of connected objects based on control messages received from
the system”; and that a PLC is basically “a digital computer used for automation of
electromechanical processes. Because the functions of RTUs and PLCs overlap, RTUs tend to be
used more for wide geographic telemetry, while PLCs are best suited for local area control.”
 
In our session as it was not easy to directly link PLC to LabVIEW, we tried to connect PLC by
passing through an Arduino board. As indicated below:

Figure 2: Experimental step up

Communication mean

Initially, we started on USB as communication and later we have used Bluetooth as wireless
communication mean.

References

 https://cnx.org/
 https://www.automationworld.com/
 http://spartacontrols.com/