Advanced Physical Layer (APL) Adapters for Legacy Field Devices

Abstract

An advanced physical layer (APL) adapter (150) for enabling functional interconnection between a two-wire APL spur (144) and at least one industrial process legacy field device (102) includes a first pair of terminals (170, 172), an APL physical layer (PHY) circuit (168), a second pair of terminals (217, 218), and a connection circuit (166). The first pair of terminals (170, 172) is configured to connect to the two-wire APL spur (144). The APL PHY circuit (168) is capacitively coupled to the first pair of terminals (170, 172). The connection circuit (166) is configured to control the APL PHY circuit to communicate with the legacy field device (102) connected to the second pair of terminals according to a legacy communication protocol and to communicate via the first pair of terminals (170, 172) according to an Ethernet protocol.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to industrial process control systems and field devices of these systems. More particularly, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to techniques for adapting legacy field devices to Ethernet communications in Advanced Physical Layer (APL) (Ethernet-APL) systems. [Background technology]

[0002] In industrial settings, control systems are used to monitor and control industrial processes, chemical process inventories, etc., using process measurement or control field devices. These field devices can perform traditional field device tasks, such as monitoring or measuring a process parameter using one or more sensors (e.g., pressure sensors, level sensors, temperature sensors, etc.) and / or controlling the process using one or more control devices (e.g., actuators, valves, etc.).

[0003] Ethernet-APL systems have been developed to improve data communication and safety for field devices. These systems are responsible for transmitting and receiving data between devices (e.g., network interface controllers, Ethernet hubs, network switches, etc.) and physical data communication links (e.g., data transmission cables). Ethernet-APL systems comply with standards established by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and enable high-speed data communication and the delivery of power and communication signals over a two-wire connection while meeting certain inherent safety requirements.

[0004] Legacy field devices, widely used prior to the development of Ethernet-APL, typically communicate power and data with remotely located control units over 4-20 milliamp (mA) process control loops. These devices implement non-Ethernet legacy communication protocols such as HART, Modbus, PROFIBUS, Foundation Fieldbus, and IO-Link, some of which operate at speeds over 300 times slower than those in Ethernet-APL systems.

[0005] Unfortunately, legacy field devices are not currently Ethernet-APL compatible, and it may be some time before new field devices with APL connectivity are developed that can replicate the full functionality of current legacy field devices. Summary of the Invention

[0006]

[0003] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an advanced physical layer (APL) adapter that enables functional interconnection between a two-wire APL spur and at least one industrial process legacy field device, and a system utilizing the adapter. One embodiment of the adapter includes a first pair of terminals, a physical layer (PHY) circuit, a second pair of terminals, and a connection circuit. The first pair of terminals is configured to connect to the two-wire APL spur. The PHY circuit is capacitively coupled to the first pair of terminals. The connection circuit is configured to communicate with a legacy field device connected to the second pair of terminals according to a legacy communication protocol, and to control the PHY circuit to communicate via the first pair of terminals according to an Ethernet protocol.

[0007] One embodiment of a system enables functional interconnection between a two-wire APL spur and at least one industrial process legacy field device. The system includes at least one industrial process legacy field device and an adapter. The adapter includes a first pair of terminals, a physical layer (PHY) circuit, a second pair of terminals, and a connection circuit. The first pair of terminals is configured to connect to the two-wire APL spur. The PHY circuit is capacitively coupled to the first pair of terminals. The legacy field device is connected to the second pair of terminals. The connection circuit is configured to communicate with the legacy field device according to a legacy communication protocol and to control the PHY circuit to communicate via the first pair of terminals according to an Ethernet protocol.

[0008] This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter. The claimed subject matter is not limited to implementations that solve any or all of the disadvantages noted in the Background. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a simplified diagram illustrating an example of a process measurement or control system including industrial process legacy field devices according to the prior art. [Figure 2] 1 is a simplified diagram illustrating an example of a process measurement or control system including industrial process legacy field devices according to the prior art. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram illustrating an example of a process control or measurement system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram illustrating an example of an adapter, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram illustrating an example of a power extraction circuit with an APL PHY circuit according to the prior art. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a simplified circuit diagram illustrating an example regulator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a simplified circuit diagram illustrating device-specific circuitry according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Elements identified using the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. However, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0011] 1 and 2 are simplified diagrams of an example of a process measurement or control system 100 including an industrial process legacy field device 102 according to the prior art. The field device 102 may interact with an industrial process 104. In some embodiments, the process 104 includes a material, such as a fluid transported through a pipe, such as pipe 106 (FIG. 1), and / or contained in a tank. The system 100 may perform a process that converts the material from a less valuable state into a more valuable and useful product, such as oil, chemicals, paper, food, etc. For example, an oil refinery performs an industrial process that can process crude oil into gasoline, fuel oil, and other petrochemicals.

[0012] The field devices 102 communicate with a computerized control unit 108 that controls the field devices 102. The control unit 108 may be located remotely from the field devices 102, such as in a control room 110 for the system 100, as shown in FIG.

[0013] The field devices 102 may be connected to the control unit 108 via a process control loop 112, such as a two-wire, 4-20 milliamp (mA) process control loop, which may provide power to the field devices 102. Furthermore, communication between the control unit 108 and the field devices 102 may be performed via the control loop 112 according to an analog and / or digital communication protocol used by the legacy field devices 102. For example, a process variable may be represented by an analog signal, such as the level of loop current I (FIG. 2) flowing through the process control loop 112. Legacy digital communication protocols, such as the HART® communication standard, typically modulate a digital signal onto the analog current level of the two-wire process control loop 112. Other examples of legacy digital communication protocols that may be used include Modbus, PROFIBUS, Foundation™ Fieldbus, IO-Link, and other communication protocols. These communication protocols used by legacy field devices 102 do not include the Ethernet® communication protocol.

[0014] In some embodiments, the field device 102 includes a controller 114, active components in the form of one or more sensors or control devices 116, a measurement or control circuit 118, a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 120, communication circuitry 122, and / or a terminal block 124, as shown in the simplified diagram of FIG. 2. The controller 114 represents one or more processors (i.e., microprocessors, central processing units, etc.) that control the components of the field device 102 to perform one or more functions described herein in response to execution of instructions that may be stored locally on a non-transitory, patent-eligible, computer-readable medium or memory 126 of the device 102. In some embodiments, the processor of the controller 114 is a component of one or more computer-based systems. In some embodiments, the controller 114 includes one or more programmable hardware components, such as one or more control circuits, microprocessor-based systems, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), etc., that are used to control the components of the device 102 to perform one or more functions described herein. The controller 114 may also represent other conventional legacy field device circuitry.

[0015] The field device 102 may be used to sense or measure a parameter of the process 104, such as a temperature, level, pressure, flow rate, or another parameter of the process 104, using one or more sensors, represented by block 116 in Figure 2. Example sensors 116 include pressure sensors, temperature sensors, level sensors, flow rate sensors, and / or other sensors used to sense or measure process parameters.

[0016] The field devices 102 may also be configured to control aspects of the process 104 using one or more control devices, represented by blocks 116 in Figure 2. Example control devices 116 include actuators, solenoids, valves, and other conventional process control devices used in field devices to control the process.

[0017] The measurement or control circuitry 118 represents circuitry that interacts with the sensor or control device 116. For example, the control circuitry 118 may include measurement circuitry that converts the output from the sensor 116 for use by the controller 114 of the field device 102. The DAC 120 may be used by the controller 114 to convert the digital signal to an analog signal. This analog signal is communicated to the control unit 108 via a communication circuitry 122, such as the two-wire process control loop 112, by adjusting the loop current I to indicate the value of the process parameter sensed by the sensor 116. The control circuitry 118 may also be used to control the control device 116, for example, in response to commands from the control unit 108 received by the controller 114 via the communication circuitry 122.

[0018] As previously mentioned, legacy field devices 102 are not configured to communicate using the Ethernet communication protocol. However, such communication is becoming available with the implementation of Ethernet-APL in next-generation industrial process measurement and control systems and field devices, which offers significant improvements over their legacy counterparts by providing high power and high data communication bandwidth over a two-wire link while meeting intrinsic safety requirements.

[0019] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to adapting legacy field devices 102 to operate on an Ethernet-APL system and leveraging the advantages that the Ethernet-APL system offers. Accordingly, embodiments of the present disclosure enable process control and measurement systems to be updated to Ethernet-APL while utilizing existing legacy field devices 102, for example, even when corresponding field devices configured for the Ethernet-APL system are not available.

[0020] 3 is a simplified block diagram illustrating an example of a process control or measurement system 130, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The system 130 includes a control unit or host 132, which may take the form of the aforementioned legacy control unit 108 and may be located in a control room 134. The system 130 also includes an APL power switch 136 and one or more APL field switches 138. The control unit 132 may be connected to the APL power switch 136 via Ethernet wiring (e.g., standard IEEE 802.3) 140. The APL power switch 136 handles data communication and provides power to the APL field switches 138 via an Ethernet-to-APL trunk (2-wire) 142. Each of the field switches 138 can provide data communication and power to one or more legacy field devices 102 via an APL spur (2-wire) 144. Each of the APL power switch 136, APL trunks 142, APL field switch 138, and APL spurs 144 is configured in accordance with the IEEE and IEC Ethernet-APL standards.

[0021] Embodiments of the present disclosure include an APL adapter 150 adapted to supply power received via a spur 144 to one or more legacy field devices 102 and facilitating communication using the Ethernet-APL system standard between a control unit 132 and the legacy field devices 102 utilizing legacy industrial communication protocols (e.g., HART®, Modbus, PROFIBUS, Foundation™ Fieldbus, IO-Link, etc.). The adapter 150 can take a variety of forms. For example, the adapter 150 can be an external adapter 150A that connects to a legacy field device 102, an adapter 150B that is integrated into the legacy field device 102 (e.g., into the terminal block 124), a single adapter 150C that connects to multiple legacy field devices 102 (e.g., connected via a HART® field multiplexer 152 that enables a multi-drop mode for the field devices 102, or the like), or another form.

[0022] 4 is a simplified block diagram illustrating an example of an adapter 150, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, adapter 150 includes power extraction circuitry 160, regulator 162, device specific circuitry 164, connection circuitry 166, and / or APL physical layer (PHY) circuitry 168 (e.g., an ADIN1100 integrated circuit manufactured by Analog Devices, Inc.).

[0023] Power extraction circuit 160 includes a pair of terminals 170 and 172 that connect to a spur 144 extending from APL field switch 138 (FIG. 3). Circuit 160 generally operates to extract power from the spur power (e.g., at least 500 milliwatts (mW)) provided via spur 144 and received via terminals 170 and 172. This extracted power is used to power adapter 150 and connected legacy field devices 102. Data may also be transmitted and received via terminals 170, 172 in accordance with the Ethernet-APL standard.

[0024] The power extraction circuit 160 may include a transient voltage suppression circuit 174, a common mode choke (CMC) 176, and / or a current steering circuit 178. The transient voltage suppression circuit 174 operates to suppress voltage transients. The CMC 176 operates to suppress common mode voltage noise to a desired level. The current steering circuit 178 directs the extracted power current along a desired circuit path and provides polarity insensitivity.

[0025] 5 is a circuit diagram illustrating an example of a power extraction circuit 160 with an APL PHY circuit 168 interface according to the prior art. In this example, transient voltage suppression circuit 174 includes a transient voltage suppression diode 182 connected in parallel with terminal 170 / terminal 172. Other suitable techniques for suppressing voltage transients may also be used.

[0026] CMC 176 is operable to reduce common mode noise between terminals 170 and 172 to a desired voltage level.

[0027] An example of current steering circuit 178 includes diodes 184, 186, 188, and 190, which route current to diode 192. Other suitable current steering techniques may also be used. Current steering circuit 178 and additional protection diode 192 prevent the internal capacitance of the adapter and legacy field devices from appearing at APL power load terminals 170 and 172 in accordance with specific safety standards.

[0028] The transmit (Tx) and receive (Rx) pins of APL PHY circuit 168 may be connected to nodes 194 and 196 through capacitors 198 and 200 and appropriate resistors, allowing communication signals (e.g., 10BASE-T1L signals) to pass while blocking direct current (DC) signals. Capacitors 198 and 200 may each represent two or more capacitors connected in series to meet intrinsic safety DC blocking requirements.

[0029] Inductors 202 and 204, connected between nodes 194 and 196 and terminals 206 and 208, operate to extract power from spur 144, passing DC signals while blocking communication signals (e.g., 10BASE-T1L signals).

[0030] Diodes 210A-D and diodes 212A-D are connected in parallel with inductors 202 and 204, respectively, and operate to prevent inductive flyback in accordance with specific safety standards and reduce the risk of inductive fire.

[0031] Regulator 162 receives the extracted power from power extraction circuit 160 at terminal pairs 206 and 208. In one example, regulator 162 may include current limiting circuit 214 that operates to ensure adapter 150 meets the 2-Wire Inherently Safe Ethernet (2-WISE) standard for operation in hazardous environments by limiting the current I through adapter 150 and / or the current I through legacy field device 102 to a level below a threshold maximum.

[0032] Regulator 162 may include voltage regulator 216, which is generally configured to output a DC device voltage (VSUB) for powering field device 102 via terminal pairs 217 and 218 (FIG. 4). The DC device voltage (VSUB) may be, for example, 12V DC for providing 48mW (corresponding to a HART® field device in multi-drop mode with a fixed 4mA current in the loop, i.e., 4mA at 12VDC). Voltage regulator 216 may also be configured to output a DC mains voltage (VMAIN) (e.g., 3.3VDC) for powering circuitry of adapter 150 (e.g., device specific circuitry 164, connection circuitry 166, and / or APL PHY circuitry 168).

[0033] As mentioned above, adapter 150 (150A) may be configured as an external device that connects to legacy field device 102, or adapter 150 (150B) may be incorporated into the terminal block of legacy field device 102, as shown in Figure 1. When the adapter takes the form of adapter 150A, terminals 217 and 218 are terminals of terminal block 124 (Figure 2), and when the adapter takes the form of adapter 150B, terminals 170 and 172 are terminals of terminal block 124.

[0034] 6 is a simplified circuit diagram illustrating an example of regulator 162, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In one embodiment, voltage regulator 216 comprises dual voltage shunt regulators 219 and 220, where voltage shunt regulator 219 provides a voltage source VSUB to field device load 222 of field device 102 and voltage shunt regulator 220 provides a voltage source VMAIN to circuitry 224 of adapter 150. Voltage regulator 216 can take other forms when extracting the desired VSUB and VMAIN DC voltages from the extracted power.

[0035] Referring back to FIG. 4 , if desired, the adapter 150 can include device-specific circuitry 164, which can include device communication circuitry 300 and / or hardware interface circuitry 302. The device communication circuitry 300 can be used to handle some form of data communication (e.g., HART® data communication) between the adapter 150 and the connected legacy field device 102. The hardware interface circuitry 302 provides power and signal conditioning between the communication circuitry 300 and the connected legacy field device 102. The hardware interface circuitry 302 serves as an interface between, for example, the 4-20 mA loop 112 connected to terminals 217 and 218, the legacy field device 102, and the device communication circuitry 300. These components can be considered components of the regulator 216 and / or components of the connection circuitry 166.

[0036] 7 illustrates an example of device specific circuitry 164 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Device communication circuitry 300 may include a HART® modem 303, or another type of data communication device (e.g., Foundation™ Fieldbus, etc.). The transmitter and receiver ports (Tx and Rx) of HART® modem 303 (or another type of data communication device) are capacitively coupled to terminal 218 via capacitors 304 and 305, which block the 4-20 mA DC signal I (FIG. 4) while allowing high frequency data communication signals to pass.

[0037] The hardware interface 302 may include a boost converter 306 configured to boost the voltage VSUB to ensure that the power supply to the 4-20 mA loop meets the minimum operating specifications (typically 12 VDC) of the connected legacy field device 102 (e.g., a HART® field device).

[0038] Thus, the device specific circuitry 164 may be configured to provide an analog signaling mode, in which the legacy field device 102 communicates information using a 4-20 mA current I, and / or a mixed signaling mode, in which data may be communicated using a 4-20 mA current I and a digital communication signal (e.g., a HART® frequency shift keyed signal) superimposed on the 4-20 mA current I.

[0039] In a 4-20 mA current I and digital communication signal mode, or a 4-20 mA current I analog signaling mode, if the digital communication circuitry includes a HART® modem, the voltage VSUB at terminal 217 (FIGS. 4 and 6) may be boosted to 17.3 VDC to account for the voltage drop across the minimum loop load resistance 308 (e.g., 230 ohms) for HART® communication (e.g., 12 VDC + 23 mA * 230 ohms). Device specific circuitry 164 may be adjusted to accommodate other digital communication protocols.

[0040] Hardware interface circuit 302 may optionally include an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) 310 that operates to convert the analog 4-20 mA current I corresponding to the voltage at node 218 into a digital signal for processing / monitoring by connection circuitry (FIG. 4). ADC 310 may also be considered a component of connection circuitry 166.

[0041] In some embodiments, the hardware interface 302 of the adapter 150 provides a HART® field multiplexer. This HART® field multiplexer supports a multi-drop mode that allows multiple legacy field devices 102 configured for HART® communication to be connected to the adapter 150, as shown, for example, by adapter 150C in FIG. 2. This effectively converts multiple legacy field devices 102 to APL devices without replacing equipment or extending additional cabling to a corresponding field switch 138 (FIG. 3). In the multi-drop configuration, the loop current I is substantially fixed, such as 4 mA (±1 mA) at 12 VDC, and provides approximately 48 mW of power to the connected legacy field devices 102.

[0042] In some embodiments, the device specific circuitry 164 includes terminals 312 and 314 that can be used to configure the connected legacy field device 102 and adapter 150 (e.g., device communication circuitry 300, connection circuitry 166, APL PHY circuitry 168, etc.). In one example, the adapter 150 may be connected as a multi-dropped HART® device from the same HART® bus as the connected legacy field device 102.

[0043] The connection circuitry 166 (FIG. 4) may include at least one processor 320 configured to perform one or more functions described herein in response to execution of program instructions stored in memory 322. The at least one processor 320 may comprise components of a computer-based system and may include control circuitry, a microprocessor-based control system, and / or programmable hardware components such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). The memory 322 includes any suitable subject matter eligible computer-readable medium that does not include transient waves or signals. Examples of suitable forms of memory include ferroelectric random access memory (FRAM), hard disks, CD-ROMs, optical storage devices, and / or magnetic storage devices. The connection circuitry 166 may include circuitry used by the at least one processor 320, for example, to send and receive data signals in response to execution of instructions stored in memory 322.

[0044] In some embodiments, the functions performed by the processor 320 of the connection circuit 166 generally support the operation of the adapter 150 and the connected legacy field device 102. For example, the connection circuit 166 may operate to support the medium access control (MAC) 324 and other conventional transport and application layers (e.g., TCP, UDP, HTTP, Ethernet / IP, PROFINET, HART-IP, etc.) required for the Ethernet protocol supported by the APL PHY circuit 168 and / or the legacy field device 102. Thus, the connection circuit 166 operates to facilitate Ethernet data communications between the control unit 132 ( FIG. 3 ) or another connected control device (e.g., a handheld unit) and the APL PHY circuit 168, and between the APL PHY circuit 168 and the connected legacy field device 102.

[0045] In some embodiments, the connection circuitry 166 includes a communication client 326, which may represent software executable by the processor 320 and configured to process the target communication protocol (e.g., HART®) of the connected legacy field devices 102. The communication client 326 may also be responsible for identifying and collecting relevant information about the connected legacy field devices 102. For example, the communication client 326 may operate to collect (e.g., via poll-response or burst communications) data from each connected legacy field device 102 necessary to respond to higher-level requests for static and dynamic equipment data (e.g., requests from the control unit 132 via the APL PHY circuitry 168). The collected legacy field device data may be stored in the memory 322 and may include, for example, configuration, status, and dynamic variable data. The connection circuitry 166 may rapidly respond to requests for information from the control unit 132 or another control device via the APL PHY circuitry 168.

[0046] The connection circuitry 166 may be configured to store legacy field device-specific information in the memory 322. Such information may include device-specific commands for controlling aspects of the connected field devices 102, such as diagnostic functions. Thus, the processor 320 can control the connected legacy devices 102 through the issuance of commands and relay information, such as diagnostic information, to the control unit 132 or another control device.

[0047] When the adapter 150 is configured to provide a multi-drop mode for connecting multiple legacy field devices 102 (FIG. 1), the connection circuit 166 can cache information about each connected legacy field device 102 in memory 322 and provide a higher-level host system with the ability to individually address each legacy field device 102.

[0048] Embodiments of the adapter 150 may also provide a HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) web interface that proxies the connected legacy field devices 102 via the PHY circuitry 168 and / or the connection circuitry 166, thereby facilitating configuration of the adapter 150 and / or the connected legacy field devices 102. Accordingly, configuration, diagnostic, and other information about the connected legacy field devices may be accessible via the web interface of the adapter 150.

[0049] The connection circuitry 166 can also receive, translate, and / or forward writes and configuration changes by the control unit 132 or another control device to any connected legacy field devices 102. The connection circuitry 166 can also translate acknowledgements received from the connected legacy field devices 102 and transmit the acknowledgements back to the control unit 132 via the APL PHY circuitry 168 using an Ethernet communication protocol.

[0050] The adapter 150 may provide diagnostic capabilities. In one embodiment, certain diagnostics may be performed when the adapter 150 is configured in a mixed signaling mode in which both digital (e.g., HART®) and analog (e.g., 4-20 mA current I) communications are used. In the mixed signaling mode, the values ​​represented by the digital and analog signals after conversion by the ADC 310 may be monitored. These values ​​may be made available via an interface in the APL PHY circuit 168 and compared to each other to determine whether a fault condition exists in the connected legacy field device 102 and / or adapter 150. For example, if the digital value of a process variable measured by the legacy field device 102 communicated via a digital communications protocol differs by a threshold amount from the corresponding value represented by the current I in the loop 112, the control unit 132, the adapter 150, or another control device may detect an abnormal condition in the legacy field device 102 or the adapter 150. If such an abnormal condition is detected, an appropriate notification or alarm may be triggered.

[0051] In some embodiments, the adapter 150 is configured to implement one or more security features, such as security features that prevent unauthorized access to any connected legacy field devices 102. Such security features may be implemented by the processor 320 of the connection circuitry 166. For example, the connection circuitry 166 may be configured to implement basic firewall functionality that allows or prohibits certain types of access to the connected legacy field devices 102, such as prohibiting writing configurations to the legacy field devices 102 or writing configurations to the memory 322 while allowing data reads. Such firewalls may also allow read / write access on a per-command or per-object basis based on user access rights, providing very granular security control. Thus, the adapter may be configured to allow different users or different user roles to have varying levels of access privileges to the connected legacy field devices 102.

[0052] The adapter 150 may be configured to host applications stored in the memory 322, e.g., via the connection circuitry 166. Applications include, for example, applications for process parameter (e.g., flow, level, pressure, etc.) measurement compensation, discrete and analog control, user interfaces using web user interfaces, and other field-centric applications. Such applications may target a single connected legacy field device 102 or multiple multi-drop legacy field devices 102. For example, a flow control application or a level control application implemented by the adapter 150 may be configured to utilize multiple process parameter measurements (e.g., pressure and temperature) received from one or more connected legacy field devices 102 to calculate a compensated measurement (e.g., flow rate) or control a control device (e.g., a valve).

[0053] In one embodiment, the adapter 150 includes an application that presents a virtual field device to the control unit 132 or another host system. The virtual field device can have its own address, data, and / or parameter settings that can be read and controlled by a host application in the control unit 132, such as via a web interface implemented by the processor 320 of the connection circuitry 166. In one example, a virtual field device can be a collection of two or more legacy field devices 102 connected together.

[0054] Applications implemented by adapter 150 may include user applications implementing scripting languages ​​or graphical programming tools. These functions are accessible through the adapter's web interface or REST application program interface (API), with aggregated and computed values ​​provided to the host application via APL PHY circuitry 168 using standards-compliant Ethernet protocols (e.g., TCP, UDP, etc.).

[0055] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. 1. An Advanced Physical Layer (APL) adapter for enabling functional interconnection of a two-wire APL spur with at least one industrial process legacy field device, comprising: a first pair of terminals configured to connect to the two-wire APL spur; an APL physical layer (PHY) circuit capacitively coupled to the first pair of terminals; a second pair of terminals; and connection circuitry configured to control the APL PHY circuitry to communicate with a legacy field device connected to the second pair of terminals according to a legacy communication protocol and to communicate via the first pair of terminals according to an Ethernet protocol; An adapter comprising:

2. 2. The APL adapter of claim 1, wherein the connection circuitry is configured to communicate data received by the APL PHY circuitry via the first pair of terminals via the second pair of terminals according to the legacy communication protocol.

3. 3. The APL adapter of claim 2, wherein the legacy communication protocol is selected from the group consisting of a current value in a 4-20 mA control loop, a HART® communication protocol, a Modbus® communication protocol, a PROFIBUS® communication protocol, a Foundation™ Fieldbus communication protocol, and an IO-Link communication protocol.

4. a power extraction circuit configured to output power extracted from spur power received from the two-wire APL spur via the first pair of terminals; a voltage regulator configured to use the extracted power to output a device voltage, the device voltage being used to power a legacy field device connected to the second pair of terminals; and The APL adapter of claim 1 further comprising:

5. 5. The APL adapter of claim 4, wherein the voltage regulator is configured to output a main voltage different from the device voltage and configured to supply power to the connection circuitry.

6. 10. The APL adapter of claim 1, wherein the connection circuitry is configured to provide both analog communication using a 4-20 mA control loop and HART® communication with a connected legacy field device via the second pair of terminals.

7. 7. The APL adapter of claim 6, wherein the adapter is configured to trigger a notification or alarm when the value indicated by the 4-20 mA control loop differs from the value indicated via HART® communications by a threshold amount.

8. 5. The APL adapter of claim 4, wherein the connection circuitry is configured to provide HART® communication through the second pair of terminals, and the voltage regulator is configured to maintain a substantially constant current through the second pair of terminals within a range of 4 to 20 mA.

9. 10. The APL adapter of claim 1, further comprising a HART® modem capacitively coupled to the second pair of terminals and configured to facilitate digital communication over the second pair of terminals in accordance with a HART® communication protocol.

10. 2. The APL adapter of claim 1, wherein the connection circuitry is configured to communicate with legacy field devices that are individually addressed via the second pair of terminals, and the legacy field devices are powered via the second pair of terminals.

11. the connection circuitry comprises a processor; the adapter includes a non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by the processor, configure the connection circuitry to cache data communicated from at least one legacy field device connected to the second pair of terminals.

2. The APL adapter of claim 1.

12. 12. The APL adapter of claim 11, wherein execution of the instructions by the processor configures the connection circuitry to implement a HyperText Markup Language web user interface via which a user can query and / or configure legacy field devices connected to the adapter and / or the second pair of terminals.

13. 12. The APL adapter of claim 11, wherein execution of the instructions by the processor configures the connection circuitry to implement a security feature that restricts communication access to legacy field devices connected to the second pair of terminals.

14. 12. The APL adapter of claim 11, wherein execution of the instructions by the processor configures the connection circuitry to aggregate and / or analyze data received from one or more legacy field devices connected to the second pair of terminals.

15. 2. The APL adapter of claim 1, wherein the connection circuitry is configured to receive, convert, and / or forward writes and configuration changes to connected legacy field devices and to communicate acknowledgments from the connected legacy field devices to external devices via the APL PHY circuitry.

16. 1. A system for enabling functional interconnection of a two-wire Advanced Physical Layer (APL) spur with at least one industrial process legacy field device, comprising: at least one industrial process legacy field device; an adapter; The adapter is a first pair of terminals configured to connect to the two-wire APL spur; an APL physical layer (PHY) circuit capacitively coupled to the first pair of terminals; a second pair of terminals; and connection circuitry configured to control the APL PHY circuitry to communicate over the first pair of terminals according to an Ethernet protocol and to communicate with at least one legacy field device over the second pair of terminals according to a non-Ethernet legacy communication protocol; system.

17. 17. The system of claim 16, wherein the connection circuitry is configured to communicate data received by the APL PHY circuitry via the first pair of terminals via the second pair of terminals according to the legacy communication protocol.

18. 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the legacy communication protocol is selected from the group consisting of a current value in a control loop of 4 to 20 mA, a HART® communication protocol, a Modbus® communication protocol, a PROFIBUS® communication protocol, a Foundation™ Fieldbus communication protocol, and an IO-Link communication protocol.

19. The APL adapter is a power extraction circuit configured to output power extracted from spur power received from the two-wire APL spur via the first pair of terminals; a voltage regulator configured to use the extracted power to output a device voltage, the device voltage being used to power the at least one legacy field device connected to the second pair of terminals; and The system of claim 16, comprising:

20. 20. The system of claim 19, wherein the voltage regulator is configured to output a main voltage different from the device voltage and configured to power the connection circuitry.

21. 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the connection circuitry is configured to provide both analog communication using a 4-20 mA control loop and digital communication with the connected at least one legacy field device via the second pair of terminals.

22. 22. The system of claim 21, wherein the adapter is configured to trigger a notification or alarm when a value indicated by the 4-20 mA control loop differs from a value indicated by digital communication over the second pair of terminals by a threshold amount.

23. the at least one legacy field device includes a plurality of legacy field devices; the connection circuitry is configured to provide digital communication via the second pair of terminals; the voltage regulator is configured to maintain a substantially constant current through the second pair of terminals within a range of 4 to 20 mA; 20. The system of claim 19.

24. 17. The system of claim 16, wherein the connection circuitry is configured to receive, convert, and / or forward writes and configuration changes to the at least one legacy field device and to communicate acknowledgments from the at least one legacy field device to an external device via the APL PHY circuitry.

25. the at least one legacy field device is configured to communicate via the second pair of terminals according to a HART® communication protocol; the adapter includes a HART® modem capacitively coupled to the second pair of terminals and configured to communicate with the at least legacy field device according to the HART® communication protocol.

20. The system of claim 17.

26. the at least one legacy field device comprises a single legacy field device having a terminal block; the second pair of terminals of the adapter are connected to terminals of the terminal block; 20. The system of claim 17.

27. 20. The system of claim 17, wherein the adapter is integrated into a terminal block of the legacy field device.

28. the at least one legacy field device comprises a plurality of legacy field devices, each connected to the second pair of terminals; the adapter includes a HART® modem capacitively coupled to the second pair of terminals.

20. The system of claim 17.

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