Data Caching System for Low Bandwidth Field Device Communication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Distributed process control systems face high bandwidth requirements between SCADA systems and remote locations, leading to increased costs due to the need for continuous data streaming, which is often prohibitively expensive to maintain, especially over long distances.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a data caching system that only sends data from field devices to the data cache if it has changed by a predetermined amount, using a low bandwidth communication channel between the remote process controller and the data caching system, and translating protocols between high and low bandwidth channels to reduce bandwidth demands.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If continuous data streaming is used between SCADA systems and remote locations, then real-time data availability is improved, but bandwidth requirements and operational costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential information (data changes exceeding a threshold) from the continuous data stream, rather than transmitting the entire stream. The SCADA system polls for data changes and receives only significant updates, separating the continuous monitoring function from the continuous transmission function.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements periodic polling at the SCADA system rather than continuous streaming. Data is transmitted in discrete periodic updates only when changes exceed the predetermined threshold, converting continuous action into periodic action to reduce bandwidth consumption.
2Loss of time
If data polling frequency is increased at the SCADA system, then data freshness is improved, but bandwidth consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only meaningful data changes from the polling process. By comparing current data with previous data and transmitting only when the difference exceeds a threshold, it eliminates redundant transmissions that would occur with frequent polling, thus maintaining data freshness without proportional bandwidth increase.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs partial action by transmitting only a portion of the polled data (only changes exceeding the threshold) rather than all polled data. This allows frequent polling to maintain freshness while limiting actual data transmission to necessary updates only.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for communicating data from field devices to data acquisition systems. In at least some exemplary embodiments, a remote process or field controller may obtain data, and send the data to a data cache only if the data has changed from previously sent data. The data acquisition system may poll the data cache for data. Having the remote process controller send only data that has changed allows the communication channel between the data caching system and the remote process controller to have a bandwidth or throughput lower than what may be needed to support the polling of the data acquisition system.