Industrial protocol components
This page lists each industrial protocol plugin, the components it provides and how each component identifies a value. Each plugin has its own page describing its settings and point map.
Plugins
| Plugin | Role | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| BACnet | Building Automation and Control Networks (BACnet) over IP client that polls values into Profinity tags | Building automation and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems |
| EtherNet/IP | Common Industrial Protocol (CIP) tag client that polls values into Profinity tags | Rockwell programmable logic controllers (PLCs) such as ControlLogix, CompactLogix, Micro800, PLC-5 and SLC |
| Modbus | TCP and Remote Terminal Unit (RTU) master that polls values into Profinity tags | Industrial devices and distributed input/output (I/O) |
| OPC UA Client | Client that polls values from a remote OPC UA server into Profinity tags | Enterprise and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system integration |
| OPC UA Server | Read-only server that exposes Profinity's tag tree to third-party OPC UA clients | Enterprise and SCADA system integration |
| S7 | S7comm (Siemens S7 communication) client that polls values into Profinity tags | Siemens PLCs such as S7-300, S7-400, S7-1200 and S7-1500 |
The Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture (OPC UA) plugin has one page for each component, and OPC UA certificates covers the certificate folders that both components use.
Components
Every protocol component has Auto connect off by default. The components, what they connect to, and how a point map row identifies a value are:
| Plugin | Component | Connects to | A point map row identifies a value by |
|---|---|---|---|
| BACnet | BACnet Device | One BACnet device, over BACnet/IP only and not BACnet Master-Slave/Token-Passing (MS/TP) | Object type and Instance |
| EtherNet/IP | EtherNet/IP PLC | One PLC | PLC tag |
| Modbus | Modbus Device | One Modbus slave, over TCP or over a serial line using RTU framing | Table and Address |
| OPC UA | OPC UA Client | A remote OPC UA server | NodeId |
| OPC UA | OPC UA Server | Listens for OPC UA clients | Not applicable, because it exposes the readable scalar tags in the profile's tag tree |
| S7 | S7 PLC | One PLC | Area and Offset, and DB number when the area is DataBlock |
For a Siemens S7-1200 or S7-1500, the S7 plugin reads absolute addresses, and the OPC UA client reads symbolic tags by name from the PLC's own OPC UA server.
Point map
The Points tab of the component settings is where you choose what the component polls. It shows the folders under Points, and a table of the points in the folder you have selected.
A point can sit directly under Points, or inside a folder.
Its tag path is the component name, then Points, then any folders, then the point name.
The same point name can be used in different folders.
A name must be unique among the points in one folder.
New folder and New point add rows by hand. Remove deletes the points you tick in the table. Double-click a point to edit it. Added and removed points need the component settings saved before they are polled.
Browse is the same action on every protocol that publishes a point list. The component plugs that list into this tab. Browse stays unavailable until the component is connected, and it uses the connection last saved. The device that gets listed is the one at the address last saved.
Modbus does not publish a register list, and S7 does not publish the variables inside a data block, so those components have no Browse button. You add those points by hand.
The OPC UA client lists the server's nodes.
The BACnet device lists its objects, grouped by object type.
An EtherNet/IP PLC lists its tags when it is a ControlLogix, CompactLogix or Micro800 controller.
A PLC-5 or SLC has no symbol list, so Browse stays unavailable and you type the file address, for example N7:0.
Opening Browse does not add points and does not read their values. Select a device folder or point, then Add, to copy it into the folder that is open in your map.
A selected folder is copied with the folders inside it. A point whose address is already in the map is skipped. If the point name is already used in the destination folder, Profinity adds a number to the new name.
How polled values behave
Once polled, a value from any of these protocols behaves the same as a tag from a CAN device. It can be shown on a dashboard that you build, included in a collection, watched by a rule, or read by a script. The dashboard each component shows for itself is described on its own page, and viewing it needs the Security administration permission, which is set under Roles and permissions. The polling components of all five plugins connect, retry, and log failures in the way described in Connections and reconnecting.