OPC Batch is a specification carries the OPC philosophy to the specialized needs of batch processes. It provides interfaces for the exchange of equipment capabilities (corresponding to the S88.01 Physical Model) and current operating conditions. The OPC Foundation is responsible for defining and maintaining the OPC Batch specification.
As products are developed for the batch processing industry based on the IEC 61512-1 Batch Control – Part 1: Models and Terminology standard there is an increasing need to exchange data between these products and other systems. Interfaces occur at all levels; with Field Management devices (e.g. monitoring stations, control stations…), Process Management systems (e.g. lab systems, batch control systems, loading, unloading, dispensing, weighing systems…), and with Business Management systems (e.g. ERP and MES).
The data exchange covers four basic types of information such as equipment capabilities, current operating conditions, historical and recipe contents. Version 1.0 of this specification has been limited to equipment capabilities and current operating conditions. Equipment capabilities correspond to the IEC 61512-1 Physical Model. Current operating conditions are described using a Batch List and a Batch Model which combines Batch and Control Recipe information.
Currently most batch systems use their own proprietary interfaces for dissemination and collection of data. There is no capability to augment existing solutions with other capabilities in a plug-n-play environment. This requires the developer to recreate the same infrastructure for their products as all other vendors have had to develop independently with no interoperability with any other systems.
Manufacturers and consumers want to use off the shelf, open solutions from vendors that offer superior value that solves a specific need or problem. This specification is targeted to allow Visual Basic applications, as well as other automation enabled applications, to exchange batch data with various computer systems with less complexity than the OPC Batch Custom Interface.
The purpose of this specification is to provide a means to pass runtime batch and equipment data between components which would be suitable to standardization. Additionally this specification details the design of interfaces and name spaces in such a way as to complement the existing OPC Data Access Interfaces.
Visit the OPC Foundation website for more detailed information about the OPC Batch specification.