In a move aimed at further solidifying its footing in the process market, Rockwell Automation this week announced that it will support the Field Device Tool (FDT) as a standard approach to plant floor device configuration.
The latest version of the company’s FactoryTalk AssetCentre asset management software uses FDT as the communications and configuration interface between Rockwell’s PlantPAx process automation system and the instrumentation it supports.
The FDT specification defines a common interface that allows any device to be configured, operated, and maintained, regardless of supplier or communications protocol. Because processing facilities rely on a wide variety of devices from a plethora of vendors, it is important to choose an industry standard that addresses the broadest spectrum of device technologies, the company said.
The new process device configuration in PlantPAx relies on the interpreter Device Type Manager (iDTM), an FDT-based tool for the HART Communication Protocol that helps organizations take advantage of diagnostic information that is already available in many of today’s plants. The iDTM uses the data in the HART device descriptor (DD) file and the graphical capabilities of FDT technology to integrate to any Hart Communication Foundation registered device descriptor. The result is that any HART device can be managed in the system.