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Field Device Integration - FDI

Working Groups > Field Device Integration - FDI

Scope / Goals

In today’s automation systems field devices from many different manufacturers have to be integrated resulting in effort for installation, version management and device operation. This challenge can only be faced with an open and standardized device integration.
During the last years the FieldComm Group (FCG) has specified FDI – a standard architecture for device integration that is based on IEC 61804, Electronic Device Description Language (EDDL) for the description of devices and OPC UA.
FDI manages information from intelligent field devices during their entire lifecycle – from configuration, commissioning and diagnostics to calibration, making one-off solutions for different devices obsolete.
FCG develops and maintains the FDI Specifications in its working group structure, establishing and controlling new technology developments and enhancements that support the needs of the process automation industry.

Typical Use-Cases include

the interaction between FDI Clients and FDI Servers
the integration of new communication protocols (so-called FDI communication servers)
access to device information by non FDI-aware OPC UA Clients, like archiving tools, maintenance tools, asset management, MES or ERP systems.

Technical content

The FDI information model defines how the information of a field device – described by an EDD document – is mapped to OPC UA Objects, Methods and Variables. It is mainly based on the OPC UA for Devices specification; in fact most of the OPC UA for Devices model has been driven by FDI requirements.
In addition to the device model, FDI also defines, how communication topologies of the automation system by representing the entire communication infrastructure shall be represented in an OPC UA AddressSpace.
The comprehensive set of services provided by OPC UA enables the “how” of system integration.

The FDI communication server information model is used for integration of non-native field protocols and as such supports the integration of communication with devices in heterogeneous hierarchical networks and the use of any communication hardware.