1. Design Background

Equipment networking has been a bottlenecking issue in the process of achieving informatization for many large equiment manufacturers. However, facing the distribution of equipment across country or, the world and increasingly high maintenance cost, more and more industrial enterprises are turning to euiqpment networking to achive a more productive and cost-efficient management of remote equipment, while, bringing increased profit for the company. For this market need, Beijing InHand Networking Technology Co, Ltd. developped the OVDP (Open Virtual Device Protocol) Series Remote Equipment Monitoring System, which enables users to productively monitor, manage and upgrade their remote equipment by bonding the traditional industrial equipment with the all-IP network.

2. System Topology and Functions

2.1 System Overview

The software platform of the monitoring system performs uniform access and management of lower end industrial controlling devices through the monitoring and management of remote communication devices (e.g. Router), and the analyzing of controller protocols by the routers.
The platform provides field equipment data collection, uploading, by-variable monitoring, parameter setting, and also database function for storage of historical equipment data. Through the web interface, administrators can review how equipments are running, current and historical running data, and produce analysis reports through multiple ways of analyzing. The powerful platform can simultaneously deal with uniform access and management of thousand of TCP links.

3. Topology and Functions By Section

3.1 Remote Communication Device
The functions include:
a. Remote communication, connecting field equipment to the monitoring center.
b. Support multiple networks, including CDMA/GPRS/EDGE/ADSLWired networks, etc.
c. Support multiple controller protocol.
May connect to controller through multiple ways, e.g. RS232/485/Ethernet, etc., and support the port protocols. Support multiple communication protocols between controllers and the upper end devices, e.g. MODBUSRTU/MODBUSTCP, and allow new communication protocols to be developped.
d. Real-time collection and uploading of field equipment data.
Through set-in inspection mechanism, the running status of field equipment will be inspected and reported according to the user-set strategy, including inspection interval, reporting interval, and variable definition, etc.
e. Data subscription option for data filtering. User may set to receive only the data that are needed to avoid redundancy.
f. Alarm threshold function. When certain parameter in the equipment running data reaches the set threshhold, an alarm will be sent to central server to inform the service staff at the monitoring center.
g. Support local and remote configuration of alarm.
h. Log function. Support both remote and local log review.
i. Firmware upgrade function. Support both remote and local firmware upgrade.
j. Support remote batch configuration. User may login through web to configure the equipment remotely, and may quickly batch-configure the equipment from the monitoring center.
k. Master-slave mode auto switch.
l. Support variable definition. User may define the variables of field equipment controllers to collect information that ’s exactly needed. This applies for various controller types and programs.
3.2. The Monitoring Center
3.2.1 Network Topology of the monitoring center:

3.2.2  Explanations of Topology

As the illustration shows, the core of OVDP platform is to virtualize field equipment to the central station, Communication Server at the center manages connection and data communication with remote devices, data is stored in Database Server for extraction and use by the management platform. The original user application software does not need to be changed, but is connected with the Communication Server directly with the Protocol Adapter, so that network complicacy, e.g. delay, is much avoided. Based on different equipment protocol, different Protocol Adapters can be developped, e.g. MODBUS,PROFIBUS, etc.

Advanced netwoking technology is incorporated in the design of the Communication Server that the powerful server can simultaneously manage thousands of net access, largely overtaken traditional industrial configuration software’s insufficient Ethernet connection management capacity. Remote stations use our wireless or wired routers to connect to the network of the center; the routers can parse different equipment protocols and support multiple communication ports. OVDP protocol is used in communication between the central Communication Server and remote stations.

3.2.3  Functions of OVDP Center

This part will introduce the OVDP web interface and the detail functions.
System Setting directory is for defining the equipment monitoring function, sub-directories include Area Management, Project Management, Model Management, and Reporting Policy Management, etc. The Equipment Management directory is for monitoring the equipment running status, sub-directories include Map Navigation, Project List, Alarm Management, Real-time Data, Historical Data, Trend Data, Data Report, and Equipment Diagnosis. Following are the detail explanations:

A. Area Management    To define the areas, or locations of the equipment, for convenient managing by areas. User can also search, add, or delete the areas.
B. Project Management   To define the projects, by giving the basic information of the project, including equipment type, area, etc. User can also add, delete or modify the projects.
C. Model Management   To define the models of remote contolling devices, including variables, communication protocol types for different brands & models of intelligent controlling devices. User can also add, delete or search by the models.
D. Reporting Policy Management   To define each and every model and its variables of all projects needed for reporting.
E. Log Management  To manage the access log of the remote communication terminal as well as the running log of the remote intelligent terminal.
  a. Real-time log display. Support real-time system log display and refresh.
  b. Log recording function. May make log record for administrator operation, equipment
    running, etc. for future check.
  c. User session management. May manage the user login session.
F. GIS Map Navigation
 a. Support vector map, to locate the exact location of monitored equipment with specific longitude and latitude information.
 b. Multiple map views available, including GOOGLE map, satellite map, China map, World map, and custome map, etc.
 c. Graphic display of equipment distribution and status. Click on equipment icon, the equipment name, running status, IP, longitude&latitude of the location will show.
G. Project List  Show basic information of all connected projects for convenient management.
H. Alarm Management 
       a. Malfunction alarm. Auto monitor the equipment and sytem, generate alarm when there is a malfunction judging by pre-defined logic and send it to the monitoring display.
       b. Support alarm entension. Extend the form of alarming by attaching SMS system and/or email system.
       c. Real-time alarm information display
       d. Support inquiry of historical alarm information.
I. Historical Data 
   a. The system can store historical data for at least 3 months, and has structure storage capability, support data backup and recovery.
   b. Support batch download.
   c. Provide corresponding port for extended sub-system, e.g. expert system,  application analysis system, etc.
   d. Support data backup and delete, etc. Through the web interface, user may import/export data and delete redundancies in the logical storage.
   e. Support inquiry by area and by project.
J. Trend Data  
Can analyze historical data of a specific variable for a specific equipment type, and generate trend chart, for use in the analysis and management of the enterprise.
K. Data Report
       Support statistics summarizing to generate relevant data reports. To summarize the statistics of key indexes of the monitored equipment to generate relevant data reports, by time or by equipment, and may display in charts.
       Also support connection statistics report, summarizing communication indexes like times of login and dropoff of the equipment in reports, and may display in charts on the web interface.

L. Equipment Diagnosis
      Support remote equipment disgnosis. User may acquire diagnosis of remote equipment through coresponding controller command. May diagnose by area or by project.
4. Operation Environment
The following hardware and software environment are required by the system.

 Harware Environment
 Database Server  
CPU : 2G or above  (Dual CPU or above）
RAM: 2G or above
Harddisk : 160G or above
Net Card : 10/100M full-duplex Ethernet card *  1 or above

 Web Server
CPU : 2G or above
RAM : 1G  or above
Hard Disk : 80G or above
Net Card : 10/100M full-duplex Ethernet card *  1 or above

 Communication Server
CPU : 2G or above
RAM : 1G or above
Hard Disk : 80G or above
Net Card : 10/100M full-duplex Ethernet card *  2

 Software Environment
 Database Server:
OS:Suse Enterprise Linux 10
Database:  Oracle 10.1.0 for Linux

 Web Server
OS:Suse Enterprise Linux 10
Application Software:Sun jdk 1.4.2 or above
Web Server Software:jboss-4.0.3SP1

 Communication Server
OS:Suse Enterprise Linux 10
Application Software:Sun jdk 1.4.2 or above