Wireless networks: ISA creates wireless factory automation standard working group

New working group will develop ISA 100.16 standard for factory automation under the ISA 100 family of wireless networking standards.

By Control Engineering Staff December 8, 2008

Research Triangle Park, NC — Work on ISA’s wireless family of standards reached another milestone, bringing the factory automation community one step closer to having an industry-wide standard for wireless interconnection of automated machines. The 68 eligible members of the ISA 100 Working Group overwhelmingly voted to createns.”The• December 19, 2008– working group review of first draft;• February 2009– draft release for working group approval;• April 2009– vote to release to committee;• July 2009– final release to public.The deliverables the working group is charged with providing include: documents coveringal groups, such as IEC, PNO, and ODVA, to ensure one family of interoperating international standards for factory automation is developed. They are also expected to collaborate with IEC to create a group to develop an international family of such standards, and actively participate with the IEC toensure the interests of ISA are adequately considered in these activities. Finally, they are to deliver a lexicon defining terms, such as “factory automation,” “discrete,” and “hybrid,” appropriate for discussing wireless factory automation networkingissues. This follows on the successful efforts of the ISA 100.11a Working Group, which is completing a similar standard for process automation. The ISA 100.11a standard is now undergoing final review, and is expected to be completed in January 2009.“The ISA 100 family of standards,” says Wayne Manges, co-chair of the ISA 100 working group overseeing the overall wireless standardization effort, “will include a standard universal application layer to provide a standard interface for all wireless automation communications, with various standards, such as ISA 100.16, under itThe balloting also installed 20 working-group voting members, including co-chairs Jim Reizner of Procter & Gamble, and Cliff Whitehead of Also read:

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Commentary: What makes a wireless system open? — C.G. Masi , senior editor Control Engineering Register here .