On a ClearSCADA system, you configure the ClearSCADA database so that entries in the database correspond to the plant and measuring instruments on your system. This section summarizes the database items that you need to configure to represent the devices with which ClearSCADA is to communicate using the IEC 60870-5-101 or IEC 60870-5-104 protocols on your system.
To represent any such devices, the IEC 60870-5 Driver has to be installed and running on the ClearSCADA servers on your system.
When you configure IEC 60870-5 items in the ClearSCADA database, many of the settings for those items need to correspond to the settings of the relevant IEC 60870-5 devices on your system. Some settings are either fixed (incorporated into the design of the device), or are configured by an engineer. You need to have access to, or an understanding of, the settings of the IEC 60870-5 devices on your system before you can configure the IEC 60870-5 database items successfully.
Each IEC 60870-5 device, including ClearSCADA, has an interoperability Profile document that describes what functionality is provided. For each device with which you want ClearSCADA to communicate using the IEC 60870-5-101 or IEC 60870-5-104 protocol, refer to that device’s interoperability Profile document to compare the supported features of that device against the IEC features that ClearSCADA supports (and that are listed as such in ClearSCADA’s interoperability Profile document). You also need to be aware of the address settings and any options that are set on your devices. You can then refer to this ClearSCADA Guide to the IEC 60870-5 Driver for information on how to configure those features and options in ClearSCADA.
You also need to be aware of which optional features are required for each IEC 60870-5 item. These features include:
- Alarm views
- Alarm redirections
- Historic data storage
- User methods.
You can also use core ClearSCADA features with IEC 60870-5 database items, including Lists, Actions, and Mimics. For actions that are specific to the IEC 60870-5 driver, see Using IEC 60870-5 Specific Actions. For further information on actions and details on Lists and Mimics, see the core documentation.
For each device with which ClearSCADA is to communicate using the IEC 60870-5-101 or IEC 60870-5-104 protocol, you need to configure:
- An IEC 60870-5 Channel to represent each communication connection between an IEC 60870-5 outstation and the ClearSCADA server (see Configuring an IEC 60870-5 Channel).
For devices with which ClearSCADA communicates using the IEC 60870-5-101 serial based protocol, you need to configure one channel per serial connection.
For devices with which ClearSCADA communicates using the IEC 60870-5-104 Internet communications protocol, configure one channel for each network-connected IEC 60870-5 device.
- An IEC 60870-5 Outstation Set to define each group of outstations that share the same channel (see Configuring an IEC 60870-5 Outstation Set).
- An IEC 60870-5 Direct Outstation to represent each unit (for example, an outstation or RTU) that monitors data and controls plant and with which ClearSCADA communicates directly (see Configuring an IEC 60870-5 Outstation).
- If required, an IEC 60870-5 Direct Link or Shared Link to support IEC 60870-5 remote devices that contain multiple common addresses. For each common address the device contains, you need to create a Logical Outstation with the relevant Link configured as its parent outstation. This allows the device to not respond to any of the common addresses without affecting the other common addresses.
- If required, an IEC 60870-5 Logical Outstation to represent each additional common address within an IEC 60870-5 Direct Outstation. An outstation might have multiple common addresses that are used to either:
- Separate the points on the outstation into sectors that a Controlling Station (such as ClearSCADA) can read independently from other sectors.
- or:
- Represent multiple units from which the outstation itself is retrieving data.
For more information, see Configuring an IEC 60870-5 Outstation.
- An IEC 60870-5 Point to represent each analog or digital measuring instrument or control device that is connected to each IEC 60870-5 Direct outstation and each IEC 60870-5 Logical outstation (see Points Used on IEC 60870-5 Outstations).
To minimize the time that it takes to configure the required IEC 60870-5 items, you may want to configure them in the order listed above, as set configuration requires you to specify a channel, and outstation configuration requires you to specify a set, and so on.
ClearSCADA provides additional support for some devices, using an IEC 60870-5 Extension Driver. For information on configuring such devices, see the relevant IEC 60870-5 extension driver guide.