7 Foundation Fieldbus
7.1 Foundation Fieldbus technology
7.1.1 Overview
Foundation Fieldbus is an all digital, serial, two-way communication system that
interconnects field equipment such as sensors, actuators, and controllers. Fieldbus is a
local area network (LAN) for instruments used in both process and manufacturing
automation with built-in capacity to distribute the control application across the network.
It has the ability to distribute control among intelligent field devices on the plant floor and
digitally communicate that information at high speed that makes Foundation
™
Fieldbus an
enabling technology.
Emerson offers a full range of products from field devices to the DeltaV scalable control
system to allow an easy transition to Fieldbus technology.
The Fieldbus retains the features of the 4-20 mA analog system, including standardized
physical interface to the wire, bus powered devices on a single wire, and intrinsic safety
options, and enables additional capabilities such as:
• Increased capabilities due to full digital communications.
• Reduced wiring and wire terminations due to multiple devices on one set of wires.
• Increased selection of suppliers due to interoperability.
• Reduced loading on control room equipment with the distribution of some control
and input/output functions to field devices.
• Speed options for process control and manufacturing applications.
Note
The following descriptions and definitions are not intended as a training guide for Foundation
Fieldbus technology, but are presented as an overview for those not familiar with Fieldbus and to
define device specific attributes for the Fieldbus system engineer. Anyone attempting to implement
Fieldbus communications and control with this analyzer must be well-versed in Fieldbus technology
and protocol and must be competent in programming using available tools such as DeltaV.
7.1.2
Introduction
A Fieldbus system is a distributed system composed of field devices and control and
monitoring equipment integrated into the physical environment of a plant or factory.
Fieldbus devices work together to provide I/O and control for automated process and
operations. The Fieldbus Foundation provides a framework for describing these systems as
a collection of physical devices interconnected by a Fieldbus network. One of the ways that
the physical devices are used is to perform their portion of the total system operation by
implementing one or more function blocks.
Foundation Fieldbus
Reference Manual 95
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