ISA100 Wireless product capabilities enhanced with two major upgrades

The ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute (WCI) announced two major enhancements to the ISA100 Wireless family of standards – Bluetooth Low Energy and OPC-UA and PA-DIM.

Bluetooth Low Energy

The next generation of ISA100 Wireless field devices will support Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) as a second radio. The established ISA-100 (IEC 62734) protocol will continue to be used for field reporting, as it has been since 2010. As a complementary technology, BLE will reportedly enable provisioning and commissioning of ISA100 Wireless field devices by Bluetooth-enabled handhelds, particularly by mobile phones. According to the International Society of Automation (ISA), these new capabilities ensure ISA100 Wireless technology delivers an improved user experience when new devices are configured and deployed.

OPC-UA and PA-DIM
ISA100 Wireless gateways are also adopting a new Open Process Communication-Unified Architecture (OPC-UA) data model, based on the industry standard Process Automation Device Information Model (PA-DIM) specification. This program will reportedly enable end-users to build a single set of applications that work end-to-end with all ISA100 Wireless systems using the OPC-UA model. Together, these ISA100 Wireless enhancements will improve interoperability and the overall user experience in the ISA100 Wireless community, says ISA.

“We have a technical roadmap for ensuring that the ISA100 Wireless family of products evolve with proven technologies as they mature to market readiness,” stated Andre Ristaino, managing director of global consortia, conformity assessment for the International Society of Automation (ISA). “These new capabilities simplify setup and operation of ISA100 Wireless products and establish an industry-standard approach for supporting applications using the devices.”