Automation

Strategies

HARRY FORBES
ARC Advisory Group, Burlington, Massachusetts

Embedded virtualization in process automation systems

An earlier ARC Advisory Group column dealt with server-level virtualization in Collaborative Process Automation
Systems (CPAS), the companys process automation system
model. Here, we will address the impact that virtualization
has on process controllers, I/O systems, and process field
devicesthe parts of an automation system implemented as
embedded systems.
The relatively complex embedded systems found in process
controllers use microcontrollers or full-fledged microprocessors. They are networked and may download to the operating
system and application software via network services.
With the development of multi-core microprocessors, semiconductor suppliers can now support virtualization technology within a single microprocessor. In effect, the software stack
of a server can now be replicated within an embedded system.
Process automation suppliers are now planning products that
will use this technology. ARC believes that embedded virtualization will have a major impact on the evolving CPAS vision.
Embeddedvirtualization and next-generation controllers.
Process controllers are perhaps the most complex and multifunctional components of any process automation system. To
meet the extremely high requirements for reliability, they incorporate complex and proprietary means for hardware fault
tolerance. Process controller software has always operated on
various real-time operating systems (RTOSs). The next generation of process controllers will be able to exploit multi-core
processors and embedded virtualization. These factors will
weigh in the development of future CPAS controllers with embedded virtualization:
Higher performance. The additional compute capacity of
multi-core processors with virtualization could be applied simply to improve the capacity and/or performance metrics of a
process controller.
Greater application integration. Controllers running both
an RTOS and a rich OS will be able to host CPAS applications
that presently can only be hosted in servers. Advanced process
control and optimization are certainly applications that may fit
into this configuration. Data historians and local analytics may
fit as well.
System management. Process automation systems have
traditionally provided their own (proprietary) system management capabilities. Given extra processing capacity and a rich
OS, these could be incorporated into standards-based management protocols, which could aid in giving automation system
wider visibility in the enterprise.
Advanced networks. Several process automation suppliers
have developed high-availability Ethernet networks at the controller (peer-to-peer) level. In next-generation controllers, these

networks may extend to the I/O systems and perhaps even to

field devices. Networks can also be virtualized, and silicon suppliers have developed technologies for doing this at the embedded
system level. Such virtualized network interfaces could be provisioned to support both real-time and rich OS network traffic.
New controller modularity options. Process controllers represent a combination of high complexity and low unit
volume. System designers are challenged to optimize not only
performance, but also product lifecycle length, total cost of
ownership (TCO), system BOM costs, commonality of system
hardware, and commonality of system software. In the long
term, commonality and component life will weigh more in this
equation. This would favor new systems incorporating higherperformance processors and more common software.
I/O system and field device applications. Process automation I/O systems can share some of the same benefits from virtualization, but not to the same degree as controllers. The industry
trend in I/O systems has been toward smart I/O modules that
are configurable (via software or a hardware adapter) to accept
multiple signal types. This capability has proven very valuable in
compressing automation project schedules by decoupling detail
engineering from other project activities. Expanding smart I/O
capabilities is essentially a smart analog technology development that will not be enhanced by virtualization.
Process field devices (transmitters, valves, drives, and analyzers) have remained largely immune from virtualization benefits.
This is mostly because of the age and limited capabilities of the
network technologies serving process field devices (HART,
Foundation fieldbus and Profibus PA). Adoption of Ethernet
networking by process field devices will open up device communication to all manner of improvements and deeper integration, but adoption will be gradual. A field network consisting of
a switched Ethernet infrastructure could remove many of the
barriers and difficulties that end users experience with managing thousands (or tens of thousands) of process field devices.
Given the very long device product development and operating
lifecycle, Ethernet field networks will emerge very gradually in
the process industries.
HARRY FORBES is a senior analyst at ARC Advisory
Group. His research focuses on the impact of industrial
networking and wireless technologies on todays
manufacturing. He also covers smart grid and electric
power vertical industries. His research topics include
the smart-grid, smart-metering and smart-energy
technologies. Mr. Forbes is a graduate of Tufts
University with a BS degree in electrical engineering
and holds an MBA from the Ross School of Business
at the University of Michigan.

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