Wireless technology - communications and automation in the terminal
Wireless devices can add functions that were not even dreamed of when most wired networks were installed, without needing to re-wire the whole site.
Four hundred years ago English philosopher Francis Bacon said the phrase: knowledge is power. And it still is. Bacon was an early enthusiast for science, for knowing things rather than guessing, and its empiricism that underpins the whole of modern society. The big difference since Bacon's day is that there are now much better methods of measuring things and vastly improved ways of recording, transmitting and using information.
A Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system, also known as a telemetry system, collects data from various remote sites and makes it available in a central location for subsequent processing.
Examples include data gathering from oil wells to remote operation of unmanned oil or gas platforms and tank farm management.
There are three parts to any SCADA system, the sensors that detect liquid level, pressure, temperature or anything else that needs to be monitored, the communications system that transmits data from the sensors, and the readout or computer system that makes use of the data. Similarly in a control system there is some form of input which can be anything from a simple switch to a control room computer, a communication system and an actuator, heater, cooling system or pump that reacts to the command. The feature common to both is communication. It is worth noting that in most jurisdictions the SCADA systems must be backed up with separate monitoring, communication and control systems to meet local safety regulations. These safety systems can also be wireless, but must use a completely separate set of sensors and a different network.
