Glossary · SCADA
What is SCADA?
Supervisory control and data acquisition: collects readings from distributed controllers and sensors, presents them to operators, and manages alarms, commands and history.
It usually comprises field devices and controllers (PLCs or RTUs), a communication network, a server that collects and stores, and HMI screens for operators.
Modern systems run in the browser and on phones and integrate with the cloud, like the HS-IIoT platform.
Related terms
- Programmable logic controller (PLC)
- An industrial computer built to control machines and processes: it reads sensors and switches, runs the control program, and drives motors and valves, repeatedly and reliably.
- Modbus protocol
- A simple, open industrial protocol dating from 1979: a client asks, servers answer from numbered registers. It runs over RS485 (RTU) or Ethernet (TCP).
- Edge computing
- Processing data close to where it is produced, on site, instead of sending everything to the server: filtering, calculations and local decisions.