Process Alert Features
Process Alert™ is a modern alarm notification tool, integrated with Wonderware/AVEVA Application Server (or System Platform). It enables the Application Server system to send intrinsic, content-rich and secure alarm and event notifications. It also enables an unlimited number of reports to be accessible outside of the process control network to present process values in real time.
Listed below are its select features
Notification generation
Alarm messages delivered by Process Alert are generated intrinsically by Application Server objects.
In an equipment-based, object-oriented HMI environment built using Wonderware/Aveva Application Server, each object has the best information about state of equipment and alarm status. Therefore, alarm messages generated and delivered by Process Alert can include rich, collateral information about equipment status. Example of such situation-aware alarms include:
• Analog alarm notification with the current process value and the alarm setpoint value
• Motor alarm notification with total runtime today, total start today, current motor speed, average motor speed today, motor temperature, average vibration today or even information about the tandem-partner motor etc.
Alarm and event notifications generated intrinsically by Application Server objects. Objects themselves don’t need to be concerned about delivering notifications to target recipients.
Notification delivery
Notification delivery is done by using Broker component located within the process control network and a Gateway component located outside the network (typically in the DMZ or corporate network).
No inbound port needs to be open on the firewall perimeter of the process control network for alarm notifications and acknowledgments to be routed. All communication, including two-way transactions, are performed by a one-way, outbound-only secure connection between the Broker module located within the control network and the Gateway module located outside the process control network.
Event notifications
Process Alert also can send notifications that don’t require acknowledgment (i.e. event notifications). Such notifications can be sent upon start or conclusion of a phase of the process (start of a batch, end of filter backwash phase, switching to a different stage of the process etc.).
Reports
Reports are collections of any object attributes in the application (both historized any non-historized). System administrators and supervisor can define an unlimited number of reports by selecting attributes from the hierarchical Model View of the application. Report configuration is done using the Gateway web environment. Updates to tag values are delivered by the Broker to the Gateway and available via the web front-end of the Gateway. Users can effectively access up-to-date reports without connecting to the process control network.
Configuration and monitoring
Using the Gateway web portal, users, supervisors and administrators can access an up-to-date list of standing alarms and check delivery and escalation history of each alarm notification. Supervisors and administrator can configure reports, users and their connections (email, text message and voice calls), define schedules and escalation queues.
Software architecture
The solution includes two main functional modules:
• Broker that runs within the process control network. It sends alarm and event notifications generated intrinsically by application objects and passes them out to Gateway (described below). It also sends report value updates to Gateway. Finally, all alarm acknowledgments are received by the Broker from Gateway and processed with the Application Server.
• Gateway that runs outside of the process control network (typically within the DMZ network or corporate network). It receives updates from Broker and delivers email messages, text messages and voice calls to target recipients. Text messages and voice calls use a cloud-based delivery system. Also, all alarm acknowledgment received by Gateway are delivered to Broker.
Shown below is a basic architecture of the solution.
