Secure Communications for Process Safety Systems: An Overview of Industry Communication Landscape - Challenges, Opportunities, Disruptive Technologies

摘要

Over the past two decades the incorporation of wireless technology into process and safety systems has systematically increased. Meanwhile, the changes in wireless and associated technologies have rocketed - some say splintered - into a vast array of proposed and engineered technical underpinnings. The wireless mesh networking activities originally funded by DARPA (mid-90's) greatly influenced the mesh network topologies that are key for 2014's industrial field transmitters. The bewildering array of consumer-based wireless transport (from Bluetooth, to Wi-Fi to all sorts of cellular technologies) may or may not come into play with process and perhaps even safety systems (if the everpresent security issues are resolved). Integration of multiple applications data sharing a transport "pipe" in a process facility has significant implications for the IT department. The list just goes on and on. Regardless, the economic advantages presented by wireless technologies asures that their use in process and safety systems will monotonically increase. This presentation delivered by the Director and Director-Elect of the ISA Communication Division as well as the past President of the Wireless Industrial Networking Alliance (WINA) seeks to start with a "where are we now" in wireless technology (in general), then continue onwards to examine the Challenges, Opportunities, and Disruptive Technologies for process and safety systems.